Messages are printed on screen

Messages are printed on screen

[Markus Feldmann]

Hi All,

i am setting up my Server, with Linux Debian lenny. Therefore i am using 
  Kernel 2.6.31.1. I configured this Kernel with <make defconfig> and 
<make menuconfig>. My motherboard has 5 PCI slots and 1 AGP slot. All 
slots are in use. All devices are mapped to the following IRQ-Line:

Mass Storage Device (PCI Slot1)	IRQ-Line 11
Ethernet (PCI Slot 2) 		IRQ-Line 4
Ethernet (PCI Slot 3) 		IRQ-Line 5
Ethernet (PCI Slot 4) 		IRQ-Line 7
Ethernet (PCI Slot 5) 		IRQ-Line 11
Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 5
Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 4
Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 11
Onboard IDE			IRQ-Line 14
AGP VGA				IRQ-Line 11

As you see some of my IRQ-Lines are multiply in use, so my Server is 
working hard at his limit. The result is sometimes freezing of my 
Server, especially if there is much processing on these devices. I 
remember that with Kernel 2.6.18 my system didn't does freezing.

So i am trying to reduce the amount of this processing. I still get 
messages about dropped network packets on my Terminal, although i set up 
my <rsyslog> to save this only to </var/log>. Here is my 
</etc/rsyslog.conf>

How can i disable the output of messages (about dropped packets from my 
firewall) to my terminal ?

How can i stabilize my IRQ-System with the kernel 2.6.31.1 ?

What debug features should i disable ?

regards Markus

Re: Messages are printed on screen

[Markus Feldmann]

Markus Feldmann schrieb:
> ....
> my <rsyslog> to save this only to </var/log>. Here is my 
> </etc/rsyslog.conf>
http://pastebin.com/m4400fb9e

Re: Messages are printed on screen

[Ben Hutchings]

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On Fri, 2009-10-02 at 11:52 +0200, Markus Feldmann wrote:
> Hi All,
> 
> i am setting up my Server, with Linux Debian lenny. Therefore i am using 
>   Kernel 2.6.31.1.

The current kernel version for 'lenny' is 2.6.26 (with stable updates
and other fixes).

2.6.31 is known to have a large number of regressions outstanding, which
is why it is not in Debian yet.

> I configured this Kernel with <make defconfig> and 
> <make menuconfig>. My motherboard has 5 PCI slots and 1 AGP slot. All 
> slots are in use. All devices are mapped to the following IRQ-Line:
> 
> Mass Storage Device (PCI Slot1)	IRQ-Line 11
> Ethernet (PCI Slot 2) 		IRQ-Line 4
> Ethernet (PCI Slot 3) 		IRQ-Line 5
> Ethernet (PCI Slot 4) 		IRQ-Line 7
> Ethernet (PCI Slot 5) 		IRQ-Line 11
> Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 5
> Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 4
> Onboard USB-Controller		IRQ-Line 11
> Onboard IDE			IRQ-Line 14
> AGP VGA				IRQ-Line 11
> 
> As you see some of my IRQ-Lines are multiply in use, so my Server is 
> working hard at his limit.

IRQ sharing is normal on PCs without MSI support, but to see where
that's happening you need to look at /proc/interrupts and not the BIOS
setup program or wherever you got the above information from.

This does not result in 'working hard at his limit'.

> The result is sometimes freezing of my 
> Server, especially if there is much processing on these devices. I 
> remember that with Kernel 2.6.18 my system didn't does freezing.

This is simply a bug, not a result of IRQ sharing or 'working hard'.

> So i am trying to reduce the amount of this processing. I still get 
> messages about dropped network packets on my Terminal, although i set up 
> my <rsyslog> to save this only to </var/log>. Here is my 
> </etc/rsyslog.conf>

You forgot to paste it.

> How can i disable the output of messages (about dropped packets from my 
> firewall) to my terminal ?

Edit the value of kernel.printk in /etc/sysctl.conf.

> How can i stabilize my IRQ-System with the kernel 2.6.31.1 ?

I would expect the standard kernel version for 'lenny' or the 2.6.30
kernel from 'sid' to be more stable.

> What debug features should i disable ?

No idea, you didn't even specify what you enabled...

Ben.

