diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service.rb
index 49b4b2065e..a475f0c81b 100644
--- a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service.rb
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service.rb
@@ -6,8 +6,10 @@ require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/note_data_service'
 require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/web_data_service'
 require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/service_data_service'
 require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/session_data_service'
+require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/session_event_service'
 require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/exploit_data_service'
 require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/loot_data_service'
+require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/msf_data_service'
 
 #
 # All data service implementations should include this module to ensure proper implementation
@@ -23,8 +25,10 @@ module DataService
   include NoteDataService
   include ServiceDataService
   include SessionDataService
+  include SessionEventDataService
   include ExploitDataService
   include LootDataService
+  include MsfDataService
 
   def name
     raise 'DataService#name is not implemented';
@@ -34,6 +38,10 @@ module DataService
     raise 'DataService#active is not implemented';
   end
 
+  def active=(value)
+    raise 'DataService#active= is not implemented';
+  end
+
   def is_local?
     raise 'DataService#is_local? is not implemented';
   end
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/core.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/core.rb
index f59ac73d1d..d1953e9ed1 100644
--- a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/core.rb
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/core.rb
@@ -52,30 +52,36 @@ class DataProxy
   end
 
   #
-  # Registers a data service with the proxy and immediately
-  # set as primary if online
+  # Registers the specified data service with the proxy
+  # and immediately sets it as the primary if active
   #
-  def register_data_service(data_service, online=false)
+  def register_data_service(data_service)
     validate(data_service)
     data_service_id = @data_service_id += 1
     @data_services[data_service_id] = data_service
-    set_data_service(data_service_id, online)
+    set_data_service(data_service_id)
   end
 
   #
   # Set the data service to be used
   #
-  def set_data_service(data_service_id, online=false)
+  def set_data_service(data_service_id)
     data_service = @data_services[data_service_id.to_i]
     if data_service.nil?
       raise "Data service with id: #{data_service_id} does not exist"
     end
 
-    if !online && !data_service.active
-      raise "Data service not online: #{data_service.name}, not setting as active"
+    if !data_service.is_local? && !data_service.active
+      raise "Data service #{data_service.name} is not online, and won't be set as active"
     end
 
+    prev_data_service = @current_data_service
     @current_data_service = data_service
+    # reset the previous data service's active flag if it is remote
+    # to ensure checks are performed the next time it is set
+    if !prev_data_service.nil? && !prev_data_service.is_local?
+      prev_data_service.active = false
+    end
   end
 
   #
@@ -154,12 +160,12 @@ class DataProxy
     begin
       db_manager = opts.delete(:db_manager)
       if !db_manager.nil?
-        register_data_service(db_manager, true)
+        register_data_service(db_manager)
         @usable = true
       else
         @error = 'disabled'
       end
-    rescue Exception => e
+    rescue => e
       raise "Unable to initialize data service: #{e.message}"
     end
   end
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/data_proxy_auto_loader.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/data_proxy_auto_loader.rb
index ce0eda6211..5088ad0f22 100644
--- a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/data_proxy_auto_loader.rb
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/data_proxy_auto_loader.rb
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ module DataProxyAutoLoader
   autoload :DbExportDataProxy, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/db_export_data_proxy'
   autoload :DbImportDataProxy, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/db_import_data_proxy'
   autoload :VulnAttemptDataProxy, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/vuln_attempt_data_proxy'
+  autoload :MsfDataProxy, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/msf_data_proxy'
 
   include ServiceDataProxy
   include HostDataProxy
@@ -36,4 +37,5 @@ module DataProxyAutoLoader
   include DbExportDataProxy
   include DbImportDataProxy
   include VulnAttemptDataProxy
+  include MsfDataProxy
 end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/msf_data_proxy.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/msf_data_proxy.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..ab4605e936
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/proxy/msf_data_proxy.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+module MsfDataProxy
+  def get_msf_version
+    begin
+      data_service = self.get_data_service
+      data_service.get_msf_version
+    rescue => e
+      self.log_error(e, "Problem retrieving Metasploit version")
+    end
+  end
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/core.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/core.rb
index 69a7f1fa5c..d0ad3a71db 100644
--- a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/core.rb
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/core.rb
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ class RemoteHTTPDataService
   # @param [String] endpoint A valid http or https URL. Cannot be nil
   #
   def initialize(endpoint, framework, https_opts = {})
+    @active = false
     validate_endpoint(endpoint)
     @endpoint = URI.parse(endpoint)
     @https_opts = https_opts
@@ -40,6 +41,26 @@ class RemoteHTTPDataService
 
   end
 
+  def name
+    "remote_data_service: (#{@endpoint})"
+  end
+
+  def active
+    # checks if data service is online when @active is falsey and makes the assignment
+    # this is to prevent repetitive calls to check if data service is online
+    # logic should be enhanced to considering data service connectivity
+    # and future data service implementations
+    @active ||= is_online?
+  end
+
+  def active=(value)
+    @active = value
+  end
+
+  def is_local?
+    false
+  end
+
   def error
     'none'
   end
@@ -152,7 +173,7 @@ class RemoteHTTPDataService
     rescue EOFError => e
       elog "No data was returned from the data service for request type/path : #{request_type}/#{path}, message: #{e.message}"
       return FailedResponse.new('')
-    rescue Exception => e
+    rescue => e
       elog "Problem with HTTP request for type/path: #{request_type}/#{path} message: #{e.message}"
       return FailedResponse.new('')
     ensure
@@ -160,21 +181,6 @@ class RemoteHTTPDataService
     end
   end
 
-  #
-  # TODO: fix this
-  #
-  def active
-    return true
-  end
-
-  def name
-    "remote_data_service: (#{@endpoint})"
-  end
-
-  def is_local?
-    false
-  end
-
   def set_header(key, value)
     @headers = Hash.new() if @headers.nil?
 
