iPlanet 4.1 web server fails to create a thread

[Sudhir Alekar]

Following problem is occuring on our 2 out of 3 HP-UX 11 machines.
When starting iPlanet 4.1 Enterprise Webserver, it gives following errors in log:
[09/Oct/2001:16:48:08] failure ( 5827): StartThread failed to create thread
[09/Oct/2001:16:48:08] failure ( 5827): NSPR error code = -5974
[09/Oct/2001:16:48:08] failure ( 5827): NSPR error code = 11

This happens typically if the servlets are turned on in the iPlanet server and when it is trying to load a module. Does this need any thread related patch or kernel parameter on HP-UX 11 ?

[Stefan Farrelly]

How big is your nkthread parameter in the kernel ? have you tried inreasing it ?

[Bill McNAMARA_1]

I think stephen suggestion will do the trick.

You may want to change nprocs and nfiles too.

Did you read the install guide?!

Later,
Bill

[Sudhir Alekar]

The kernel parameters look ok:
max_thread_proc 64 (per process)
nkthtread 1800 (for Kernel)
nprocs 276
nfiles 1190
There is nothing else going on the machine.

Also, if we comment out iPlanet servlet modules from obj.conf of the web server, these errors disappear.

[Santosh Nair_1]

I think your max_thread_proc is way too low. This means that any process can only have a maximum of 64 threads...this is very low especially for Java processes.

Try doubling if not quadrupling this.

-Santosh

[harry d brown jr]

I'm not even running a web server and I have the following set:

max_thread_proc 512
nkthread 3600
nfile 25600
nproc 2048

Weblogic says this:

max_thread_proc 1024
maxfiles 256
maxusers 256
nkthread 3635
nproc 2068
ncallout 2084

http://www.weblogic.com/platforms/hpux/index.html

[Dayanand Naik]

Hi Sudhir,

Thanks for the post, i was also abt to post the same error. And Thanks for all those who replied. this made my work a bit easy.

I do have another queri to post i will post it separately.

Thanks & Regards,
Dayanand Naik.

[James Beamish-White]

Hi Sudir,

I am also running IPWS4.1, and my particular tuning is
max_thread_proc (MAXUSERS*3)
maxusers 400
nkthread 2048

You might also need to tune IPWS, see http://docs.iplanet.com/docs/manuals/enterprise/41/ag/esperfrm.htm#1048537 for more information on that.

Threads are also drastically increased if you use JSPs, as java jumps threads up quite fast. As others suggest, tune them up and see what happens :-)

James

[Sudhir Alekar]

Thanks to all the people who replied.
We rebuilt the kernel with parameters suggested by WebLogic and the error in StartThread disappeared. I think the key parameter was 'max_thread_proc'.
Its too bad that iPlanet does not have the kernel tuning information in the release or installation notes.

Thanks again

-Sudhir Alekar