Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string) - Mailing list pgsql-hackers

From Robert Haas
Subject Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string)
Date
Msg-id CA+Tgmoa9JOFWVUS0hGPR+48Ka0tm_QkpobRX0wALGukSLtx8uA@mail.gmail.com
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string)  (Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us>)
Responses Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string)
Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string)
List pgsql-hackers
On Tue, Sep 6, 2011 at 5:34 PM, Tom Lane <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us> wrote:
> Marti Raudsepp <marti@juffo.org> writes:
>> This patch adds the backend's current running query to the "backend
>> crash" message.
>
> Sorry, this patch is entirely unacceptable.  We cannot have the
> postmaster's functioning depending on the contents of shared memory
> still being valid ... most especially not when we know that somebody
> just crashed, and could have corrupted the shared memory in arbitrary
> ways.  No, I don't think your attempts to validate the data are
> adequate, nor do I believe they can be made adequate.

Why and why not?

> And I doubt
> that the goal is worth taking risks for.

I am unable to count the number of times that I have had a customer
come to me and say "well, the backend crashed".  And I go look at
their logs and I have no idea what happened.  So then I tell them to
include %p in log_line_prefix and set log_min_duration_statement=0 and
call me if it happens again.  This is a huge nuisance and a serious
interference with attempts to do meaningful troubleshooting.  When it
doesn't add days or weeks to the time to resolution, it's because it
prevents resolution altogether.  We really, really need something like
this.

--
Robert Haas
EnterpriseDB: http://www.enterprisedb.com
The Enterprise PostgreSQL Company


pgsql-hackers by date:

Previous
From: Peter Eisentraut
Date:
Subject: Re: pgpass comment suggestion
Next
From: Marti Raudsepp
Date:
Subject: Re: [PATCH] Log crashed backend's query (activity string)