The macosxhints Forums - Find Stuck Process

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- - Find Stuck Process (http://hintsforums.macworld.com/showthread.php?t=84095)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey-San (Post 441552)

Make sure you file a bug on the top documentation, re: thread/process states. (Post the radar # here, too.)

I seldom do such things.
If you haven't done it, I'm sure it's unnecessary.

[what's a radar # ?]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hal Itosis (Post 441567)

I seldom do such things.

Well, don't complain about the documentation not explaining something to you, then. Developers can't fix problems they aren't aware of.

Actually, my "complaint" (it wasn't a complaint really) was
that: *you* said users *should* understand something...
and it turns out that something happens to be undocumented.

My (as yet unanswered) question to you was: How? :)

[if 'file a bug report' is your "answer", then... thanks so much.]

Like I said:

Quote:

I just meant that people who use the top utility need to know what it means if using that statistic to analyse anything

Please read that again, because it will alter how you read the post you keep quoting.

Therefore, the documentation should be updated, as I also said before, because users should know it. If you also find it important, you need to file a bug, too.

Using the script above, I found that SystemUIServer.app goes "unstuck" whenever I fidget around with the icons on the right of the menu bar (top of the screen). So, even though it is "stuck" or in 'U' state, it does come alive once in a while. The log below shows the 'U' state at 18:55:04, but then does not show up again until 18:55:49 (recall the script sleeps for 10 secs in between log entries). This time frame coincides with the time I was playing with (adding/removing) icons from the top menu bar.
I also tried "quitting" the SystemUIServer pid from Activity Monitor, but the process simply came back (with a new pid).

Mon Jan 12 18:54:54 MST 2009
PID TT STAT TIME COMMAND
780 ?? U 0:01.14 /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemUIServer.app/Contents/MacOS/SystemUIServer -psn_0_405603

Mon Jan 12 18:55:04 MST 2009
PID TT STAT TIME COMMAND
780 ?? U 0:01.14 /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemUIServer.app/Contents/MacOS/SystemUIServer -psn_0_405603

Mon Jan 12 18:55:49 MST 2009
PID TT STAT TIME COMMAND
780 ?? U 0:01.23 /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemUIServer.app/Contents/MacOS/SystemUIServer -psn_0_405603

find unresponsive processes

open X11 and run xterm
or
run terminal

type in:
ps -axo state,pid,comm | grep ^U

"|" is the "pipe" - the character above the "\" on the right side of the keyboard.

stuck....but need definition

perhaps locked would be a better term?
Definition would be a process or child process is doing something critical to the use and/or stability of an application or event.

I'd be interested in a use case on what a kill -9 would do to a child process 'stuck' or related activity. maybe a less drastic stop or kill command?

I'd also like to know exactly what 'stuck' processes are.

While I got the idea from this discussion that they are likely temporary and not something to worry about, I didn't yet see a coherent explanation as to what they actually are (or did I miss it?).

Hoping someone can clarify what this term in top means.

TIA :)