Usage Monitoring provides a real-time, detailed view of your current Internet (although it doesn't have to be) usage. Usage lets you set your quota and monthly time period and then shows you use usage vs. that time in a display at the top of the main PeakHour window, like this:
Configuring Usage Monitoring
To set up Usage Monitoring:
- Check the Enable Usage Monitoring checkbox at the top of the Usage tab.
- Choose a Target that will be monitored for usage from the Target drop down.
- Choose whether a Mensiverary (or monthly rollover) date applies. This is the day of the month that your usage resets. If you're unsure, check with your ISP.
If you choose not to enable this, Usage operates in "Pre-paid" mode where usage will continue to accumulate until it is manually reset. This is useful if you buy your Internet in pre-paid chunks. - On the Quota tab, choose between Anytime or Peak/Off Peak. Set the amounts of data included in your quota and (if Peak/Off Peak is chosen) the time of day when Off Peak applies.
- Choose whether Uploaded data counts towards quota.
Target
| Target | This is the Target that is monitored for usage. |
|---|---|
| Automatically reset usage on the... | This checkbox controls whether usage is automatically reset.
|
| Reset... | Resets usage to zero. |
| Adjust... | Opens a panel allowing you to manually adjust the current amount of usage. Use this if you're part way through your usage period and need to bring PeakHour 'into sync' with actual usage. |
Quota
The Quota tab is where you configure how much internet usage you are allowed.
| Anytime Quota | Anytime quota lets you specify your maximum quota for the period. Note: specify a quota of '0' if you have no limit but still want to track usage. |
|---|---|
| Peak / Off-peak | If your ISP offers a different quota during Off Peak hours vs. Peak hours, choose this option. Note: specify a quota of '0' in either if you have no limit for that period but still want to track usage. |
| Between... | The time period for which Off-peak quota applies. Usage between these two times is considered Off Peak usage and usage outside these two times is considered Peak usage. |
| Uploaded data counts towards quota | Some ISPs do not count uploads towards your quota usage. Turn this on to count uploaded data; turn it off to ignore it. |
Display
This tab allows you to change the way Usage is displayed.
| Enable Usage View | This option allows you to toggle the usage view at the top of the main window on or off.
|
|---|---|
| Show overall usage in menu bar | This option shows the total usage so far in the menu bar.
|
| Highlight excessive usage | If the usage bar moves past the time bar, this option will turn usage dark red to indicate that you've used more quota than there is time remaining.
|
Triggers
Usage triggers allow you to set thresholds at which PeakHour will trigger an event.
PeakHour can perform these things in response to a trigger threshold being met:
- Display a notification
- Send an email
- Run a script
For example, you may want to receive a notification when you've exceeded 50% and 75% of your monthly quota. You may then also want to receive a notification and an email at 100% of your monthly quota.
You can create as many triggers as you like.
Note: Due to the nature of sandboxing on OS X, there are a number of restrictions around running scripts in response to a trigger. If your command does not run, check Console for any error messages. It is likely that you will need to alter the script to take these restricted permissions into account.
Thresholds
Usage thresholds can either be:
- A specific amount of usage in Megabytes
- A specific amount of usage in Gigabytes
- A percentage of your total usage.
When peak/off-peak usage is used, you can specify different triggers for both.
Accuracy
The accuracy tab displays some information about the currently chosen Target and allows you to disable the warning about usage inaccuracy.
For detailed information about Usage Monitoring and accuracy, see the Usage Monitoring Wiki page.