A composite key is a set of values of several attributes. These attributes are considered to be a unique identifier that precisely defines the object, the message about which is sent by the monitoring system. It can be an attribute with an ID or a combination of many attributes.

The role of the composite key

1. After receiving a message from the monitoring system, the system forms a composite key from the values of those attributes that are specified as the Composite Key in the Monitoring Source.
2. The system checks the generated composite key of the message for uniqueness against the records in the Composite Keys table that have the corresponding Monitoring Source value.
3. The system generates a new record in the Composite Keys table if the composite key of the message is unique.