## Extended Information Configuration

What is Extended Information?

Extended information consists of optional definitions for hosts and services that is used by the CGIs in the following ways:

- to provide URLs to additional information about the host or service
- to add pretty icons to the hosts and services displayed in the web interface
- to draw hosts in the statusmap and statuswrl CGIs at user-defined 2-D and 3-D coordinates

Where is Extended Information Defined?

That all depends on how you compiled the CGIs. Or more correctly, it depends on what options you supplied to the configure script before you compiled everything. There are several different methods for storing extended information definitions. They are as follows...

- Old "default" method - Definitions are stored in the CGI config file. This method is provided only for backward compatabilty. I recommend that you use one of the methods described below for storing extended information definitions instead. Note that although this is call the "default" method for historical reasons, the CGIs default to using the template-based method (described below) unless you specifically compile them with this method.
- Template-based method - Definitions are stored in seperate configuration files. You can use templates to define entries for multiple hosts and services quickly and easily. Note that by default, the CGIs will use this method unless you compile them with support for a different method instead.
- Database method - Definitions are stored in a database.