Werk #13644: Deprecating NSCA as part of Checkmk

Component Other components
Title Deprecating NSCA as part of Checkmk
Date Apr 6, 2022
Level Prominent Change
Class New Feature
Compatibility Incompatible - Manual interaction might be required
Checkmk versions & editions
2.2.0b1
Not yet released
Checkmk Raw (CRE), Checkmk Enterprise (CEE), Checkmk Cloud (CCE), Checkmk MSP (CME)
2.2.0b1
Not yet released
Checkmk Raw (CRE), Checkmk Enterprise (CEE), Checkmk Cloud (CCE), Checkmk MSP (CME)
2.2.0b1 Checkmk Raw (CRE), Checkmk Enterprise (CEE), Checkmk Cloud (CCE), Checkmk MSP (CME)
2.1.0b5 Checkmk Raw (CRE), Checkmk Enterprise (CEE), Checkmk MSP (CME)

With Checkmk 2.1 we officially deprecate the component NSCA which has traditionally been a part of Checkmk but was rarely used. In 2.1 it will work as before and be removed with Checkmk 2.2.

With werk #6515 (https://checkmk.com/werk/6515) we have already removed the libmcrypt dependency of NSCA from the Checkmk package dependencies to make installation of Checkmk easier in regular cases. Now we want to clean up the inconsistency that users might experience in case they try to use NSCA (missing library). We also want to save the effort of maintaining the component and its dependencies.

If you are a user of NSCA with Checkmk an alternative solution depends on your specific use case. You could try to extend the Checkmk agent with local checks (https://docs.checkmk.com/latest/en/localchecks.html), or with you own agent plus. Or you could utilize the spool directory mechanism of the agent #16 (https://checkmk.com/werk/16). Executing Nagios compatible plugins with the MRPE feature of the agent could also be useful (https://docs.checkmk.com/latest/en/agent_linux.html#mrpe). Alternatively you could also build NSCA on your own on the Checkmk server.

If you can't find a good replacement for your use case, please contact us via your support contact.

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