Re: Start up error - Mailing list pgsql-bugs

From Tom Lane
Subject Re: Start up error
Date
Msg-id 17279.1195316256@sss.pgh.pa.us
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In response to Start up error  ("Hussain Jawad-FXRM43" <FXRM43@motorola.com>)
Responses Re: Start up error
List pgsql-bugs
"Hussain Jawad-FXRM43" <FXRM43@motorola.com> writes:
> When I am trying to stop and start the DB, below error is reported in
> postgresql start up log file.

Exactly what are you doing to start and stop the server?  If you are
using a startup script, whose is it?

> I have deleted the file postmaster.pid in the directory
> /var/lib/pgsql/data for number of times and restarted the postgresql
> service, but I am still not able to restart the server and the same
> error is repeating again.

The best theory that comes to mind is that your start procedure is
somehow starting multiple copies of the postmaster.  The first one
starts OK and then the second (and third?) ones fail with the
lockfile complaint --- as well they should.

I'm a bit afraid that your manual removals of the lockfile (which is
A Bad Idea as a rule) have left you with multiple versions of the
postmaster running sans lockfile.  This would be very bad because you
can easily end up with a corrupted database.  Have you looked around
with "ps" to verify that there really aren't any postgres-owned
processes left over after a "failed" start?

In particular, you should absolutely not see any lockfile complaints
unless the PID mentioned in the message is a live process.  What is
PID 25372 and what is it doing?

            regards, tom lane

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