Thread: [9.3 bug fix] backends emit hundreds of messages when statistics file is inaccessible

Hello,

I've found a bug in PostgreSQL 9.3 beta 2 which is related to statistics
collection which emits excesssive amount of error messages.  Please find
attached the patch to fix this.  I confirmed this problem occurs in
PostgreSQL 9.2, too.  Could you backport this?


[Problem]
If the directory specified by stats_temp_directory becomes inaccessible to
postgres, enormous amount of WARNING messages are output.  For example, when
I set wrong permission on the directory by mistake while the database server
is running and then started psql, more than 600 messages were emitted in a
few seconds like this:

WARNING:  could not open statistics file
"/work/maumau/stats_tmp/pgstat.stat": Permission denied
LOG:  could not open temporary statistics file
"/work/maumau/stats_tmp/pgstat.tmp": Permission denied
WARNING:  could not open statistics file
"/work/maumau/stats_tmp/pgstat.stat": Permission denied
WARNING:  could not open statistics file
"/work/maumau/stats_tmp/pgstat.stat": Permission denied
WARNING:  could not open statistics file
"/work/maumau/stats_tmp/pgstat.stat": Permission denied
...

Even when there's no client, these messages are output regularly.  I guess
this is because autovacuum runs.


[Cause]
In backend_read_statsfile(), the backend loops PGSTAT_POLL_LOOP_COUNT
(=1000) times trying to open the statistics file.  The backend emits a
WARNING message if it fails to open the file in every iteration of the loop.


[How to fix]
Emit the message upon the first failed attempt.  For some diagnostics
purposes, emit the message with DEBUG2 level on the subsequent attempts.
DEBUG2 is arbitrary.


Regards
MauMau

"MauMau" <maumau307@gmail.com> writes:
> I've found a bug in PostgreSQL 9.3 beta 2 which is related to statistics 
> collection which emits excesssive amount of error messages.  Please find 
> attached the patch to fix this.  I confirmed this problem occurs in 
> PostgreSQL 9.2, too.  Could you backport this?

It's not apparent that this is a good idea, let alone a bug fix.

> If the directory specified by stats_temp_directory becomes inaccessible to 
> postgres, enormous amount of WARNING messages are output.

Well, yeah, because all of that functionality just broke.  Not warning
about it doesn't seem like a good idea.  AFAICT, your patch would result
in the situation not being remarked on anywhere except in the postmaster
log.
        regards, tom lane

From: "Tom Lane" <tgl@sss.pgh.pa.us>
> "MauMau" <maumau307@gmail.com> writes:
>> If the directory specified by stats_temp_directory becomes inaccessible 
>> to
>> postgres, enormous amount of WARNING messages are output.
>
> Well, yeah, because all of that functionality just broke.  Not warning
> about it doesn't seem like a good idea.  AFAICT, your patch would result
> in the situation not being remarked on anywhere except in the postmaster
> log.

No, my patch makes backend_read_statsfile_timestamp() emit just one warning 
message instead of outputing the same message 1,000 times in one call.  So 
your concern does not exist.  Is this OK?

Regards
MauMau