SCOM 2012 SP1 Can't get email alerts for Heartbeat Failure or Computer Unreachable when combined with Group.

Question

Hello,
I have SCOM 2012 SP1 RTM POC lab.  I have created a dynamic group that picks up my system center servers based on some simple criteria and this works fine.
I have set up a subscription for critical and high severity alerts originating from this dynamic group called SCOM Servers to send emails to a distribution.  This also worked well for any critical alert that was NOT Heartbeat Failure or Computer Unreachable. 
I see those in the console but no email.
So I set up a new subscription by right clicking on the alerts and here's the kicker.  If add no other conditions to these subscriptions, they will send emails to the DL I provided, but if add the condition initiating from group, and specify my dynamic
group SCOM servers, no email alert.  But the alert still appears in the console.
Any ideas on this?  I would like the appropriate support groups to get these types of alerts for the servers that they support (i.e. SCOM will get SCOM servers, Exchange Admin will get Exchange and never the two roads shall meet.).
I even tried some internet posted custom management pack, but I couldn't import it after adding the code that he listed.
I mean, isn't this a basic requirement for any mid-sized company?
Any help is greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Hi Donald,
Like Dan says you need to add the "Health Service Watcher" objects to the groups as wel. Unfortunately this cannot be done in the Dynamic group Editor but has to be done in the XML. Export the XML and add the following piece of code between the
lines </MembershipRule></MembershipRules>:
<MembershipRule>
 <MonitoringClass>$MPElement[Name="SystemCenter!Microsoft.SystemCenter.HealthServiceWatcher"]$</MonitoringClass>
<RelationshipClass>$MPElement[Name="MicrosoftSystemCenterInstanceGroupLibrary7084300!Microsoft.SystemCenter.InstanceGroupContainsEntities"]$</RelationshipClass>
<Expression>
<Contains>             
<MonitoringClass>$MPElement[Name="SystemCenter!Microsoft.SystemCenter.HealthService"]$</MonitoringClass>
      <Expression>
<Contained>         
<MonitoringClass>$MPElement[Name="MicrosoftWindowsLibrary7084300!Microsoft.Windows.Computer"]$</MonitoringClass>
          <Expression>
            <Contained>
              <MonitoringClass>$Target/Id$</MonitoringClass>
            </Contained>
          </Expression>
        </Contained>
      </Expression>
    </Contains>
  </Expression>
</MembershipRule>
Save the XML delete the old one in OpsMgr and import the edited.
For SP1 the SystemLibrary version is 7.0.8430.0. If this is not your version you need to edit this in the code above.
Hope this helps,
Regards Marthijn van Rheenen
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