Table of Contents

1. What Are Monitoring Regions?
2. What Are Confirmation Tests?
3. How to Set Up Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests
4. How Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests Impact Uptime Tests
5. Why Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests Are Important
6. Why Locations Are Important & How to Determine Which Regions Matter Most
7. Whitelisting for Customers with IP Restrictions
8. FAQs on Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests
9. Best Practices for Optimizing Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests

Key Concepts: Initial Test & Confirmation Tests Initial Test: This is the first test performed by our monitoring systems to check if your website is up or down. The Initial Test is executed from a selected or random Monitoring Region. Confirmation Tests: If the Initial Test detects downtime, one or more Confirmation Tests may be run; depending on your uptime test configuration. You can choose to have 0 to 3 Confirmation Tests, which will be conducted from other servers within the same Monitoring Region. Confirmation Tests help to verify whether the downtime is real before marking your site as down, or sending alerts. This reduces false positives and ensures that you only get notified when it’s a confirmed issue.

What Are Monitoring Regions?

Monitoring Regions in StatusCake represent specific geographic areas from where your website’s uptime is tested. Each region typically corresponds to a city within a country, ensuring that your tests are performed from key locations around the world. For example, within the United States, you might select regions such as U.S. New York, U.S. San Francisco, or U.S. Chicago. There may be multiple Monitoring Regions within a single country, each representing a different city.

Each Monitoring Region contains at least four (4) servers, ensuring that uptime checks are conducted with accuracy and reliability. When a check is initiated, one of the servers within the selected region performs the Initial Test, and if downtime is detected, Confirmation Tests from the same region verify the downtime.

Why Monitoring Regions Matter  

Choosing specific Monitoring Regions allows you to prioritize the regions that are important to your business, ensuring that you monitor uptime from the locations that matter most to your customers. For instance, if your customer base is heavily concentrated in specific regions or cities, you can monitor from those exact locations to ensure accurate uptime data and a better user experience.

View our full list of available Monitoring Regions.

What Are Confirmation Tests?

Confirmation Tests are additional tests used to verify downtime. When the Initial Test detects downtime, the selected number of Confirmation Tests recheck your website from the same region to confirm the issue. This process helps ensure that downtime isn’t a false positive, or caused by a temporary, or localized problem.

Once the downtime is verified, alerts are sent if a Contact Group has been assigned to the uptime test.

How to Set Up Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests

In the Monitoring Regions & Confirmation Tests section of the uptime test creation/edit page, both features can be configured. Only paid customers can assign one or more Monitoring Regions, as this feature is locked for free users. However, all users—free and paid—can configure the number of Confirmation Tests.

We recommend the following:

• Select regions most relevant to your business. See our guide on choosing the right region.
• Avoid adding too many regions, as this can dilute the effectiveness of monitoring. See our section on why fewer regions are better.
• Note that the same Monitoring Region cannot be selected more than once. For example, if you select Toronto, it will be locked out for further selections.

Steps for Paid Customers:

1. Go to the Create or Edit Uptime Test page.
2. Scroll to the Monitoring Regions & Confirmation Tests section.
3. Select one or more Monitoring Regions from the list provided.
4. Adjust the number of Confirmation Tests from 0 to 3 as needed (the default is 2).
5. Save your test settings.

Steps for Free Customers:

1. Go to the Create or Edit Uptime Test page.
2. Scroll to the Monitoring Regions & Confirmation Tests section, you will not be able to select Monitoring Regions but can configure Confirmation Tests.
3. Adjust the number of Confirmation Tests from 0 to 3, with the default being 2.
4. Save your test settings.

How Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests Impact Uptime Monitoring

Monitoring Regions

Scenario 1: No Monitoring Regions Assigned

• If no Monitoring Region is selected, our monitoring systems will randomly select a server from any of our global Monitoring Regions for the Initial Test.
• If downtime is detected,  our monitoring systems will continue to check from that Monitoring Region until the issue is resolved. Only once the website is confirmed as up again will the system randomly choose a new Monitoring Region for future checks.

Example: If the Initial Test occurs in Zurich and downtime is detected, our monitoring systems will continue to check from Zurich until the site is confirmed as up. Afterward, the next check could be from any one of the servers within our global network of  Monitoring Regions.

Scenario 2: One Single Monitoring Region Assigned

• When one Monitoring Region is assigned, the Initial Test and any Confirmation Tests will run exclusively within that chosen Monitoring Region.
• If downtime is detected, the system will continue to check from that Monitoring Region until the issue is resolved.  Our monitoring systems will continue monitoring from that  Monitoring Region when the website is confirmed as up again.

