Monitoring knowledge is distilled into platform-nonspecific patterns of high-level language elements compiled into management packs or other rule packs targeting specific platforms. A server health and/or configuration monitoring knowledge compiler accepts distillation document(s) and target-specific information, and generates target-specific rule packs to be consumed by monitoring tools to monitor specific target platforms consistent with the platform-nonspecific monitoring elements. Computational rule pack generation is qualitatively different from manual rule pack creation. Plug-ins tailor the compiler to generate on-premises or cloud-based rule packs. Distillation element examples include monitor alert types, instructional content types, target attributes and tags, monitored item types, event alert types, performance collection types, policy monitor types, and threshold monitor types. Tags on monitoring elements indicate relevant products, locations, product features, monitoring tool features, contributors, etc. Runtime code is shared by multiple rule packs for different target platforms.