RE: "opendkim dead but subsys locked" yet there are opendkim processes

From: Tracy Wise <tracywise_at_hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2013 17:24:59 +0000

----------------------------------------
> Subject: RE: "opendkim dead but subsys locked" yet there are opendkim processes
> From: ietf-dkim_at_kitterman.com
> Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2013 11:54:23 -0500
> To: opendkim-users_at_lists.opendkim.org
>
>
>
> Tracy Wise <tracywise_at_hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> >There was actually an error message logged by opendkim in maillog when
> >I would start the opendkim service:
> >
> >
> >
> >can't write pid to /var/run/opendkim/opendkim.pid: No such file or
> >directory
> >
> >OpenDKIM Filter v2.7.4 starting (args: -x /etc/opendkim.conf -P
> >/var/run/opendkim/opendkim.pid)
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >So apparently the shell script couldn't write the pid file to the
> >/var/run/opendkim directory because the directory didn't exist. The
> >cookbook instructions that I followed (on another site, not from your
> >docs) set /var/run/opendkim/opendkim.pid as the pid file in
> >opendkim.conf yet it didn't instruct me to create that directory (a
> >simple but very important step).
> >
> >So I just now created the directory and now after starting the service
> >it recognizes it when I do "service opendkim status" because it was
> >able to create the pid file.
> >
> >So the problem was all on my end, as usual.
> >
> >Maybe there is nothing to fix in the shell script; at least there is an
> >error message logged. However, apparently the opendkim daemon returns
> >a 0 (true) value even though it wasn't able to create the pid file, and
> >hence the subsys lock file is created. (So that's where the system
> >gets confused, because opendkim gets started and lock file created even
> >though it wasn't able to create a pid file.) I don't know if that's
> >something to change or not, like I said at least the error message is
> >logged (which I should have looked for and noticed from the beginning
> >and saved me and you a lot of time). Or maybe the daemon shouldn't
> >return 0 (true) if it can't create the pid file, and simply fail to
> >start with the error message logged.
> >
> >This is also why I couldn't do "service opendkim stop", simply because
> >there was no pid file created when the service started, so the system
> >can't find a process id for the service, to stop the process.
> >
> >I think I'm now all good to go.
>
> The init script that is starting the service should check if the directory exists and create it if it doesn't. /var/run can be on a tempfs so just because you manually created once, it's not guaranteed to always be there.
>
> I would file a bug about this.
>
> Scott K
>
>

Okay thanks Scott.  Yes I simply manually created the opendkim subdirectory in the existing /var/run directory.  I had no idea that it may not be permanent, on some systems.  Thanks for the info.  Well from my "mount" output it appears that my /var/run is not on tmpfs, so I guess I'm okay.  But I totally see what you mean.  Thanks again.

Tracy
Received on Sat Jan 19 2013 - 17:25:12 PST