-- 
Ben Hutchings
Who are all these weirdos? - David Bowie, about L-Space IRC channel #afp

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Re: Messages are printed on screen

[Markus Feldmann]

Ben Hutchings schrieb:
> On Fri, 2009-10-02 at 11:52 +0200, Markus Feldmann wrote:
>
>>
>> As you see some of my IRQ-Lines are multiply in use, so my Server is 
>> working hard at his limit.
> 
> IRQ sharing is normal on PCs without MSI support, but to see where
> that's happening you need to look at /proc/interrupts and not the BIOS
> setup program or wherever you got the above information from.
Ok i did <cat /proc/interrupts> and got:
            CPU0
   0:     259603    XT-PIC-XT        timer
   1:       1421    XT-PIC-XT        i8042
   2:          0    XT-PIC-XT        cascade
   4:     200000    XT-PIC-XT        ohci_hcd:usb3, pppp0
   5:          0    XT-PIC-XT        ehci_hcd:usb1, lan0
   7:       6959    XT-PIC-XT        lan1
   8:          2    XT-PIC-XT        rtc0
   9:          0    XT-PIC-XT        acpi
  11:      37697    XT-PIC-XT        ide2, ide3, ohci_hcd:usb2, lan2
  14:          0    XT-PIC-XT        ide0
NMI:          0   Non-maskable interrupts
TRM:          0   Thermal event interrupts
MCE:          0   Machine check exceptions
MCP:         13   Machine check polls
ERR:          2

How can i assigned IRQs during Boot?

How can i watch which IRQ Line has most traffic or problems ?

>> The result is sometimes freezing of my 
>> Server, especially if there is much processing on these devices. I 
>> remember that with Kernel 2.6.18 my system didn't does freezing.
> 
> This is simply a bug, not a result of IRQ sharing or 'working hard'.
But something had initiated this freezing. Although i do not know the 
Bug, i should be able to avoide this Problem by do some prevention ?!

> 
>> How can i disable the output of messages (about dropped packets from my 
>> firewall) to my terminal ?
> 
> Edit the value of kernel.printk in /etc/sysctl.conf.
Ok i did add:
kernel.printk= 4 4 1 7
to </etc/sysctl.conf>
> 
>> How can i stabilize my IRQ-System with the kernel 2.6.31.1 ?
> 
> I would expect the standard kernel version for 'lenny' or the 2.6.30
> kernel from 'sid' to be more stable.
Ok i will try the kernel from Debian Sid. :-)
> 
>> What debug features should i disable ?
> 
> No idea, you didn't even specify what you enabled...
I will add some enabled features next week.

regards Markus

Re: Messages are printed on screen

[Ben Hutchings]

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On Fri, 2009-10-02 at 14:01 +0200, Markus Feldmann wrote:
> Ben Hutchings schrieb:
> > On Fri, 2009-10-02 at 11:52 +0200, Markus Feldmann wrote:
> >
> >>
> >> As you see some of my IRQ-Lines are multiply in use, so my Server is 
> >> working hard at his limit.
> > 
> > IRQ sharing is normal on PCs without MSI support, but to see where
> > that's happening you need to look at /proc/interrupts and not the BIOS
> > setup program or wherever you got the above information from.
> Ok i did <cat /proc/interrupts> and got:
>             CPU0
>    0:     259603    XT-PIC-XT        timer
>    1:       1421    XT-PIC-XT        i8042
>    2:          0    XT-PIC-XT        cascade
>    4:     200000    XT-PIC-XT        ohci_hcd:usb3, pppp0

This number is a clue because after every 100,000 interrupts for a
particular IRQ the kernel checks how many of them were handled.  If this
is less than 100 then it disables the IRQ.  So I suspect one of these
devices is misbehaving, or its driver is not handling interrupts
correctly.  Is 'pppp0' actually an Ethernet device that you're using for
PPPoE?  If so, what model of network card is it?

>    5:          0    XT-PIC-XT        ehci_hcd:usb1, lan0
>    7:       6959    XT-PIC-XT        lan1
>    8:          2    XT-PIC-XT        rtc0
>    9:          0    XT-PIC-XT        acpi
>   11:      37697    XT-PIC-XT        ide2, ide3, ohci_hcd:usb2, lan2
>   14:          0    XT-PIC-XT        ide0
> NMI:          0   Non-maskable interrupts
> TRM:          0   Thermal event interrupts
> MCE:          0   Machine check exceptions
> MCP:         13   Machine check polls
> ERR:          2
> 
> How can i assigned IRQs during Boot?
[...]

They are assigned by the BIOS.  You may be able to configure this in
BIOS setup.

Ben.

-- 
Ben Hutchings
Who are all these weirdos? - David Bowie, about L-Space IRC channel #afp

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