Most IT environments today are a mix. Windows servers in one rack, Linux boxes in another, maybe some Docker containers on top of that. For years, PRTG users in those environments had to get creative — Wine-based workarounds, clunky emulators, setups that technically worked but nobody wanted to maintain.
That's not the situation anymore. PRTG now has a native Linux solution, and it's actually good. Whether you want to monitor Linux servers from your existing PRTG setup or deploy a probe directly on a Linux machine, both are straightforward today.
This article covers how PRTG works on Linux, what you can monitor, which distros are supported, and how to get started.
The short answer: yes and no, and the distinction matters.
The PRTG core server still requires Windows. That hasn't changed. But running PRTG on Linux used to mean Wine-based workarounds that were more proof-of-concept than anything you'd run in production.
Today it's different:
You don't need a Windows machine at every location. One Windows core server can manage probes running across your entire Linux infrastructure.
The Multi-Platform Probe is PRTG's native Linux agent, introduced in PRTG version 21.4.73. It's what makes real Linux monitoring possible without compromise.
A few things that set it apart from older probe approaches:
It's a fully autonomous monitoring outpost. You put it on a Linux machine, it keeps watch, and it reports back to your core. No local Windows environment needed.
One of the most common questions is whether PRTG will work on a specific setup. Here's the current supported platform list:
Linux Distributions:
Container and Specialized Environments:
Deployment methods:
That covers a lot of ground — traditional on-prem Linux servers, containerized environments, and edge devices on ARM hardware. If you're running Ubuntu specifically, the complete PRTG Ubuntu installation guide walks through the full setup process.
Once the Multi-Platform Probe is running, you get solid visibility into your Linux systems. Here's what PRTG covers out of the box:
System Health:
Network and Traffic:
Custom and Advanced Monitoring:
SNMP is one of the more reliable ways to pull system metrics from Linux servers, though it does require some setup on the Linux side. If you haven't done that yet, the guide to monitoring Linux system parameters via SNMP is worth reading before you start.
You don't need to overhaul your setup to get Linux monitoring running. Three steps:
Step 1 — Get the PRTG core server running on Windows
This is your central hub. Already running PRTG? You're good. Starting fresh? Download PRTG and get the core up first.
Step 2 — Deploy the Multi-Platform Probe on your Linux machine
Install via APT or RPM depending on your distro, or pull the Docker image. The probe registers with your core server once it's up.
Step 3 — Connect and start adding sensors
Once connected, add your Linux devices and sensors through the PRTG web interface. You'll have live data coming in pretty quickly.
The PRTG Multi-Platform Probe Setup Guide covers the full process in detail, including NATS server configuration. You can also get an overview of PRTG's Linux network monitoring capabilities on the Paessler website.
PRTG isn't the only Linux monitoring option out there. But it stands out in a few specific situations.
It's a good fit if you:
You might look elsewhere if you:
For most teams managing hybrid infrastructure, PRTG's combination of ease of use, broad sensor library, and native Linux probe support makes it worth a look. More on what's possible in PRTG's Linux monitoring overview.
Linux support in PRTG has come a long way. The Multi-Platform Probe gives you native Linux coverage, broad distro support, and the full PRTG sensor library, all managed from the same interface you're already using for Windows and network monitoring.
If you're running a mixed environment and want to stop treating Linux as the awkward exception, this is a reasonable place to start. Check out PRTG's Linux network monitoring capabilities or download PRTG and try it free.