[FX.php List] [OT] Planning for/handling Server Outage

[Gjermund Gusland Thorsen]

I send an email using pear mail no matter what...

but with a link that I can click on to register the desired data.

ggt

2007/12/17, Alex Gates <alex at gandrpublishing.com>:
> Hi Jonathan -
> I think measures can be taken on a situation to situation basis -
> for example, when I process a form that web users fill out to request a
> packet to be mailed to them, I first do a quick fmview() to test
> connectivity to the database.
> In the event that the database can't be reached, I take all their
> information and generate an email to our customer service reps saying
> the database was down and this info will have to be entered manually. (I
> also shoot an email to me alerting me that the DB is down - and also a
> text message to my phone)
> That works perfectly find in that situation - but something (say, a
> sign-up for a website) is pretty instantaneous - in this case, I also
> generate an email internally saying add this user manually - and one to
> me (and a text message so I immediately know if there are problems) -
>
> This is the same for anyone who tries to sign in - if the database can't
> be reached, an email is sent and a session variable is set so multiple
> attempts to log in won't mean multiple emails from the same customer for
> each time they try to log in.
>
>
>
> Jonathan Schwartz wrote:
> > Hi Folks,
> >
> > Talk about Murphy's Law and the all-important corollary (Anythng that
> > can go wrong, will go wrong...at the worst possible moment).
> >
> > Pardon this OT post, but I think that there are FMP and fx.php specific
> > issues involved.
> >
> > I have a two machine set up (Web server with html and fx.php on one,
> > FMSA and files on another). They are both at a remote colo. They are
> > both mac minis.
> >
> > Yesterday, in the middle of a campaign launch (email+web response), the
> > FMSA machine went dark.  Now, I'm not sure what kind of excitement gets
> > others pumped up, but the reality of hundreds of users hitting your new
> > launched solution and seeing error messages will get your heart rate going.
> >
> > The question is how to plan for this type of thing in the future.
> >
> > In this case, one of the PDUs (Power Distribution Unit) flipped a
> > breaker and the FMSA machine shut off.  The web server stayed on, being
> > on another PDU.  Problem is, it takes valuable time to figure out what
> > is going on when you can't see or touch the machine. It's only after a
> > process of elimination do you realize that the machine is off.  Talk
> > about fun.
> >
> > Then magically, the machine came back!  A remote service person had
> > reset the PDU and powered up the machines.
> >
> > First FileMaker FMSA-related question: should auto-start be turned on in
> > the FMS8/FMSA8 preferences?  If the database is damaged during the rude
> > shutdown, then automatically starting it could be a big mistake.
> >
> > fx.php question: How do you handle the prospect of the FMSA not being
> > available, on the web server?  In this half hour episode, I had to post
> > a "Come Back Later" sign.
> >
> > Finally, what do you do to deal with the prospect of web services not
> > being available?  Redundancy appears to be a huge technical and
> > financial leap....or at least I think that it is.
> >
> > Again, I'm sorry for the slight off-topic nature of this post, but I
> > feel that this topic can help others.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Jonathan
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