Zabbix Agent Active Mode Workflow and Configuration Guide

Zabbix‑Agent Active Mode Workflow:

In active mode, when Zabbix‑Agent starts, it immediately creates a TCP connection to the Zabbix‑Server and sends a request to obtain the list of items that need to be actively monitored.

The workflow consists of the following steps:

Establish a TCP connection from Zabbix‑Agent to Zabbix‑Server.

Request the list of items to monitor.

Zabbix‑Server responds with the item list.

Zabbix‑Agent receives the list and acknowledges the request.

After the session ends, the TCP connection is closed.

Zabbix‑Agent begins periodic data collection.

After data collection, Zabbix‑Agent sends the data back to Zabbix‑Server. The sending cycle equals the item update interval.

Step 1: Configure Zabbix‑Agent

Edit /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agentd.conf and set the following important parameters:

# Disable passive checks
StartAgents=0
# Zabbix Server address
ServerActive=192.168.179.103
# Hostname used by the server to identify this agent
Hostname=192.168.179.104

Example commands:

[root@localhost ~]# vim /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agentd.conf
[root@localhost ~]# systemctl start zabbix-agent
[root@localhost ~]# netstat -tpln | grep 100

Output shows the agent listening on port 10050:

tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:10050 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN 15386/zabbix_agentd
tcp6 0 0 :::10050 :::* LISTEN 15386/zabbix_agentd

Step 2: Configure Zabbix‑Server

Create an active‑mode template by cloning an existing passive template (e.g., Template OS Linux ) and rename it to Template OS Linux Active . Unlink any linked templates, then perform a mass update on all items to change their type to Zabbix agent (Active) .

Template cloning steps (illustrated in the images):

After cloning, rename the template and unlink the original linked templates, then change the item type:

Configuration → Template → Template OS Linux → Full clone → Template name: Template OS Linux Active → Add
Template name: Template OS Linux Active → Linked templates → Unlink
Template name: Template OS Linux Active → Items → Select all → Mass update → Type: Zabbix agent (Active) → Update

Step 3: Configure the Host in Zabbix‑Server

The hostname defined in the agent configuration ( Hostname=… ) must exactly match the host name created on the Zabbix‑Server; otherwise the server cannot associate incoming data with the correct host.

Assign the cloned active template ( Template OS Linux Active ) to the host.

Final Note: Ensure that the Hostname value is unique and consistent between the agent configuration and the Zabbix‑Server host definition; otherwise active mode data collection will fail.

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