Email Settings & Alerting

Overview: Email Alerting in Backup Manager

Backup Manager can send email notifications to keep you informed about important events across your network infrastructure.

Types of Email Alerts Available:

• Backup Notifications: Alerts when configuration changes are detected during backups
• Syslog Severity Alerts: Notifications for critical syslog messages (Emergency, Alert, Critical, Error)
• SNMP Alerts: Notifications for device reboots, interface changes, and performance thresholds

Prerequisites:

• SMTP server details (server address, port, credentials)
• Valid email addresses for sender and recipients
• Network connectivity to SMTP server from Backup Manager host

Step 1: Navigate to Email Settings

Access the Email Settings page from the sidebar menu.

How to Access:

• Click on Settings in the sidebar to expand the submenu
• Click on Email to open the Email Settings page

The Email Settings page is organized into several sections:

• SMTP Server Settings: Configure your mail server
• Authentication: Username and password for SMTP
• Email Addresses: Sender and recipient configuration
• Notification Settings: Master switches and backup alerts
• Syslog Severity Notifications: Alert levels for syslog events
• SNMP Alert Notifications: Device monitoring alerts

Step 2: Configure SMTP Server Settings

Enter your SMTP server details to enable email delivery.

SMTP Server:

• Enter your SMTP server hostname or IP address
• Examples: smtp.gmail.com, smtp.office365.com, smtp.yourdomain.com

SMTP Port:

• 587 - STARTTLS (Recommended): Secure connection, widely supported
• 465 - SSL/TLS: Legacy secure port, some providers still use this
• 25 - None: No encryption (not recommended for external servers)

Common SMTP Server Settings:

Provider	Server	Port
Gmail	smtp.gmail.com	587
Microsoft 365	smtp.office365.com	587
Yahoo Mail	smtp.mail.yahoo.com	587
Amazon SES	email-smtp.region.amazonaws.com	587

Step 3: Configure Authentication

Enter your SMTP authentication credentials.

Username:

• Usually your email address (e.g., alerts@yourdomain.com)
• For Gmail/Microsoft 365, use your full email address
• Leave blank only if your SMTP server doesn't require authentication (rare)

Password:

• Enter the password for your SMTP account
• For Gmail: Use an App Password (not your regular password)
• For Microsoft 365: May require an App Password if MFA is enabled
• Leave blank to keep an existing password when editing settings

Gmail App Password Setup:

1. Go to Google Account → Security → 2-Step Verification
2. Scroll to "App passwords" and click to generate
3. Select "Mail" and "Windows Computer"
4. Use the generated 16-character password

Step 4: Configure Email Addresses

Set up the sender address and add recipients for notifications.

From Address:

• The email address that will appear as the sender
• Example: backupmanager@yourdomain.com
• Must be valid and authorized by your SMTP server

Email Source Description:

• The friendly name shown in the "From" field
• Example: "Backup Manager", "Network Alerts", "IT Infrastructure"
• Helps recipients identify the source of notifications

Recipient Email Addresses:

• Add one or more email addresses to receive notifications
• Type an email address and click Add Recipient
• Add multiple recipients for team notification
• Click the × button to remove a recipient

Tip: Add a distribution list email to notify an entire team with a single address.

Step 5: Enable Notification Settings

Configure the master notification switch and backup alerts.

Enable Email Notifications:

• This is the master switch for all email notifications
• When disabled, no emails will be sent regardless of other settings
• Enable this to allow notifications to be sent

Backup Completion Notifications:

• Send email when configuration changes are detected during backup
• Helps you track when device configurations have been modified
• Email includes device name, timestamp, and change summary

Note: Backup notifications are triggered only when changes are detected, not for every backup.

Step 6: Configure Syslog Severity Notifications

Set up alerts for critical syslog messages from your network devices.

Available Severity Levels:

• Emergency (0): System is unusable - immediate action required
• Alert (1): Action must be taken immediately
• Critical (2): Critical conditions - hardware/software failures
• Error (3): Error conditions that should be investigated

Recommended Settings:

• Enable Emergency and Alert for critical infrastructure monitoring
• Enable Critical if you want to catch hardware/software failures
• Enable Error only if you can handle higher email volume

💡 Tip: Start with Emergency and Alert only, then add more levels as needed to avoid notification overload.

Step 7: Configure SNMP Alert Notifications

Set up email alerts for SNMP monitoring events.

Enable SNMP Alert Emails:

• Master switch for all SNMP-related email notifications
• Must be enabled for any SNMP alerts to be sent

Alert Levels:

• Critical Alerts:
  • Device reboots (cold/warm start)
  • Device offline/unreachable
  • Interface down events
• Warning Alerts:
  • High CPU usage threshold exceeded
  • High memory usage threshold exceeded
  • Response time threshold exceeded
• Info Alerts:
  • Interface up events
  • Enterprise SNMP traps
  • Device back online notifications

💡 Tip: Critical alerts are highly recommended. Info alerts can generate many emails on busy networks.

Step 8: Test Email Connection

Before saving, test the email configuration to ensure it works correctly.

To Test:

• Click the Test Connection button
• Wait for the test to complete (may take a few seconds)
• Check the result message

Test Results:

• Success: Test email sent successfully - check your inbox
• Connection Failed: Cannot reach SMTP server - check server address and port
• Authentication Failed: Wrong username or password
• Timeout: Server not responding - check firewall rules

Troubleshooting:

• Verify SMTP server is accessible from the Backup Manager host
• Check if firewall allows outbound connections on the SMTP port
• For Gmail/Office365, ensure you're using an App Password
• Verify the "From" address is authorized by your SMTP server

Step 9: Save Settings

Once testing is successful, save your email configuration.

To Save:

• Click the Save Changes button
• Wait for the confirmation message
• Settings are immediately active

After Saving:

• Email notifications will be sent based on your configured settings
• Backup change notifications will trigger when configuration changes are detected
• Syslog alerts will be sent when messages matching your severity levels arrive
• SNMP alerts will be sent when device events occur

Note: You can return to this page at any time to adjust notification settings or add/remove recipients.

Best Practices for Email Alerting

Notification Strategy:

• Start Conservative: Enable only critical alerts initially, then expand as needed
• Use Distribution Lists: Send to a team list rather than individual addresses
• Prioritize Alerts: Enable Emergency/Alert for syslog, Critical for SNMP
• Review Regularly: Adjust settings based on alert volume and usefulness

Security Recommendations:

• Use TLS/STARTTLS (port 587) for encrypted connections
• Use App Passwords for Gmail/Microsoft 365 instead of regular passwords
• Create a dedicated email account for Backup Manager alerts
• Regularly rotate SMTP credentials

Alert Fatigue Prevention:

• Don't enable all severity levels at once
• Consider using Warning SNMP alerts only for critical devices
• Use email filters/rules to organize alerts by type
• Review and tune alert thresholds based on your environment

Common Email Alert Use Cases:

• After-Hours Monitoring: Get notified of critical issues when you're away
• Change Tracking: Know immediately when configs change
• Proactive Maintenance: Catch device reboots and interface flaps early
• Compliance: Document that monitoring and alerting is in place