Complete guide to installing and configuring Zabbix

Whether you're building a new monitoring environment or replacing a legacy system, Zabbix offers a flexible, open-source solution for full-stack observability. This guide will walk you through the entire process of installing and configuring Zabbix, following official best practices for a production-grade setup.

Installing and configuring Zabbix: what you need to know

Zabbix uses a modular architecture that includes:

• Zabbix Server: the core engine that processes data and triggers

• Database: MySQL or PostgreSQL to store configuration and historical data

• Web frontend: PHP-based UI for configuration and visualisation

• Zabbix agents: collect OS-level metrics from monitored hosts

• Optional: Zabbix proxies for distributed or large-scale setups

System requirements:

• OS: RHEL/CentOS 8+, AlmaLinux 9, Debian 11, Ubuntu 20.04/22.04 LTS

• CPU: 2+ cores

• RAM: 2 GB minimum (8 GB recommended)

• Storage: SSD recommended for DB performance

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Step-by-step: installing Zabbix Server and frontend

This example installs Zabbix 6.0 LTS on AlmaLinux 9 with PostgreSQL.

1. Add Zabbix repository

dnf install -y https://repo.zabbix.com/zabbix/6.0/rhel/9/x86_64/zabbix-release-6.0-4.el9.noarch.rpm
dnf clean all

2. Install server, frontend, agent, and PostgreSQL components

dnf install -y zabbix-server-pgsql zabbix-web-pgsql zabbix-apache-conf zabbix-sql-scripts zabbix-agent postgresql-server

3. Initialize and start PostgreSQL

postgresql-setup --initdb
systemctl enable --now postgresql

4. Create Zabbix DB and user

sudo -u postgres psql

create database zabbix;
create user zabbix with encrypted password 'StrongPassword';
grant all privileges on database zabbix to zabbix;

5. Import initial schema

zcat /usr/share/zabbix-sql-scripts/postgresql/server.sql.gz | psql -U zabbix -d zabbix

6. Configure Zabbix Server database settings

Edit /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf:

DBPassword=StrongPassword

7. Start and enable Zabbix Server and Agent

systemctl enable --now zabbix-server zabbix-agent

8. Configure PHP for frontend

Edit /etc/php-fpm.d/zabbix.conf and set timezone:

date.timezone = Europe/Lisbon

systemctl enable --now php-fpm httpd

9. Access frontend

Navigate to http://<server_ip_or_hostname>/zabbix
Follow the web wizard to finish installation.

Related article: Cyber security: Protecting your business in the digital age

Deploying and configuring Zabbix agents

Zabbix agents allow collection of CPU, memory, disk, and custom metrics.

1. Install agent on Linux host

dnf install -y zabbix-agent
systemctl enable --now zabbix-agent

Edit /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agentd.conf:

Server=<zabbix_server_ip>
ServerActive=<zabbix_server_ip>
Hostname=host1.example.com

2. Install agent on Windows

Download from Zabbix Windows downloads
Configure .conf file and register agent as Windows service.

3. Verify connectivity

Use zabbix_get from the server to check agent:

zabbix_get -s <agent_ip> -k system.uptime

Initial configuration: users, hosts, templates, triggers

After logging into the frontend:

1. Change default credentials

Login: Admin / zabbix → update password

2. Add monitored hosts

Go to Configuration > Hosts > Create host

• Set hostname, IP, group

• Link to appropriate Template OS Linux, Template OS Windows, or SNMP template

3. Configure triggers

Go to Configuration > Hosts > Triggers
Create logic such as:

Free disk space on / is less than 20% → High severity

4. Set up email alerts

Go to Administration > Media types and configure SMTP
Add media to user profile and create Action rule

Securing and optimizing your Zabbix deployment

TLS for agents

Enable encrypted communication between agents and server using PSK or certificates:

• Set TLSConnect=psk, TLSAccept=psk, and TLSPSKIdentity in agent and server config

Performance tuning

• Increase CacheSize, HistoryCacheSize, TrendCacheSize

• Disable unnecessary items and triggers

• Use housekeeper tuning to purge old data efficiently

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Backups

Use PostgreSQL pg_dump and Zabbix XML export for full recovery strategy.

How Syone helps you deploy Zabbix the right way

As a Zabbix-certified partner and Open Source Competence Center, Syone helps you:

• Design scalable Zabbix architectures

• Automate installation and configuration for hybrid environments

• Create custom templates and alerts

• Secure your setup with TLS and fine-grained roles

• Provide 24/7 managed support and SLA monitoring

From pilot to production, Syone ensures your Zabbix deployment is reliable, secure, and optimized.

Learn more about our Zabbix services or contact our experts for a tailored deployment plan.