User:Narc/Host Monitor System

So, I'm thinking a setup like this:


 * (The control) Node: summarizes the uptime reports it receives
 * Leaf: reports uptime for a host

Now, the tricky parts:
 * the Node needs to be able to ping its known Leaves, therefore it needs to keep a list of known Nodes
 * from the above, we discern a second need for Nodes to be listening for requests for information
 * but similarly, we don't want to poke more holes in more systems than we need to, so let's make this a TCP stream-based system, whereby Leaves connect to the Node and keep their connections active, periodically sending reports
 * ideally, this should be done with an asynchronous, event-driven approach whereby the node wouldn't eat CPU polling its sockets repeatedly, waiting for data to come through... but it can perfectly well be done with stream_select and the like instead. Need to see what PHP is capable of.