What it does
Cacti is a web-based monitoring and graphing application built around RRDtool. Administrators collect data from network devices and other sources, organize it with device and graph templates, then view the results in graphs and trees. Cacti also includes poller and data-collection options, automation rules, role-based access, and a plugin system. It is a separate GPL-licensed application, not RRDtool itself, and must be installed with its server-side dependencies.
Cacti is a fit when the desired output is a dependable set of network or system metric graphs that can be organized for ongoing operations. Its templates describe devices, data sources, and graphs; collection methods feed values into RRDtool, which stores and renders the historical series. The documentation has dedicated sections for devices, data sources, graphs, data collectors, templates, discovery rules, and graph viewing, so the workflow can be extended beyond a one-off chart.
What setup involves
Cacti is software to install on infrastructure you manage, not a hosted monitoring account. The official download page lists MySQL, PHP, RRDtool, net-snmp, and a PHP-capable web server such as Apache or IIS as requirements, and links to Linux/Unix and Windows installation guidance. A practical first task is to install the server stack, add a network device, choose an appropriate device/data template, and configure collection so its measurements can be displayed as graphs. The manual also covers network discovery and rules for automatically creating devices and graphs.
Cacti's strength is structured polling and graphing, with plugin hooks and multiple collection approaches for teams that need to customize what they gather. Its documented hook API is an extension interface for plugins; it should not be mistaken for a general-purpose REST API to query monitoring data. Operators still need to interpret the graphs and decide what to change on a failing host or network.
The official project releases the software under the GNU GPL, version 2 or later, and provides source downloads. No project subscription or hosted-service pricing was established. Budget for the server, database, poller setup, and ongoing administration rather than assuming that the license removes operational work.
Strengths
- RRDtool-backed graphing provides historical views of collected device and system measurements.
- Templates and automation rules can standardize device discovery and graph creation.
- The framework supports plugins and multiple data-acquisition methods for customized monitoring.
- Official installation documentation covers both Linux/Unix and Windows deployments.
Watch out for
- Operators must provide and maintain a MySQL, PHP, RRDtool, net-snmp, and web-server stack.
- Cacti focuses on polling and graphing; teams need other tools for needs such as distributed tracing or log search.
Best for
- Building historical SNMP graphs for network devices
- Teams that want to control their own polling, templates, and monitoring server
- Extending network monitoring with custom collection methods or plugins
Sources
- Cacti® - The Complete RRDTool-based Graphing Solution (Oct 25, 2026)
- Cacti® - The Complete RRDTool-based Graphing Solution (Oct 25, 2026)
- Cacti® - The Complete RRDTool-based Graphing Solution (Oct 25, 2026)
- GNU General Public License, Version 2 (Cacti LICENSE) (Oct 25, 2026)