Postmaster refuses to start

[fussie]

Yesterday, I got this message when I started PT3:

Unable to login to database. Reason: could not connect to server: connection refused. Is the host running on localhost ...

I then noticed that the postmaster service could not be started. If i try to manually start it from services.msc, I get the following message:

Windows could not start the PostgreSQL service on Local Computer.
Error 1053: The service did not respond to the start or control request in a timely fashion.

I've tried to see what's going on with Procmon but it doesn't make much sense to me. I can't find any programs (like a firewall) that is blocking the postmaster service.

However for "pg_ctl.exe", I get a lot of "NAME NOT FOUND" and "FAST IO DISALLOWED" results. Could this be the problem? Any help appreciated. I can also post screenshots if that helps.

Thanks

[WhiteRider]

Have a look in the Database / Postgres FAQ and search for postmaster - there was a recommendation from someone about a similar sounding issue.

[fussie]

Yes, I've already tried doing that but it does not work. The service just refuses to start, wether I try it via services.msc or the "start service" command in the postgreSQL dir.

EDIT: i can't find a postmaster.pid file on my pc either.

[fussie]

Alright, I just fixed the problem myself:

The postmaster.pid file was hidden for some reason?! That's why I couldnt find it on my pc. After turning on "View hidden files and folders", I was able to find it in the ./Program Files/postgresql/8.2/data folder.

If other people have this same problem, this is how I fixed it.

Thanks for your help WhiteRider.

[WhiteRider]

No problem - glad you got it fixed. I'll add that to the FAQ, thanks.

[davey0725]

I'm having the same problem but I am unable to find the postmaster.pid file, even in hidden files. I put in a support ticket but was just wondering if anyone had any quick ideas to try.

[keggler]

gonna have to take you down the procmon route i'm afraid... i'll walk you through it if you like...


susan

[davey0725]

I figured it out... I turned off some things on my computer to make it start up faster and I unchecked the Postgres box. Everything is working good now.

[keggler]

hi davey,

glad you got it sorted...

if you can spare the time to post back what you "turned off" (i guess in msconfig?) and post them up here, we can add them to the FAQ on this problem, which can be a real sod to sort out... it's quite often anti-virus or spam filter software; but not always...


susan

[davey0725]

msconfig - services - PostgresSQL Database Server 8.2