Install & Configure Zabbix Agent 2
This doc only cover install Agent 2 component on Linux, Ubuntu in my case.
Always verify the official docs
Prerequisites
Mine for this doc:
hostnamectl
# Virtualization: kvm
# Operating System: Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS
# Kernel: Linux 6.8.0-60-generic
# Architecture: x86-64
# Hardware Model: Compute Instance
smartmontools
smartmontools is required for Zabbix agent 2.
dpkg -l | grep smartmontools
which smartctl
Install smartmontools
sudo apt update
sudo apt install smartmontools
Install from Zabbix repository
a. Install Zabbix repository
sudo wget https://repo.zabbix.com/zabbix/7.2/release/ubuntu/pool/main/z/zabbix-release/zabbix-release_latest_7.2+ubuntu24.04_all.deb
sudo dpkg -i zabbix-release_latest_7.2+ubuntu24.04_all.deb
sudo apt update
b. Install Zabbix agent 2
sudo apt install zabbix-agent2
c. Optional: install agent plugins
You may want to install Zabbix agent 2 plugins.
sudo apt install zabbix-agent2-plugin-mongodb zabbix-agent2-plugin-mssql zabbix-agent2-plugin-postgresql
d. Start agent process
Start Zabbix agent 2 process and make it start at system boot.
sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2
sudo systemctl enable zabbix-agent2
Open firewall port 10050
For better security, restrict access to just your Zabbix server.
Allow only from Zabbix server’s IP
sudo ufw allow from ZABBIX_SERVER_IP to any port 10050 proto tcp
Check firewall rules
sudo ufw status numbered
Reload or enable UFW
sudo ufw enable
Configure Agent
Check /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.conf:
Server= should contain your Zabbix server’s IP address.
Restart agent:
sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2
Encrypt connection
Here using TLS with Pre-Shared Key (PSK), for other method, consult official docs.
For supported tools and key size limit, check the official docs.
a. Generate a PSK on the agent machine
Example to generate a 256-bit (32 bytes) PSK with OpenSSL:
sudo openssl rand -hex 32 | sudo tee /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.psk > /dev/null
b. Configure the agent for PSK
TLSConnect=psk
TLSAccept=psk
TLSPSKIdentity=MyZabbixPSK
TLSPSKFile=/etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.psk
Do not put sensitive information in PSK identity string - it is transmitted over the network unencrypted.
Restart the agent
sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2
Add monitoring to Zabbix Server
Template: Linux by Zabbix agent
Extra: server container connect to agent on the host
This for my setup with my config of docker-compose.yml and host running Agent 2
a. Check the zabbix-server container IP address
docker exec -it zabbix-server ip a
# 1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN qlen 1000
# link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
# inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
# valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
# inet6 ::1/128 scope host
# valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
#2: eth0@if11: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP,M-DOWN> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue state UP
# link/ether b6:9f:96:2d:4a:7a brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
# inet 172.18.0.4/16 brd 172.18.255.255 scope global eth0
# valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
172.18.0.4 is the IP address of the zabbix-server container.
b. Add Zabbix server IP to UFW
sudo ufw allow from 172.18.0.4 to any port 10050 proto tcp
sudo ufw enable
c. Configure Agent for Zabbix server
Make Sure Zabbix Agent 2 Listens on All Interfaces
ListenIP=0.0.0.0
Add the Zabbix server IP address to Agent configuration
ListenIP=172.18.0.4
restart agent
sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2
d. Test from the Zabbix server container
docker exec -it zabbix-server nc -vz HOST_SERVER_IP 10050
For debugging, check zabbix agent log:
sudo tail -f /var/log/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.log
Uninstall Zabbix Agent 2
To safely remove zabbix-agent2 and ensure it’s not starting automatically, follow these steps in order.
1. Stop the service (if running)
sudo systemctl stop zabbix-agent2
(Optional check)
systemctl status zabbix-agent2
2. Disable autostart
This removes it from system boot completely.
sudo systemctl disable zabbix-agent2
(Optional verify)
systemctl is-enabled zabbix-agent2
Expected output:
disabled
3. Remove the package
Normal removal (keeps config files)
sudo apt remove zabbix-agent2
Full clean removal (recommended)
Removes the package and configuration files.
sudo apt purge zabbix-agent2
4. Remove unused dependencies
sudo apt autoremove --purge
5. Verify it’s gone
Package check
dpkg -l | grep zabbix
Service check
systemctl list-unit-files | grep zabbix
Both should return nothing.
6. (Optional) Remove leftover directories
Only do this if you’re sure you won’t reinstall Zabbix.
sudo rm -rf /etc/zabbix
sudo rm -rf /var/log/zabbix
sudo rm -rf /var/run/zabbix
One-command clean uninstall (summary)
sudo systemctl stop zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo systemctl disable zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo apt purge -y zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo apt autoremove --purge -y
Uninstall Zabbix Agent 2
To safely remove zabbix-agent2 and ensure it’s not starting automatically, follow these steps in order.
1. Stop the service (if running)
sudo systemctl stop zabbix-agent2
(Optional check)
systemctl status zabbix-agent2
2. Disable autostart
This removes it from system boot completely.
sudo systemctl disable zabbix-agent2
(Optional verify)
systemctl is-enabled zabbix-agent2
Expected output:
disabled
3. Remove the package
Normal removal (keeps config files)
sudo apt remove zabbix-agent2
Full clean removal (recommended)
Removes the package and configuration files.
sudo apt purge zabbix-agent2
4. Remove unused dependencies
sudo apt autoremove --purge
5. Verify it’s gone
Package check
dpkg -l | grep zabbix
Service check
systemctl list-unit-files | grep zabbix
Both should return nothing.
6. (Optional) Remove leftover directories
Only do this if you’re sure you won’t reinstall Zabbix.
sudo rm -rf /etc/zabbix
sudo rm -rf /var/log/zabbix
sudo rm -rf /var/run/zabbix
One-command clean uninstall (summary)
sudo systemctl stop zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo systemctl disable zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo apt purge -y zabbix-agent2 && \
sudo apt autoremove --purge -y