Stopping the fmserverd daemon

[Saubs]

We're using FileMaker Server 5.5. I'm using the steps suggested at http://www.afp548.com/articles/system/fmpserver.html to automatically start the fmserverd services when our Xserve boots up, so that I won't have to manually hit the 'Start Server' button on the FM Server Config app. Works fine, but how can I now *gently stop the daemon* without using the Config app, and without corrupting my open databases?

Thanks very much

[Vaughan]

Her's what I do, it's a Windows box but the process is what's important:

Before I go to the server I use FMP to connect in to Remote Administration (with the RA plugin on the Server CD) and disconnect any guests, then close all the files manually. If the files are grouped neatly into folders this only takes a few mouse clicks. Wait until the Remote Admin database shows that all files are actually closed: some big files make take a minute or two to flush the cache etc so be patient.

When the files are all closed I close Remote Admin. On the server I stop the FMServer service. This only takes a few moments because the files are already closed so the service has nothing to wait for. The files are safe because they are already closed beforehand.

[Saubs]

Thanks for your suggestion Vaughan, obviously using Remote Admin to manually close all files would work well. As another option, if I issue the following command in Terminal, anybody know if this will safely close my databases and quit the fmserverd services?

admin% sudo -u root "/FileMaker Server 5.5/FileMaker Server Config.app/Contents/Resources/""fmserverd" stop

Also, anybody know what would happen differently if I substitute the word "close" for "stop" at the end of the command?

Thanks very much

[SJM]

I use fmserver 5.5 on Linux, and the details should probably be similar to Mac OS X (or at least more similar than they are to running on Windows).

It came with a script to launch it that behaves like the similar script that comes with every standard Linux service. But if I run the actual binary with the "--help" option I get this:

~: /usr/bin/fmserverd --help

usage: /usr/bin/fmserverd [COMMAND] [PATH] ... [OPTION] ...

FileMaker Server 5.5

where COMMAND is one of the following:

START to start the Server

STOP to stop the Server

OPEN to open one or more databases

CLOSE to close one or more open databases

PAUSE to pause one or more open databases

RESUME to resume one or more open databases

FILES to list currently open database

RELOAD to reload configuration file

Valid Options:

-f, --force force immediate shutdown

-h, --help display this help and exit

-m, --message "text" sends the specified text to guests of database(s)

being closed

-c, --config-file PATH specify the file path to the configuration file

-s, --skip skip opening databases in ServerRoot directory and

one level down

-t, --grace-time NUM the number of minutes until guest(s) will be

disconnected

PATH is a file or a directory.

Without a PATH all files in ServerRoot path and one

level down will be opened.

So, my backup script calls "/usr/bin/fmserverd PAUSE" in order to suspend changes to the files for backup, and to stop the server completely I can do "/usr/bin/fmserverd STOP". It may also (I don't know) respond gracefully to a TERM signal, e.g. "kill TERM <pid>".

[Tony O]

Emoto,

As stated already it's best to use Remote Server Admin to close all of the files first. I'm thinking that an ssh into the Xserve and using the command line args SJM suggests would work, and I'll try it this weekend. However, you raise a good issue for those of us using OSX Server. Why can't we add a pane in OSX Server Admin.app for unbundled servers? I can go there and start-stop DHCP, Firewall, Appleshare, etc - but not Filemaker or any other unbundled server daemons.

I hope this gets addressed in Tiger.

hth,

Tony

[overrider]

i made this shell script a while ago, and i already also posted it into your forums post on afp.

#!/bin/bash

OPTIONS="STOP START LIST 0200 REBOOT EXIT"

FMSLOCATION=/FileMaker Server 5.5/Filemaker Server Config.app/Contents/Resources/

select opt in $OPTIONS; do

if [ "$opt" = "STOP" ]; then

echo Forcing the Server to stop...

"$FMSLOCATION"/fmserverd STOP

elif [ "$opt" = "START" ]; then

echo Starting the Server...

"$FMSLOCATION"/fmserverd START

elif [ "$opt" = "LIST" ]; then

echo Listing served Files...

"$FMSLOCATION"/fmserverd FILES

elif [ "$opt" = "0200" ]; then

echo Replacing current Copy with 0200 backup...

ditto /Volumes/Fmpbackup/0200/ /Volumes/Fmpserver/FileMaker Server 5.5/

elif [ "$opt" = "REBOOT" ]; then

echo Rebooting the Computer...

sudo reboot

elif [ "$opt" = "EXIT" ]; then

echo see you next time...

exit

else

clear

echo couldnt understand that command...

fi

done

just put this in a textfile and save it as fmcommands.sh . then call it with sh fmcommands.sh and make a pick.

[Wim Decorte]

close is for files. Stop is for the daemon. Check the FMS manual for a full list of command line commands. Or check the FMS7 Tech brief on the FMI website. It has a nice overview of the FMS5 and FMS7 commands.