Example: If you assign London as your monitoring region, your website will be monitored from London only. If the website goes down, it will continue to be checked from London until the issue is resolved. Once the issue is resolved, monitoring will continue from London.

Scenario 3: Multiple Monitoring Regions Assigned

• When two or more monitoring regions are assigned, our monitoring systems will randomly select a Monitoring Region from any of those assigned for each test.
• If downtime is detected in one Monitoring Region, the system will continue checking from that same Monitoring Region until an up event is detected.
• After the up event is confirmed, our monitoring systems will randomly select the next Monitoring Region for future tests.

Example: If you assign both London and New York as your Monitoring Regions:

• The Initial Test could randomly start in London. If downtime is detected, the system will continue checking from London until the issue is resolved.
• Once the site is confirmed as up in London, the next test could be randomly assigned to New York, or London.

Confirmation Tests 

0 Confirmation Tests: The uptime monitoring test relies solely on the Initial Test. This setup is faster but more prone to false positives.

1-3 Confirmation Tests: If the Initial Test detects downtime, additional Confirmation Tests will be conducted, depending on your configuration. The more Confirmation Tests you use (up to 3), the higher the accuracy. If a Confirmation Test finds the site is up, it won’t be marked as down, and no alert will be sent. These Confirmation Tests are performed by other servers within the same Monitoring Region.

Why Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests Are Important

For Monitoring Regions:

Accurate Regional Uptime Data: Choosing specific Monitoring Regions ensures that you receive data from areas critical to your business, avoiding irrelevant global checks.

Minimized Downtime in Key Markets: By focusing your monitoring efforts on your main customer locations, you can detect and respond to downtime more quickly where it matters most.

For Confirmation Tests:

Reduced False Positives: False positives can occur due to temporary issues, such as local network congestion or minor hiccups. Confirmation Tests help eliminate these false alerts by requiring additional checks before the website is marked as down, and alert notifications are sent.

Customizable Alert Precision: Adjust the number of Confirmation Tests to match your business’s tolerance for downtime alerts. For businesses that need faster alerts, fewer Confirmation Tests may be preferable, while those that prioritize accuracy can opt for more Confirmation Tests.

Why Monitoring Regions Are Important & How to Determine Which Regions Matter Most

Choosing the right Monitoring Regions is crucial for ensuring your website’s uptime in the areas that matter most. Here’s how to determine which regions to prioritize:

1. By Traffic Volume

Use tools like Google Analytics or SimilarWeb to identify which regions generate the most traffic to your website. These regions should be a priority for uptime monitoring.

2. By Revenue

Certain regions may drive more revenue than others. Prioritize uptime monitoring in regions that are most valuable to your business.

3. By User Experience and Geography

Regions closer to your servers or key markets might experience better performance. Monitoring these regions can help you detect issues early, especially in areas prone to latency or connectivity challenges. Learn more about improving page speed by visiting our StatusCake Pagespeed guide.

4. By Strategic Business Goals

If you’re expanding into new regions, proactively monitoring those areas can help ensure a smooth user experience for new customers.

5. By Regional Compliance or Regulations

Some U.S.-based websites choose to block or limit access to EU visitors due to regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Using Monitoring Regions, along with other uptime test configurations, you might choose to: (a) focus your monitoring on important U.S. markets to ensure optimal performance for your primary audience; and (b) monitor from the EU to be alerted if the site becomes accessible in regions where it shouldn’t be.

Additionally, industries like financial services, government departments, and healthcare often need to prioritize uptime in specific regions where they’re legally required to maintain service availability for business continuity or to meet specific industry regulations. Monitoring these regions ensures compliance and helps avoid potential legal issues or interruptions in service.

7. What Is a Private Monitoring Region?

A Private Monitoring Region is a dedicated monitoring location that only you can access. Unlike public Monitoring Regions that conduct tests for multiple customers, a Private Monitoring Region is reserved solely for your uptime tests, ensuring that monitoring is both exclusive and customizable.

A Private Monitoring Region may also be in a country where StatusCake does not currently offer a publicly available region, giving you access to specific locations not included in the general Monitoring Region list.

Why Use a Private Monitoring Region?

