Hi, we're using syslog-ng 3.1.2 and have run into what appears to be a bug, but I'd like to get the community's opinion before we dig further into it. We have a bunch of HP servers with iLO2 and iLO3 devices, configured with their virtual serial ports on COM1 (ttyS0). We subsequently have the OS (RHEL4, RHEL5) configured to use COM1 as its console (e.g. /dev/console). This is a very standard configuration that allows us to get remote access to the machines without having to purchase the iLO Advanced KVM feature. It also lets us use the Magic SysRq keys to probe dead systems and stuff, so in general it's not something we're keen to change. What we have found, however, is that there are some cases where the iLO will freeze and requires a reboot. When the iLO reboots, however, the kernel's connection to /dev/console (through the virtual serial port) hangs and blocks. Any traffic to /dev/console just sits in the kernel's buffer and is never delivered. Once the buffer is full, the kernel simply blocks on any write to /dev/console. Now this is a Bad Thing in general, and we're working with HP to try and remedy this bug. However, what concerns me is that syslog-ng, when faced with this behavior, also blocks, even for log messages not bound for /dev/console. What we have observed is that a system with syslog-ng will keep delivering the occasional console message to /dev/console (ex. *.emerg messages) and meanwhile the file-based log paths keep working. But once /dev/console blocks, the next time a console message is delivered, *all* of syslog-ng blocks waiting for that message to be delivered, and all of the file-based paths block as well. The result is that pretty much everything on the system stops working. For example, you can't log in, even as root, because the login process blocks on the syslog command that writes to /var/log/secure. Anything that uses syslog suddenly blocks. Is this expected behavior? I would think that syslog-ng would be able to continue accepting and delivering messages, even if one of the log paths is stalled on a blocked write. -- Paul Krizak 7171 Southwest Pkwy MS B200.3A MTS Systems Engineer Austin, TX 78735 Advanced Micro Devices Desk: (512) 602-8775 Linux/Unix Systems Engineering Cell: (512) 791-0686 Global IT Infrastructure Fax: (512) 602-0468