@@ -224,6 +230,19 @@ class RemoteHTTPDataService
     raise 'Endpoint cannot be nil' if endpoint.nil?
   end
 
+  #
+  # Checks if the data service is online by making a request
+  # for the Metasploit version number from the remote endpoint
+  #
+  def is_online?
+    response = self.get_msf_version
+    if response && !response[:metasploit_version].empty?
+      return true
+    end
+
+    return false
+  end
+
   def build_request(request, data_hash)
     request.content_type = 'application/json'
     if !data_hash.nil? && !data_hash.empty?
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/data_service_auto_loader.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/data_service_auto_loader.rb
index c4bc34d9af..6086f99955 100644
--- a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/data_service_auto_loader.rb
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/data_service_auto_loader.rb
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ module DataServiceAutoLoader
   autoload :RemoteNmapDataService, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_nmap_data_service'
   autoload :RemoteDbExportDataService, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_db_export_data_service'
   autoload :RemoteVulnAttemptDataService, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_vuln_attempt_data_service'
+  autoload :RemoteMsfDataService, 'metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_msf_data_service'
 
   include RemoteHostDataService
   include RemoteEventDataService
@@ -33,4 +34,5 @@ module DataServiceAutoLoader
   include RemoteNmapDataService
   include RemoteDbExportDataService
   include RemoteVulnAttemptDataService
+  include RemoteMsfDataService
 end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_msf_data_service.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_msf_data_service.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..103267f209
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/remote_msf_data_service.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+require 'metasploit/framework/data_service/remote/http/response_data_helper'
+
+module RemoteMsfDataService
+  include ResponseDataHelper
+
+  MSF_API_PATH = '/api/v1/msf'
+  MSF_VERSION_API_PATH = "#{MSF_API_PATH}/version"
+
+  def get_msf_version
+    json_to_hash(self.get_data(MSF_VERSION_API_PATH, nil, nil))
+  end
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/msf_data_service.rb b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/msf_data_service.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..c898981fbf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/metasploit/framework/data_service/stubs/msf_data_service.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+module MsfDataService
+  def get_msf_version
+    raise 'MsfDataService#get_msf_version is not implemented'
+  end
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/msf_servlet.rb b/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/msf_servlet.rb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..5fc6ba307a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/msf_servlet.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+module MsfServlet
+
+  def self.api_path
+    '/api/v1/msf'
+  end
+
+  def self.api_version_path
+    "#{MsfServlet.api_path}/version"
+  end
+
+  def self.registered(app)
+    app.get MsfServlet.api_version_path, &get_msf_version
+  end
+
+  #######
+  private
+  #######
+
+  def self.get_msf_version
+    lambda {
+      set_json_response({metasploit_version: Metasploit::Framework::VERSION})
+    }
+  end
+
+end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/online_test_servlet.rb b/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/online_test_servlet.rb
deleted file mode 100644
index 1462f81ede..0000000000
--- a/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/online_test_servlet.rb
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,21 +0,0 @@
-module OnlineTestServlet
-
-  def self.api_path
-    '/api/v1/online'
-  end
-
-  def self.registered(app)
-    app.get OnlineTestServlet.api_path, &get_active
-  end
-
-  #######
-  private
-  #######
-
-  def self.get_active
-    lambda {
-      set_empty_response()
-    }
-  end
-
-end
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/sinatra_app.rb b/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/sinatra_app.rb
index 5f7d67b7d8..7a4e575ff3 100644
--- a/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/sinatra_app.rb
+++ b/lib/msf/core/db_manager/http/sinatra_app.rb
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/note_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/vuln_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/event_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/web_servlet'
-require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/online_test_servlet'
+require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/msf_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/workspace_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/service_servlet'
 require 'msf/core/db_manager/http/servlet/session_servlet'
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ class SinatraApp < Sinatra::Base
   register VulnServlet
   register EventServlet
   register WebServlet
-  register OnlineTestServlet
+  register MsfServlet
   register NoteServlet
   register WorkspaceServlet
   register ServiceServlet
diff --git a/lib/msf/ui/console/command_dispatcher/db.rb b/lib/msf/ui/console/command_dispatcher/db.rb
index 943cdcb768..00784a40e8 100644
--- a/lib/msf/ui/console/command_dispatcher/db.rb
+++ b/lib/msf/ui/console/command_dispatcher/db.rb
@@ -1994,7 +1994,7 @@ class Db
       framework.db.register_data_service(remote_data_service)
       print_line "Registered data service: #{remote_data_service.name}"
       framework.db.workspace = framework.db.default_workspace
-    rescue Exception => e
+    rescue => e
       print_error "There was a problem registering the remote data service: #{e.message}"
     end
   end
@@ -2004,7 +2004,7 @@ class Db
       data_service = framework.db.set_data_service(service_id)
       framework.db.workspace = framework.db.default_workspace
       data_service
-    rescue Exception => e
+    rescue => e
       print_error "Unable to set data service: #{e.message}"
     end
   end