Industrial Gateway Monitoring with PRTG

Industrial gateways are specialized devices or systems used in industrial environments to facilitate communication and data exchange between different types of networks, devices, or systems. They serve as intermediaries, translating protocols, aggregating data, and enabling interoperability in environments where diverse hardware and software need to work together. Industrial gateways are critical components in Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) architectures and automation systems.

Key functions include

• Protocol translation:
  • Convert data between incompatible industrial communication protocols (e.g., Modbus, PROFIBUS, OPC UA, MQTT).
  • Allow legacy devices to communicate with modern systems.
• Data aggregation:
  • Collect data from multiple sensors, devices, or subsystems.
  • Combine data for analysis or transmission to higher-level systems.
• Edge processing:
  • Perform data filtering, pre-processing, or analysis at the edge, reducing the need for raw data transmission to central systems.
  • Enable real-time decision-making close to the source.

Environmental technology

Gateways are used in a wide variety of industries and enable not only the integration of equipment into an existing network but also communication via the internet. Sectors such as mechanical and plant engineering, energy management, water and environmental technology, and building automation services benefit from their use.

This means that existing equipment does not necessarily have to be replaced by new equipment in order to be ready for the latest technology. Retrofitting can upgrade existing equipment to a level that enables it to join the world of IIoT.

Remote control & maintenance

With gateways, plants or machines can be maintained and controlled remotely. Technicians do not have to be sent out immediately to check on site every time an error message occurs but can be sent out specifically and only when required. This means that operators can be deployed efficiently, and downtime can be reduced.

In addition to maintenance, gateways also enable remote control of production systems or machines. This increases productivity, saves costs and enables access no matter where they are located. Particularly in the times of digitalization, these possibilities are becoming increasingly important.

Industrial gateway monitoring refers to the process of overseeing and managing the operation and performance of industrial gateways in an industrial or IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) environment. It involves tracking the health, functionality, and data flow of these gateways to ensure uninterrupted communication between connected devices, systems, and networks.

Industrial gateway monitoring includes:

• Tracking the operational status of the gateway (e.g., power status, connectivity)
• Monitoring CPU, memory, and storage utilization to prevent overloading
• Ensuring the gateway maintains stable connections with devices, systems, or cloud platforms
• Monitoring data transmission rates, latency, and potential network interruptions
• Detecting translation errors or dropped messages
• Measuring the amount of data being processed and transmitted
• Identifying bottlenecks or irregularities in data flow and throughput
• Checking for unauthorized access attempts or breaches
• Monitoring encryption and other security mechanisms

Industrial gateways play a critical role in ensuring smooth communication and data integration in industrial environments. Since these gateways are responsible for translating protocols, aggregating data, and enabling connectivity, any failure or suboptimal performance can disrupt operations, cause data loss, or compromise security. Monitoring helps detect and resolve issues proactively.

Paessler PRTG is a powerful, all-in-one network monitoring tool for getting the status and information from gateways in your IT/OT infrastructure in real time.

It supports gateways from well-known manufacturers and uses Node-RED as a link between IT, OT, and IIoT. It also offers a RESTful API to easily integrate IIoT devices.

See our detailed how-to guide for gateway monitoring.

In PRTG, “sensors” are the basic monitoring elements. One sensor usually monitors one measured value in your network, for example the traffic of a switch port, the CPU load of a server, or the free space on a disk drive. On average, you need about 5-10 sensors per device or one sensor per switch port.