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From: markj@informix.com (Mark Jeske(Chicago Consultan)t)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: INFORMIX bug?
Keywords: informix bug 4gl
Message-ID: <1990Nov20.221658.19496@informix.com>
Date: 20 Nov 90 22:16:58 GMT
References: <8330@pbhyf.PacBell.COM>
Sender: news@informix.com (Usenet News)
Organization: Informix Software, Inc.
Lines: 41

In article <8330@pbhyf.PacBell.COM> jwas@PacBell.COM (Joe Wasik) writes:
>We have this rather annoying problem with Informix-4GL.  When an Informix-4GL
>application runs and accesses a database, it starts a back-end named sqlexec.
>This back-end is supposed to die when the Informix-4GL application terminates,
>but it doesn't.  In our case, since the Informix-4GL application starts up
>other background jobs, the sqlexec program hangs around until those other jobs
>are finished and it then interferes with the logoff process.
>
>This is rather bizarre behavior.  Those other jobs are simple Unix scripts an
>have nothing to do with Informix' database.  What on earth is sqlexec waiting
>for?
>
>This question has been asked before on this net without resolution, so we've
>implemented our own solution.  Before the Informix-4GL program ends, it
>executes something like the following (not actual code):
>
>system("nohup kill -16 `ps -u ${LOGNAME} | cut -1-6 | grep " sqlexec$"` &")
>(Not shown: a check to ensure that there is only one sqlexec).
>
>In case anyone else had this problem, this solution does work.  The user
>when logging off now drops out of the system instead of hanging or getting
>the "login:" prompt.
>
>We still have some questions though (from the general public) ...  Is a signal
>16 (found by trial and error) an appropriate way to kill sqlexec?  Are we
>doing any harm to our database by terminating sqlexec with kill?
>

I would try the following in your code before you exit.

  close database
  call sqlexit()

I know sqlexit is not documented, but it should kill your sqlexec process.
If that doesn't work, it would use a kill -13 sigpipe signal on
the sqlexec.  We trap for this signal and clean up gracefully, I'm
not sure about the -16.

Mark Jeske (Chicago consulting)
markj@infmx.com
708-699-5850