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Documentation

version 1.2

1. Introduction

Outagen is a web application for continuously verifying that website and web application monitoring tools are working correctly.

Outagen works by periodically simulating various types of website problems and then checking whether they are properly detected and reported.

Outagen can currently simulate the following incidents:

  • Connection timeout
  • HTTP error
  • Long loading time
  • Missing content
  • Content change
  • Invalid SSL certificate
  • Expiring SSL certificate

More incident types are coming soon.

Outagen verifies incident detection by checking whether an alert has been received at an email address or webhook URL.

Undetected incidents are reported by email or to a webhook.

2. Quick start

To launch your first Monitor:

  1. Register and log in to the dashboard.
  2. On the Monitor List, click "Add new monitor".
  3. Enter your own Monitor name, for example "My content presence monitor".
  4. Select the type of simulated incident, for example "Missing content".
  5. Enter any additional incident parameters, for example the content that should normally be present on the page and disappear during the incident.
  6. Set the incident generation frequency, for example "1 day".
  7. Select the incident duration, for example "10 minutes".
  8. Decide how incident detection should be verified, for example "Email".
  9. Copy the generated email address.
  10. Set how long Outagen should wait before reporting a failure to detect the incident, for example "5 minutes".
  11. Copy the "Monitored website URL".
  12. Specify how you want to receive alerts about undetected incidents, for example "Email".
  13. Provide your email address or webhook URL.
  14. Before saving your new Monitor, create the corresponding monitor in your Monitoring Tool in another browser window.

3. Objects

  • Monitoring Tool - the monitoring system (external application) whose proper operation is to be verified
  • Monitor - a single service that verifies the detection of one type of Incident
  • Page - a website generated by a Monitor and monitored by the Monitoring Tool
  • Incident - a single occurrence of an outage or other problem generated by a Monitor on the Page
  • Reaction - the action expected from the Monitoring Tool after correctly detecting an Incident (sending an email message or a request to a webhook)
  • Alert - a notification sent to the User about an undetected incident (sending an email message or a request to a webhook)

4. Interface

4.1. Monitor List

This view presents a list of all Monitors created under the account, including:

  • name
  • type of simulated incident
  • current Page status
  • start and end dates and times of the last Incident
  • detection status of the last incident

From the list, you can perform the following actions on Monitors:

  • display (preview) the Page
  • pause and resume monitoring
  • mute and unmute alerts
  • go to reports (incident history)
  • edit
  • delete
  • add new Monitors

Bulk operations are also available for selected monitors:

  • pause and resume monitoring
  • mute and unmute alerts

The list can be sorted in several ways.

4.2. Monitor Settings

The add/edit Monitor form contains the following fields:

  • name
  • type of simulated incident, available options:
    • "Connection timeout"
    • "HTTP error"
      • "HTTP status code" (401 / 403 / 404 / 500 / 503)
    • "Long loading time"
      • "Loading time" (1-30 seconds)
    • "Missing content"
      • "Content"
    • "Content change"
      • "Element selector"
      • "Default content"
      • "Changed content"
    • "Invalid SSL certificate"
    • "Expiring SSL certificate"
      • "Expiration period" (7 / 14 / 30 days)
  • incident frequency (2 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour / 1 day / 1 week / 1 month) - how often the incident should be simulated
  • incident duration (1-60 minutes) - how long a single incident should last
  • expected reaction (how incident detection should be verified)
    • webhook
      • webhook URL (the address generated by Outagen to be pasted into the monitor configuration in the Monitoring Tool)
    • email
      • email address (the address generated by Outagen to be pasted into the monitor configuration in the Monitoring Tool)
    • time to wait for the reaction (1-60 minutes) - how long Outagen waits before recording a missing reaction
  • page URL (the address generated by Outagen to be pasted into the monitor configuration in the Monitoring Tool)
  • alerting
    • email (email addresses to which alerts about failed incident detection should be sent)
    • webhook (the URL to which messages about failed incident detection should be sent)

4.3. Monitor History

The current monitor status and the history of incidents and detections for any selected period (the last 30 days by default).

Monitor status (for a given period):

  • name
  • type of simulated incident
  • current Page status
  • report time range
  • total number of incidents
  • number and percentage of detected incidents
  • number of undetected incidents

An incident can be generated manually using the "Generate incident now" button.

Incident history:

  • incident start date and time
  • incident end date and time
  • incident duration (in minutes)
  • incident detection status
  • incident detection date and time

4.4. User Settings

Editing:

  • contact details (First and Last Name, Business Name, Email address)
  • password
  • time zone.

5. Incident simulation

For each active Monitor:

Between incidents, the page URL serves a normal page:

  • immediate server response
  • HTTP status code "200 OK"
  • valid, current SSL certificate
  • minimal loading time
  • "Content" (for a "Missing content" monitor)
  • "Default content" inside the element with the "Element selector" (for a "Content change" monitor).

Incidents are generated according to the defined frequency and the selected type:

  • "Connection timeout" - no server response
  • "HTTP error" - the selected "HTTP status code" returned in the HTTP header
  • "Long loading time" - a full page load delayed by the defined "Loading time"
  • "Missing content" - absence of the defined "Content"
  • "Content change" - displaying the defined "Changed content" inside the element with the "Element selector"
  • "Invalid SSL certificate" - an invalid SSL certificate (issued for a different host name)
  • "Expiring SSL certificate" - an SSL certificate with a validity period shorter than the defined "Expiration period".

The incident lasts for the duration defined in the configuration, and after it ends, the normal page is served again.

The next incident is generated after the "incident frequency" has elapsed from the start of the previous incident.

6. Incident detection verification

Correct incident detection by the Monitoring Tool is verified based on received email or webhook notifications.

Detection is confirmed if, within the "time to wait for the reaction" defined in the Monitor, a notification is received at the specified email address or webhook URL.

7. Alerting

Notifications about undetected incidents can be sent by email or to a webhook.

7.1. Example alert sent by email

Subject:

undetected incident: My Load Time Monitor

A simulated incident has not been reported by your monitoring tool:
- monitor name: My Load Time Monitor
- simulated incident: Long loading time
- incident started: 2026-03-22 20:16:02
- incident ended: 2026-03-22 20:46:02
- duration: 30 minutes
- expected reaction: "email alert at mailbox+ulm45m@outagen.net"
---
This is an automated message from www.outagen.com.

7.2. Example message sent to a webhook

{
    "monitor": {
        "id": "33",
        "name": "My Load Time Monitor",
        "url": "https://ulm45m.outagen.net",
        "simulated incident": "Long loading time",
        "expected reaction": "email alert at mailbox+ulm45m@outagen.net"
    },
    "incident": {
        "id": "2333",
        "start": "2026-03-22 20:16:02",
        "end": "2026-03-22 20:46:02",
        "duration": 30,
    },
    "timezone": "GMT+01:00"
}

8. Roadmap

Features planned for upcoming implementation:

  • simulation of SSL certificates nearing expiration
  • simulation of domains nearing expiration
  • generation of unavailability incidents only for specific IP addresses
  • simulation of monitored API errors
  • verification of maintenance windows (monitoring pauses)
  • incident history export
  • API
  • subaccounts