Alert Rules
Smart, Noise-Free Monitoring Alerts
Six condition types, multi-location consensus, cooldowns, and consecutive-failure smoothing. Alert rules that understand your infrastructure — not just "monitor is down, here is a page."
Start Monitoring FreeSix Condition Types, One Unified Rule Engine
Attach one or more rules to any monitor. Each rule watches for a specific failure pattern and fires only when it matches. No scripting, no branching logic — just pick the condition and set the threshold.
- Monitor down — the classic
- Response time above threshold (ms)
- SSL certificate expires within N days
- SSL certificate invalid or expired
- HTTP status code mismatch
- Response keyword mismatch
Multi-Location Consensus Kills False Positives
Every check runs from multiple probe locations in parallel. Configure each rule with an any, all, or majority strategy so a single bad route in Frankfurt doesn't wake you up at 2am. Majority consensus is the default for production alerts.
- Any location — fastest, sensitive
- All locations — strictest, quietest
- Majority — balanced, recommended
- Per-rule setting — mix strategies as needed
Consecutive Failures & Cooldowns Stop Alert Storms
A rule only fires after the condition holds for N consecutive checks (default 3), and won't fire again for M minutes (default 15). The result: clean incident signal with zero flap noise. During a sustained outage, your team gets one alert per incident — not one per check.
- Consecutive-failure threshold per rule
- Cooldown window in minutes
- Auto-recovery notifications when monitors return
- Enable/disable each rule independently
Test Alerts Before You Trust Them
Every rule has a "Send test alert" button. It delivers a synthetic notification to your verified alert contacts so you can prove the entire pipeline works — contact routing, email deliverability, Slack webhooks, custom endpoints — before a real incident ever hits production.
- One-click test from the dashboard
- Tests every linked alert contact
- Distinct "test" event payload — safe for webhooks
- Works against unverified contacts too (email skipped)
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about GoPinger alert rules.
What is an alert rule?
An alert rule is a condition attached to a monitor that, when met, triggers a notification to your verified alert contacts. GoPinger supports six condition types: monitor down, response time over a threshold, SSL certificate expiring, SSL certificate invalid, HTTP status code mismatch, and response keyword mismatch.
How do I stop getting false-positive alerts from one bad location?
Each rule has a multi-location strategy setting: any, all, or majority. With "majority" selected, the rule only fires when more than half of your configured probe locations agree that the monitor is down. This eliminates false positives from transient network issues in a single region.
How do consecutive failures and cooldowns work?
Consecutive failures (default 3) means a rule will only fire after the condition is met in that many back-to-back checks, smoothing out single-check flaps. Cooldown (default 15 minutes) prevents the same rule from firing again inside that window, killing alert storms during extended incidents.
Can I test an alert rule without creating a real outage?
Yes. Every rule has a "Send test alert" button that delivers a synthetic notification to all verified alert contacts attached to the rule. This lets you prove the end-to-end pipeline works before you trust it with production incidents.
What happens when a monitor recovers?
GoPinger automatically sends a recovery notification to the same alert contacts, including the total incident duration. Recovery emails, Slack messages, and webhooks are sent on the same channels as the original alert — no extra configuration.
Do alert rules cost extra?
No. Alert rules, consecutive-failure smoothing, and cooldowns are included on every GoPinger plan, including the free tier. Multi-location consensus needs more than one probe location, so it applies once you are on Starter or above (the Free plan runs from a single location). The main limits are the number of monitors and alert contacts per plan.
Ship Alerts You Can Trust
Get smart alert rules and cooldowns free on the Free plan, with multi-location consensus on paid tiers. No credit card required, no per-rule fees.
Start Monitoring Free