A Private Monitoring Region can offer several advantages, particularly for businesses with unique performance, security, or compliance needs. Scenarios where having a dedicated region for your uptime tests could be beneficial include:

1. Enhanced Data Privacy & Security

For organizations in regulated industries like finance or healthcare, data privacy is paramount. A Private Monitoring Region ensures that no other customers are using the same monitoring location, offering greater control over network interactions and supporting compliance with industry regulations.

2. Consistent, Isolated Performance Data

If your business needs highly consistent monitoring data unaffected by other users’ tests, a Private Monitoring Region can provide isolated results. This setup is ideal for benchmarking and fine-tuning website performance or tracking specific metrics over time without external influence.

3. Testing Within a Restricted Network

Some companies operate websites or applications that are only accessible from specific networks or IP addresses. A Private Monitoring Region allows you to set up a region within that restricted network, providing accurate uptime data for internal applications or customer portals that aren’t accessible from public servers.

4. Minimized False Positives in Sensitive Environments

By using a Private Monitoring Region, you reduce the likelihood of false positives caused by traffic from multiple users. This can be particularly valuable for high-stakes environments, like e-commerce platforms or financial services, where consistent, reliable monitoring is critical for maintaining customer trust.

5. Specialised Regional Compliance 

If your organization is subject to region-specific compliance requirements, a Private Monitoring Region ensures that testing data is sourced strictly from your selected geographic location, meeting any necessary regulatory standards while offering full visibility over performance in that region.

For more information about setting up a Private Monitoring Region, please contact our support team.

Whitelisting for Customers with IP Restrictions

Some customers may require IP whitelisting to restrict access to their website or infrastructure to specific IP addresses. In such cases, we recommend assigning one Monitoring Region per uptime check to streamline the whitelisting process.

Each Monitoring Region may vary in size, but many have only four (4) servers. Since uptime tests can be conducted from any server within the Monitoring Region, including the initial test and any Confirmation Servers, it’s important to whitelist the entire region’s IP addresses. This ensures that all servers conducting the tests can interact with your site without restrictions.

By selecting a single Monitoring Region per test, you reduce the number of IP addresses that need to be whitelisted, making it easier to manage your security controls while maintaining the integrity of your monitoring setup.

For a full list of IP addresses associated with each Monitoring Region, please refer to our StatusCake IP Address List.

FAQs on Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests

What happens if I don’t select any Monitoring Region?

If no Monitoring Region is selected, our monitoring systems will randomly choose a server from our global network for each test. This may lead to uptime tests being conducted in regions that are irrelevant to your business.

What happens if I set 0 Confirmation Tests?

Setting 0 Confirmation Tests means that no additional verification will be performed. If the Initial Test detects downtime, the website will be marked as down and an alert will be sent immediately. This is faster but carries a higher risk of false positives.

What do I do if my website seems stuck in a down period?

If your website is showing persistent downtime in a region, it is likely down for a specific reason. We recommend using our root cause analysis feature to identify the cause of the downtime. If you need further assistance, our support team is available to help resolve the issue.

Alternatively, you can edit the uptime check and change the Monitoring Regions. If no region was previously selected, saving the test with a specific region will now run the test from the newly selected Monitoring Region.

If the site is then shown as up in the new Monitoring Region, the downtime will end. Please note that this does not mean your website has recovered in the original region, but that you have chosen to prioritize monitoring in your newly selected Monitoring Region.

Best Practices for Optimizing Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests

For Monitoring Regions:

Prioritize Critical Regions: Assign Monitoring Regions based on where your customers are located or where website performance is most important.

Avoid Too Many Regions: Be careful when assigning multiple regions, as this can lead to tests being spread too thin across regions, reducing check frequency in key areas.

For Confirmation Tests:

Use the Default (2 Confirmation Tests): This provides a good balance between accuracy and speed, ensuring alerts are reliable without unnecessary delays.

Increase Confirmation Tests for Accuracy: If your business cannot tolerate false positives, consider using 3 Confirmation Tests to maximize the accuracy of downtime alerts.

Final Thoughts

Monitoring Regions and Confirmation Tests provide flexibility and precision for ensuring your website’s uptime and minimizing false positives. By selecting the right regions and configuring the number of Confirmation Tests, you can customize your uptime monitoring to match the unique needs of your business.

For customers requiring IP whitelisting, selecting a single Monitoring Region per uptime test simplifies the process and ensures consistent monitoring while adhering to security restrictions.

If your question wasn’t answered here, or if you’d like to see something added to the FAQs, let us know—our team is ready to help!”