[CentOS] System hangs silently

[Leonard Isham]

On 1/18/06, Fong Vang <sudoyang at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 1/18/06, Robert Hanson <roberth at abbacomm.net> wrote:
> >
> > }
> > } I have a total of 20 CentOS 4.1 systems running on fairly new
> > } hardware.  About 6 of them are experiencing strange hangs without any
> > } indication -- nothing in /var/log/messages nor on the console --
> > } sometime within 10-30 minutes after a reboot.  The systems still
> > } responds to ping but you can't ssh to it.  At the console, you could
> > } type "root" at the user prompt but it hangs immediately after hitting
> > } enter.
> > }
> > } Memory scan of all systems show no error.
> > }
> > } Any idea how to troubleshoot this problem.  The system's not
> > } responsive to do any troubleshooting and nothing abnormal is in the
> > } log.
> > }
> > } We running htis kernel: kernel-smp-2.6.9-11.EL.i686.rpm.
> > }
> > } Thanks for any help.
> >
> > greetings
> >
> > im quite sure you are most intelligent so you have pry done these things
> > already..
> >
> > the first two things that come to mind are... do you have the latest stable
> > "firmware" on those machines
>
> I haven't double checked this, yet.  We have a person from the
> hardware vendor here on site so I'll have him double check that.
>
> > are they all the same or is there a common denominator besides CentOS 4.1 ?
> >
> > and have you tried to install the latest kernels and such... there was
> > recent publishing of them
> >
> > if they are connected to the internet, unplug for testing??
> >
>
> These systems are ordered from the same batch (same PO/build spec).
> They're all using the same kernel -- the latest of what CentOS 4.1
> provided at that time.
>

I hate to say this, but I have found that this is not a guarantee of
100% duplication of the internals.  Not even when the systems have the
same model numbers.  I won't mention a well known computer company
with three letters... or big... or blue...

I've been bitten by this.

--
Leonard Isham, CISSP
Ostendo non ostento.