Start with the Collectors tab: it lists every data source and says why one isn't working. The most common symptoms are below. Service errors are also written to the Windows Application event log, source IISMonitor.
Response times show “not traced”
- Click Enable response times in the toolbar.
- Make sure the IIS HTTP Logging role service is installed:
Install-WindowsFeature Web-Http-Logging. - Check the Collectors tab: it shows how many sites are traced. Sites that use central binary logging can't be traced.
- Make sure Live response times is ticked in Settings.
Pool network looks low, or process network shows “—”
Kernel tracing is off or failed, so outbound traffic is missing and the pool's network total is website traffic only. Check Disk & network (kernel ETW) on the Collectors tab. Windows allows up to eight such system trace sessions at once, and other monitoring tools may be using them; stopping one frees a slot.
DB connections are 0, but the app uses SQL Server
- SQL Server may listen on a non-default port: add it under SQL Server ports in Settings, or tick Also count connections to any port a local SQL Server listens on.
- The app may use shared memory or named pipes to a local SQL Server, which aren't TCP connections. Add a connection string under SQL Server activity: SQL Server then reports the sessions itself.
The dashboard says “Standalone mode”
The IIS Monitor service isn't running. Click Start the service in the banner, or check the Application event log for the reason it stopped. If the service isn't installed, run install-service.cmd as administrator (how).
Performance counter columns are empty
The Windows performance counter registry may be damaged. From an elevated command prompt, rebuild it and restart the service:
lodctr /R
net stop IISMonitor
net start IISMonitorThe Requests tab lists no client IPs or methods
Use Set up IIS logging… on the Requests tab (details). Sites created later need setting up again.
Visitors behind a proxy show as “unknown (via …)”
Add the proxy's address or range to Trusted proxies under Blacklist rules, and log header fields on that site with Set up IIS logging…. IIS Monitor's X-Forwarded-For field must be the last custom field; the tab warns you if it isn't.
Blocks show “Not blocked: …”
The message says why. Common causes:
- Windows Firewall is off for the active network profile, or Group Policy ignores local firewall rules.
- The IIS IP and Domain Restrictions role service is missing, needed to block visitors behind a proxy:
Install-WindowsFeature Web-IP-Security.
Failed blocks are retried every minute, so once the cause is fixed they apply by themselves.
“The IIS Monitor service is older than this dashboard”
The Requests or Database tab needs a newer service. Run install-service.cmd from the new version's folder; it replaces the service and keeps your settings and history.
Queries from this server appear under “other servers”
A query is matched to this server only when its client reports this computer's name as host name, which is the default. Remove Workstation ID from the app's connection string, or set it to the server's name.