What does the active mode in Zabbix agent do?

In Zabbix, the active mode of the agent is designed to gather data independently without waiting for requests from the Zabbix server. When the agent operates in active mode, it actively collects performance and monitoring data based on its configuration, processes this data locally, and then sends it to the Zabbix server at specified intervals.

This is beneficial because it allows for reduced network traffic and minimizes the load on the server, as the agent itself handles the data collection. The agent will only communicate with the server to send the collected data instead of waiting for polling requests, making it a more efficient mode for many use cases.

In contrast, the other choices represent different functionalities or behaviors that do not accurately depict the core function of active mode. For instance, processing through external pollers typically relates to how the Zabbix server collects data, rather than how the agent operates in active mode. Accepting requests from the server would describe passive mode more appropriately, where the agent waits for the Zabbix server to request data. Lastly, the concept of storing data for later retrieval is not relevant to the active mode, as the emphasis is on immediate transmission rather than deferred storage.