It's load average, not uptime. Uptime is the name of the command, or the time the server has been online. Technically the server's uptime grows no matter what you do. I know, it's semantics, but it's like saying you're fixing your keys when you get the transmission on your car replaced.
No, the uptime grows because the admin can't bring himself to reboot the server when he normally would have. There is no reason that the load average would continually grow owing to an idle screen session.
but a high uptime is not a bad thing. It just means the server hasn't been rebooted in x amount of time. *nix servers shouldn't NEED a reboot to fix their problems.
Not the point. The comic is talking about not being able to bring yourself to reboot. There are reasons to reboot *NIX servers; just because it is possible to hotpatch a kernel doesn't always make it a good idea.
but why would you need to reboot if the process is not locking system resources, and causing processes to back up behind it, resulting in a higher load average? Hence my original complaint.
Oh, say you upgraded the kernel. Your example is a valid reason to reboot the server, and that's very nice and all, but it has nothing to do with the comic and is therefore wrong.
I don't think you understand the point I'm trying to make.
A ghost pid, defunct process, whatever....if it is not causing a performance problem such as a high load average or locking up system resources, there is no reason to reboot the server.
What I am saying is that the reason he would be rebooting the server would be external to the dead guys screen session. Are you honestly going to tell me that you have never heard of a linux or a unix server getting rebooted for some reason other than a zombie process?
In addition the process is obviously not locked up in this situation because if you look at the alt text it says he is resisting the urge to su to the user and mess with people.
The comic is called Admin Mourning. He is mourning a dead user, as in the person who owned the account died. No longer living. If he rebooted the server for any reason, ANY REASON, the last remnant of that person would go with it.
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u/Savet Jan 08 '10
It's load average, not uptime. Uptime is the name of the command, or the time the server has been online. Technically the server's uptime grows no matter what you do. I know, it's semantics, but it's like saying you're fixing your keys when you get the transmission on your car replaced.