The DreamHost support representative provided a detailed response to the customer's question about their website being down. They explained that the server was running out of memory and killing processes. They recommended optimizing the server and website to reduce memory usage by following DreamHost wiki guides, updating WordPress, removing unused plugins, installing caching plugins, and enabling FastCGI. The representative aimed to troubleshoot the issue and provide resources to help prevent it from occurring again.

1. Software support done
correctly
Andreas Zeitler
@zettt
macosxscreencasts.com
zcasting3000.com

2. A relatively bad
example

5. Hi Andreas...

6. Hi Andreas...
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

7. This message clearly says:
Hi Andreas...
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

8. This message clearly says:
• I don’t care Hi Andreas...
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

9. This message clearly says:
• I don’t care Hi Andreas...
• I don’t have the time to deal
with you
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

10. This message clearly says:
• I don’t care Hi Andreas...
• I don’t have the time to deal
with you
• I don’t care how you present
my product bye, ciao, tschüss...
Cheers, thanks,

11. Hi Andreas...
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

12. Hi Andreas...
Cheers, thanks, bye, ciao, tschüss...

18. A relatively good
example

19. A relatively good
example
DreamHost

21. My email to DreamHost:

22. My email to DreamHost:
Dear DreamHost support,
Website is down!
Why?
Help!
Now!
Cheers

23. Andreas,
[386390.279461] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386390.303417] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386390.303453] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386390.357101] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 227694 or a child
[386391.125965] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 227694 or a child
[386394.160813] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386394.247377] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386394.636484] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 199764 or a child
[386497.221512] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.221582] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386497.277468] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
[386497.768186] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.865295] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386498.255450] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
When there isn't any available memory on the machine, the server is
unable to spawn new processes which in turn causes a 500 error. It can
also kill off existing processes such as http and ftp. I recommend
following the steps in this wiki:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/PS_Optimization
You can also raise your memory levels from within the panel by clicking
"Private Servers" > "Manage Resources".
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on the graph on that page as it
will give you some insight into the current state of your server. Aside
from the optimization wiki, I'd also recommend removing any extraneous
plugins if you're running Wordpress installs, especially any SEO plugins.
If you haven't already, you should also download and enable either
wp-cache or wp-super-cache (again assuming you're running Wordpress
installs). As far as your server not always needing the same amount of
memory, you can adjust your usage at any time as you see fit. That can be
quite a chore! Luckily, one of our customers recently wrote a pretty
awesome program which can automatically handle memory usage for you! You
may want to check it out, but please be aware that even if it works, it
is custom software and is not provided by DreamHost:
http://memcron.com/
I'd also highly suggest enabling FastCGI for these domains if you haven't
already done so, it typically uses far less memory than the standard PHP
install! If you run into any troubles with the above information (which I
recommend checking out as it can help you to reduce usage regardless of
the number of visitors you receive), please let us know. Also, since you
are running a WP site, the following will be helpful as well:
1) Keeping your WordPress install as up-to-date as possible. You can do
that by checking whether or not you need to upgrade here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
2) Keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date. You can check to see if any
plugins need to be updated here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/plugins.php

24. [386497.221582] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386497.277468] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
[386497.768186] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.865295] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386498.255450] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
When there isn't any available memory on the machine, the server is
unable to spawn new processes which in turn causes a 500 error. It can
also kill off existing processes such as http and ftp. I recommend
following the steps in this wiki:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/PS_Optimization
You can also raise your memory levels from within the panel by clicking
"Private Servers" > "Manage Resources".
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on the graph on that page as it
will give you some insight into the current state of your server. Aside
from the optimization wiki, I'd also recommend removing any extraneous
plugins if you're running Wordpress installs, especially any SEO plugins.
If you haven't already, you should also download and enable either
wp-cache or wp-super-cache (again assuming you're running Wordpress
installs). As far as your server not always needing the same amount of
memory, you can adjust your usage at any time as you see fit. That can be
quite a chore! Luckily, one of our customers recently wrote a pretty
awesome program which can automatically handle memory usage for you! You
may want to check it out, but please be aware that even if it works, it
is custom software and is not provided by DreamHost:
http://memcron.com/
I'd also highly suggest enabling FastCGI for these domains if you haven't
already done so, it typically uses far less memory than the standard PHP
install! If you run into any troubles with the above information (which I
recommend checking out as it can help you to reduce usage regardless of
the number of visitors you receive), please let us know. Also, since you
are running a WP site, the following will be helpful as well:
1) Keeping your WordPress install as up-to-date as possible. You can do
that by checking whether or not you need to upgrade here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
2) Keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date. You can check to see if any
plugins need to be updated here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/plugins.php
3) Removing any plugins that you do not use, even if they are set to
"Inactive". You can remove them from the same link as #2.
4) Installing caching and anti-spam plugins. You can find information on
good ones for both of those here:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Spam
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Caching
5) Optimize and improve performance!
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/WordPress_Optimization
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Wordpress_performance

25. [386497.221582] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386497.277468] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
[386497.768186] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.865295] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386498.255450] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
When there isn't any available memory on the machine, the server is
unable to spawn new processes which in turn causes a 500 error. It can
also kill off existing processes such as http and ftp. I recommend
following the steps in this wiki:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/PS_Optimization
You can also raise your memory levels from within the panel by clicking
"Private Servers" > "Manage Resources".
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on the graph on that page as it
will give you some insight into the current state of your server. Aside
from the optimization wiki, I'd also recommend removing any extraneous
plugins if you're running Wordpress installs, especially any SEO plugins.
If you haven't already, you should also download and enable either
wp-cache or wp-super-cache (again assuming you're running Wordpress
installs). As far as your server not always needing the same amount of
memory, you can adjust your usage at any time as you see fit. That can be
quite a chore! Luckily, one of our customers recently wrote a pretty
awesome program which can automatically handle memory usage for you! You
may want to check it out, but please be aware that even if it works, it
is custom software and is not provided by DreamHost:
http://memcron.com/
I'd also highly suggest enabling FastCGI for these domains if you haven't
already done so, it typically uses far less memory than the standard PHP
install! If you run into any troubles with the above information (which I
recommend checking out as it can help you to reduce usage regardless of
the number of visitors you receive), please let us know. Also, since you
are running a WP site, the following will be helpful as well:
1) Keeping your WordPress install as up-to-date as possible. You can do
that by checking whether or not you need to upgrade here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
2) Keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date. You can check to see if any
plugins need to be updated here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/plugins.php
3) Removing any plugins that you do not use, even if they are set to
"Inactive". You can remove them from the same link as #2.
4) Installing caching and anti-spam plugins. You can find information on
good ones for both of those here:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Spam
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Caching
5) Optimize and improve performance!
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/WordPress_Optimization
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Wordpress_performance

26. [386497.221582] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386497.277468] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
[386497.768186] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.865295] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386498.255450] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
When there isn't any available memory on the machine, the server is
unable to spawn new processes which in turn causes a 500 error. It can
also kill off existing processes such as http and ftp. I recommend
following the steps in this wiki:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/PS_Optimization
You can also raise your memory levels from within the panel by clicking
"Private Servers" > "Manage Resources".
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on the graph on that page as it
will give you some insight into the current state of your server. Aside
from the optimization wiki, I'd also recommend removing any extraneous
plugins if you're running Wordpress installs, especially any SEO plugins.
If you haven't already, you should also download and enable either
wp-cache or wp-super-cache (again assuming you're running Wordpress
installs). As far as your server not always needing the same amount of
memory, you can adjust your usage at any time as you see fit. That can be
quite a chore! Luckily, one of our customers recently wrote a pretty
awesome program which can automatically handle memory usage for you! You
may want to check it out, but please be aware that even if it works, it
is custom software and is not provided by DreamHost:
http://memcron.com/
I'd also highly suggest enabling FastCGI for these domains if you haven't
already done so, it typically uses far less memory than the standard PHP
install! If you run into any troubles with the above information (which I
recommend checking out as it can help you to reduce usage regardless of
the number of visitors you receive), please let us know. Also, since you
are running a WP site, the following will be helpful as well:
1) Keeping your WordPress install as up-to-date as possible. You can do
that by checking whether or not you need to upgrade here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
2) Keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date. You can check to see if any
plugins need to be updated here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/plugins.php
3) Removing any plugins that you do not use, even if they are set to
"Inactive". You can remove them from the same link as #2.
4) Installing caching and anti-spam plugins. You can find information on
good ones for both of those here:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Spam
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Caching
5) Optimize and improve performance!
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/WordPress_Optimization
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Wordpress_performance

27. [386497.221582] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386497.277468] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
[386497.768186] php5.cgi cpuset=ps34711 mems_allowed=0
[386497.865295] Task in /ps34711 killed as a result of limit of /ps34711
[386498.255450] Memory cgroup out of memory: kill process
apache2-ps34711(6203:#34711) score 206293 or a child
When there isn't any available memory on the machine, the server is
unable to spawn new processes which in turn causes a 500 error. It can
also kill off existing processes such as http and ftp. I recommend
following the steps in this wiki:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/PS_Optimization
You can also raise your memory levels from within the panel by clicking
"Private Servers" > "Manage Resources".
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on the graph on that page as it
will give you some insight into the current state of your server. Aside
from the optimization wiki, I'd also recommend removing any extraneous
plugins if you're running Wordpress installs, especially any SEO plugins.
If you haven't already, you should also download and enable either
wp-cache or wp-super-cache (again assuming you're running Wordpress
installs). As far as your server not always needing the same amount of
memory, you can adjust your usage at any time as you see fit. That can be
quite a chore! Luckily, one of our customers recently wrote a pretty
awesome program which can automatically handle memory usage for you! You
may want to check it out, but please be aware that even if it works, it
is custom software and is not provided by DreamHost:
http://memcron.com/
I'd also highly suggest enabling FastCGI for these domains if you haven't
already done so, it typically uses far less memory than the standard PHP
install! If you run into any troubles with the above information (which I
recommend checking out as it can help you to reduce usage regardless of
the number of visitors you receive), please let us know. Also, since you
are running a WP site, the following will be helpful as well:
1) Keeping your WordPress install as up-to-date as possible. You can do
that by checking whether or not you need to upgrade here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
2) Keeping your WordPress plugins up-to-date. You can check to see if any
plugins need to be updated here:
http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin/plugins.php
3) Removing any plugins that you do not use, even if they are set to
"Inactive". You can remove them from the same link as #2.
4) Installing caching and anti-spam plugins. You can find information on
good ones for both of those here:
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Spam
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Fine_Tuning_Your_WordPress_Install#Caching
5) Optimize and improve performance!
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/WordPress_Optimization
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Wordpress_performance

28. From: DreamHost Customer Support Team <support@dreamhost.com>
Subject: Re: [andzei 39277830] Internal Server Error
Date: 19. Oktober 2010 17:14:26 GMT+01:00
To: azeitler@zettt.de
------------------------------------------------------------------------
- After reading this response, please consider visiting
- the URL below to comment on its quality. Thanks!
-
- http://www.dreamhost.com/survey.cgi?n=39277830&m=566296
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Andreas,
Odds are the process that updates the graph is getting killed. I think
that we're looking into a solution that corrects this.
Thanks!
Scott
--
DreamHost Support Team + support@dreamhost.com
Earn over $97 for each referral: http://www.dreamhost.com/rewards.html
To continue this support case, just reply to this email.
Open a new case at: https://panel.dreamhost.com/?tab=support

29. Improving support
(communication)

30. It’s ok to...

31. It’s ok to...
• ... not answer an email right away.

32. It’s ok to...
• ... not answer an email right away.
• ... be brief.

33. It’s ok to...
• ... not answer an email right away.
• ... be brief.
• ... use snippets.

34. It’s ok to...
• ... not answer an email right away.
• ... be brief.
• ... use snippets.
• ... use a support system like tender.

35. It’s ok to...
• ... not answer an email right away.
• ... be brief.
• ... use snippets.
• ... use a support system like tender.
• (Eat your own dog food!)

36. Improving support
(communication)

37. Improving support
(communication)
• "Sorry for the late reply."

38. Improving support
(communication)
• "Sorry for the late reply."
• I have read your email, but didn't care enough.

39. Improving support
(communication)
• "Sorry for the late reply."
• I have read your email, but didn't care enough.
• "Best regards from Stuttgart"

40. Improving support
(communication)
• "Sorry for the late reply."
• I have read your email, but didn't care enough.
• "Best regards from Stuttgart"
• I don't know where you are, but the sun shines
here.

41. Improving support
(communication)

42. Improving support
(communication)
• Screencasting

43. Improving support
(communication)
• Screencasting
• Tell me and I'll forget,
Show me and I may remember,
Involve me and I'll understand.

44. Improving support
(communication)
• Screencasting
• Tell me and I'll forget,
Show me and I may remember,
Involve me and I'll understand.
• Scrivener (literatureandlatte.com)

45. Improving support
(communication)
• Screencasting
• Tell me and I'll forget,
Show me and I may remember,
Involve me and I'll understand.
• Scrivener (literatureandlatte.com)
• Billings (marketcircle.com)

46. Improving support
(communication)
• Screencasting
• Tell me and I'll forget,
Show me and I may remember,
Involve me and I'll understand.
• Scrivener (literatureandlatte.com)
• Billings (marketcircle.com)
• Blogging

47. Improving support
(communication)

48. Improving support
(communication)
• Forum

49. Improving support
(communication)
• Forum
• Social Media (Twitter, Facebook)

50. Improving support
(communication)
• Forum
• Social Media (Twitter, Facebook)
• BUT

51. Improving support
(communication)

52. Improving support
(communication)
• If you decide to use a channel be prepared to use
it the way the users use it.

53. Improving support
(communication)
• If you decide to use a channel be prepared to use
it the way the users use it.
• Deliver content!

54. Improving support
(communication)
• If you decide to use a channel be prepared to use
it the way the users use it.
• Deliver content!
• Post updates!

55. Improving support
(communication)
• If you decide to use a channel be prepared to use
it the way the users use it.
• Deliver content!
• Post updates!
• People don't follow a brand, they follow a person.

56. Improving support
(communication)
• If you decide to use a channel be prepared to use
it the way the users use it.
• Deliver content!
• Post updates!
• People don't follow a brand, they follow a person.
• People opt in to be disturbed by you. They
deliberately give you the permission to be
interrupted by you.

57. Don't make it hard for
people to communicate
with you

62. Make your life easier

63. Make your life easier
Never do free!

69. Mind your target audience!

70. Discussion
Your experiences