Testing a Zabbix Agent on Disposable VMs: 10 Silent Failures Found for a Few Cents
An agent install script that prints "Installation completed successfully" proves very little. The agent can be running, connected to the server, and reporting wrong values or nothing at all on some checks, without a single error message. That is what we found while testing the Logiserv agent install script on brand-new virtual machines. Here is the method, what it cost, and the ten problems we…
A testing method for a Zabbix agent install script on disposable virtual machines was employed to identify issues. The script proved insufficient, as the agent could run, connect to the server, and report incorrect values or no values at all without any error messages. Ten problems were discovered, affecting any Zabbix installation, and most of them pertain to Zabbix implementations.
The testing method involved deleting VMs instead of stopping them to ensure each test had a clean environment. The process included launching VMs with a shutdown command to automatically delete them after two hours, using AWS Systems Manager for commands, and adhering to strict IAM permissions. The issues found included testing a distribution family rather than an architecture, the smallest VMs having memory and CPU issues, SELinux and systemd denying access to system information, hidden SELinux denials, missing ACLs, and zero-enabled logs in Debian 12.
Additionally, permissions errors and calculated scores stopping due to unsupported items were identified. These findings highlight the importance of thorough testing in a controlled environment to ensure proper Zabbix agent installation and operation.
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