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PRTG SMS notifications from one notification template

A PRTG SMS notification tells the on-call admin the device, the sensor and the value when a sensor turns Down overnight. PRTG already emails notification templates, so you add your Welco address to one template and set a trigger. There is no SMS gateway account to buy and nothing to install on the core server.

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  • One notification template
  • No SMS gateway account
  • No per-user fees

Works by email with

  • PRTG

Published:

A network map watched by PRTG: five hosts answer pings until fs-02 goes down (D: 6% free) and the monitor raises the alert. The email reaches Welco and the phone shows: “Welco: [fs-02] D: vol Down, 6% free at 3:57 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.”

Animation: a long PRTG alert email is trimmed into one short text: "Welco: [fs-02] D: vol Down, 6% free at 3:57 AM. Reply STOP to opt out."

PRTG alerting with and without Welco

PRTG on its own

  • Down sensors land in a shared inbox that nobody reads at 3 AM.
  • SMS delivery means setting up and paying for a third-party gateway.
  • Carrier email-to-text addresses no longer pass alerts along.
  • The HTML email is far too long to read on a lock screen.

PRTG with Welco

  • The admin on call gets the device and its status as one short text.
  • Delivery is one Send Email action pointed at your Welco address.
  • Branch alerts and server alerts can buzz different phones.
  • Every email notification you run today keeps working as before.

What you need before you start

PRTG must already send email, and one admin needs about 15 minutes in the web interface. Existing PRTG email recipients see no change. PRTG is one of many tools on the network monitoring text alerts overview.

  • PRTG on premises or PRTG Hosted Monitor that delivers email today. Mail settings live under Setup, System Administration, Notification Delivery.
  • A PRTG user who may edit notification templates and the groups or devices you want texts for.
  • A Welco account with your business verified. You get your Welco address when you start free.
  • Admins invited to Welco. Each joins with their own mobile, and nobody gets a PRTG alert before replying YES. No app is needed.

How to set up a PRTG SMS notification in 5 steps

PRTG splits alerting in two. A notification template says how to send. A notification trigger on a sensor, device or group says when.

  1. Approve PRTG's sender address in Welco

    Find the sender under Notification Delivery, or in the From line of a PRTG email. Add it in Welco, since only approved addresses can text.

  2. Create a notification template

    Go to Setup, Account Settings, Notification Templates and add a template. Give it a plain name, like Text on-call.

    • Turn on Send Email and paste your Welco address as the recipient.
    • Pick the plain text format instead of HTML for a cleaner text.
    • Cut the subject down to the device, sensor and status. The default carries more than a phone needs.

  3. Add a state trigger where it counts

    Open the Notification Triggers tab on the group or device you care about. Add a state trigger: when the sensor is Down for at least 60 seconds, perform Text on-call.

    • Triggers pass down to everything below them. On the Root group, one trigger covers the whole install.
    • Leave the Up action empty if recoveries shouldn't wake anyone.

  4. Send a test notification

    In the template list, use the test option on Text on-call. Run a no-send test in Welco first to see the result without a real text.

  5. Force a real Down to check the whole path

    Pick a spare Ping sensor and point it at an unused address. Within a minute or two it goes Down, and the text should follow.

Your PRTG Down alerts can be texts this afternoon

Verify your business, then paste your Welco address into one template.

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

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How a PRTG Ping alert reads on a phone

PRTG emails carry the probe, group, sensor link and scan history. On a lock screen, only the device and the state count.

Alert email from prtg@netmon.example.com, subject “[PRTG-Core] vpn-branch-4 Ping Down (No response)”. Welco trims it to one text of 86 characters: “Welco: [vpn-branch-4] Ping Down, host unreachable at 6:13 PM. Reply STOP to opt out.”

Text received: Welco: [vpn-branch-4] Ping Down, host unreachable at 6:13 PM. Reply STOP to opt out.

Characters352861 credit

Animation: the alert email "[PRTG-Core] vpn-branch-4 Ping Down (No response)" is trimmed into one text: "Welco: [vpn-branch-4] Ping Down, host unreachable at 6:13 PM. Reply STOP to opt out."

HTML emails become plain text with the line breaks kept, but plain text from the start is shorter. Welco can fit each alert in one text by trimming the rest.

Keep PRTG texts for alerts that need a person

PRTG can notify on almost anything. These settings save the phone for real outages, much like the credit union case study setup.

  • Short blips and flapping wait

    The for at least value on a state trigger is your first filter. Sixty seconds stops most single-scan failures, and longer suits links that drop and come back.

  • Recoveries only if you want them

    An empty Up action keeps all-clears in email. Fill it in if the night admin wants to know the sensor is back.

  • Maintenance stays quiet

    Paused objects and sensors inside a maintenance window send no notifications. Pause a device before patch work, or set the window in its schedule settings.

  • Dependencies and summaries for bursts

    A dependency pauses sensors behind a down branch firewall. Template summarization groups the rest, and Welco can throttle alert storms on top.

  • Branches to one admin, servers to another

    Put the group name in the subject and add subject-line rules in Welco. After hours, shift-based routing sends both to tonight's phone.

  • A second phone if it stays down

    A state trigger can run a second template if the sensor is still Down after, say, 10 minutes. That is PRTG's own feature. Start its subject with STILL DOWN and a Welco rule can add a manager's phone.

PRTG text not arriving

Check these four places in order. Most fixes take a minute.

Nothing in the sensor's log about a notification

Where to look
The trigger sits on the wrong group, or the for at least time hasn't passed yet.

PRTG logged it but no email showed up anywhere

Where to look
Your firewall may block PRTG's built-in mail relay. Set an SMTP server under Notification Delivery.

The Welco feed shows a refused message

Where to look
The sender isn't approved yet. Add the From address PRTG really uses.

The alert reached Welco but no phone buzzed

Where to look
The phone must be a mobile that replied YES. Welco shows proof each text was delivered and why one wasn't.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need PRTG's SMS delivery settings or an SMS provider account?

No. PRTG's SMS delivery relies on a third-party gateway that you set up and pay for. With Welco you only use PRTG's email notifications. The template emails your Welco address, and Welco texts every admin who joined and confirmed.

Should PRTG send plain text or HTML email to Welco?

Plain text. Welco converts HTML and keeps the line breaks, so HTML still works. Plain text is shorter from the start, which keeps each PRTG alert closer to one credit.

Will recoveries, flapping sensors or maintenance send texts?

Recoveries text only if the trigger's Up action is filled in. A longer for at least time keeps a flapping sensor quiet. Paused sensors and maintenance windows send no notifications at all.

Can different PRTG groups text different people, and nights go to on call?

Yes. Use one template per team with a subject prefix, or one template with the group name in the subject. Welco alert rules read the subject and pick the phones, with a different set after hours.

Can the on-call admin acknowledge a PRTG alarm by replying to the text?

No. A text reply is emailed back to the alert's last sender. Acknowledge the alarm in PRTG itself so your team sees someone has it.

What does a PRTG text cost?

You pay for message credits, not seats, and there is no hardware or setup fee. A short alert uses one message credit, and long HTML ones use more. Your first 7 days are a free trial with 15 credits to test PRTG triggers. Compare plans on pricing, where none charge overage and the card waits for your approval.

Send your next PRTG Down sensor to a phone

One template, one trigger, your Welco address. Texts start with the next alert.

Text me my PRTG alertsBook a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing