# RE: Not detecting service start failure

**URL:** <https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568>\
**Category:** Chef Infra (archive)\
**Created:** [May 12, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568 "2015-05-12T04:12:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Chris\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/fbc32d/32.png) [@Chris\_F](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Chris_F)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/1 "2015-05-12T04:12:37Z")

</div>

On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try adding the following line

. /etc/init.d/function

Chris

Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook[http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)

From: Yoshi Spendiff  
Sent: 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
To: chef  
Subject: [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
Hi,

I’m having trouble understanding why Chef isn’t detecting that a service is failing to start. I’m attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work. The package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the service is started when it’s not. I’m running via chef solo at the moment (it’s a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging produces the following:

[2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified a status command, running…  
pound is stopped  
pound 0:off 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off  
Starting Pound: starting…  
[FAILED]  
Starting Pound: starting…  
[FAILED]  
Starting Pound: starting…  
[FAILED]  
Starting Pound: starting…  
[FAILED]  
Starting Pound: starting…  
[FAILED]  
[2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started

- start service service[pound]

This are my recipe declaration:

# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template

package ‘Pound’ do  
options '–enablerepo=epel’  
end

template ‘/etc/pound.cfg’ do  
source 'pound.cfg.erb’  
mode 0644  
end

service ‘pound’ do  
supports :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true  
action [:start, :enable]  
end

I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as well as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option

If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it with chef-apply then it fails as it should:  
[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: service[pound] ((chef-apply cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an error: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with [0], but received ‘1’  
---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED]  
STDERR: starting…  
---- End output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1

The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit code is returned on unsuccessful start of pound.

There are no processes called pound running on the system and there are no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.

What am I missing?

Cheers

–  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)[mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.chef.io/yoshi_spendiff/32/13_2.png) [@Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Yoshi_Spendiff)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/2 "2015-05-12T15:13:39Z")

</div>

The init script already includes /etc/rc.d/init.d/functions, which is the  
same thing.

Why is chef-apply working but not Chef solo?

On Mon, May 11, 2015 at 9:12 PM, Fouts, Chris [Chris.Fouts@sensus.com](mailto:Chris.Fouts@sensus.com)  
wrote:

> On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try adding  
> the following line
> 
> . /etc/init.d/function
> 
> Chris
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook [http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)
> 
> _From:_ Yoshi Spendiff  
> _Sent:_ 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
> _To:_ chef  
> _Subject:_ [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
> Hi,
> 
> I'm having trouble understanding why Chef isn't detecting that a service  
> is failing to start. I'm attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work. The  
> package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the  
> service is started when it's not. I'm running via chef solo at the moment  
> (it's a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging  
> produces the following:
> 
> - [2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified a  
> status command, running.. pound is stopped pound 0:off  
> 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off Starting Pound: starting...  
> [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> [FAILED] [2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started - start  
> service service[pound]\*
> 
> This are my recipe declaration:
> 
> \*# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template package  
> 'Pound' do options '--enablerepo=epel' end template '/etc/pound.cfg' do  
> source 'pound.cfg.erb' mode 0644 end service 'pound' do supports  
> :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true action [:start,  
> :enable] end \*  
> I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as well  
> as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option
> 
> If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it with \*chef-apply  
> \*then it fails as it should:
> 
> _[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed:  
> service[pound] ((chef-apply cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an  
> error: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with  
> [0], but received '1' ---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
> STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED] STDERR: starting... ---- End output of  
> /sbin/service pound start ---- Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1_
> 
> The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit code is  
> returned on unsuccessful start of pound.
> 
> There are no processes called pound running on the system and there are  
> no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.
> 
> What am I missing?
> 
> Cheers
> 
> --  
> Yoshi Spendiff  
> Ops Engineer  
> Indochino  
> Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

--  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.chef.io/yoshi_spendiff/32/13_2.png) [@Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Yoshi_Spendiff)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 3:52pm UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/3 "2015-05-12T15:52:27Z")

</div>

Same thing happens if I boot up an instance and use chef-client against a  
Chef server. Says it's starting, says it supports status, says it's  
running, it's not.

chef-apply with the same service declaration works correctly on that  
instance as well.

_[2015-05-12T15:44:11+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] supports status,  
running[2015-05-12T15:44:13+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started_

But running \*service pound status \*returns an exit code of 3 and there are  
no processes called 'pound'

Is Chef actually using the init scripts? I thought if \*supports :status =\>  
true \*was set then essentially \*service pound status \*was run, and if _supports  
:status =\> false_ then Chef checks for a process name (based on the  
declaration name?). In both cases it should fail?

On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:13 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
[yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:

> The init script already includes /etc/rc.d/init.d/functions, which is the  
> same thing.
> 
> Why is chef-apply working but not Chef solo?
> 
> On Mon, May 11, 2015 at 9:12 PM, Fouts, Chris [Chris.Fouts@sensus.com](mailto:Chris.Fouts@sensus.com)  
> wrote:
> 
> > On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try adding  
> > the following line
> > 
> > . /etc/init.d/function
> > 
> > Chris
> > 
> > Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook [http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)
> > 
> > _From:_ Yoshi Spendiff  
> > _Sent:_ 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
> > _To:_ chef  
> > _Subject:_ [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
> > Hi,
> > 
> > I'm having trouble understanding why Chef isn't detecting that a service  
> > is failing to start. I'm attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work. The  
> > package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the  
> > service is started when it's not. I'm running via chef solo at the moment  
> > (it's a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging  
> > produces the following:
> > 
> > - [2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified a  
> > status command, running.. pound is stopped pound 0:off  
> > 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off Starting Pound: starting...  
> > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > [FAILED] [2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started - start  
> > service service[pound]\*
> > 
> > This are my recipe declaration:
> > 
> > \*# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template package  
> > 'Pound' do options '--enablerepo=epel' end template '/etc/pound.cfg' do  
> > source 'pound.cfg.erb' mode 0644 end service 'pound' do supports  
> > :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true action [:start,  
> > :enable] end \*  
> > I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as well  
> > as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option
> > 
> > If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it with \*chef-apply  
> > \*then it fails as it should:
> > 
> > _[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed:  
> > service[pound] ((chef-apply cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an  
> > error: Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with  
> > [0], but received '1' ---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
> > STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED] STDERR: starting... ---- End output of  
> > /sbin/service pound start ---- Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1_
> > 
> > The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit code  
> > is returned on unsuccessful start of pound.
> > 
> > There are no processes called pound running on the system and there are  
> > no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.
> > 
> > What am I missing?
> > 
> > Cheers
> > 
> > --  
> > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > Ops Engineer  
> > Indochino  
> > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> 
> --  
> Yoshi Spendiff  
> Ops Engineer  
> Indochino  
> Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

--  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.chef.io/yoshi_spendiff/32/13_2.png) [@Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Yoshi_Spendiff)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 8:01pm UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/4 "2015-05-12T20:01:25Z")

</div>

This is doing my nut in.

The redhat service provider is used, I can see that from the debug output:

- 
  - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] INFO:  
Processing service[pound] action start (indochino-role::web-server line  
94)[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG: providers for generic service  
resource enabled on node include: [Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat,  
Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
providers that refused resource service[pound] were:  
[Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
providers that support resource service[pound] include:  
[Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
providers that survived replacement include:  
[Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
service[pound] you have specified a status command, running..pound  
0:off 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:offStarting Pound:  
starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF  
1[2015-05-12T16:35:53+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started\*

I've tried to follow the stack as best I could, with my admittedly meager  
ruby grokking skills, and as far as I can work out an exception should be  
raised if the service fails to start.

So from what I can tell:

1. The redhat provider (Chef::Provider::Service::Init::Redhat) is loaded,  
which sets the following parameter _@init\_command = "/sbin/service  
#{@new\_resource.service\_name}"_, which is correct
2. The service is loaded using load\_current\_resource in  
Chef::Provider::Service::Simple. The status is then verified either by a  
custom command if specified or the default using the default\_init\_script  
from the provider above.
3. If the condition for starting is met (i.e. the service is not running)  
and the start action is specified then the action\_start function in  
Chef::Provider::Service is run, which adds the start\_service function to  
convergence using 'converge\_by'. The start\_service function comes from  
either Chef::Provider::Service::Simple or Chef::Provider::Service::Init  
depending on if a custom start command is specified. Either way the command  
is sent to a shell out.
4. The start command is execute via the shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
function in Chef::Mixin::ShellOut which calls  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale, which in turn calls shell\_out\_command, which  
in turn creates an instance of Mixlib::ShellOut to run the command
5. The .error! method of Mixlib::ShellOut is called against the instance  
after the command is run, which should generate a ShellCommandFailed  
exception with the message _invalid!("Expected process to exit with  
#{valid\_exit\_codes.inspect}, but received '#{exitstatus}'") if error?_

The last is the message I see if I run the recipe by chef-apply (and what  
I'm pretty sure I normally see when a service fails). Adding some hacky  
debugging to the chef code on a test instance I can see that  
Mixlib::ShellOut picks up the non-zero exit code, confirms it's not a valid  
exit code and I can see the error status is set to generate an error if the  
.error! method is called, which it is.  
I can only assume that whatever in the convergence causes the service start  
command to loop 5 times also catches the exception and handles it somehow,  
I can't work that bit out.

This is the debugging fwiw (unsure why action\_start and start\_service  
aren't called the first time on the loop):

- 
  - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: ShellOut  
exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
INFO: action\_start method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
start\_service method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed  
exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error  
status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error status is  
true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
[0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
[0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
[0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00]  
INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
[0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started -  
start service service[pound]\*

This is where I need someone to tell me it's either working as intended and  
I'm doing it wrong or it's a bug, because I'm outta talent.

On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:52 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
[yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:

> Same thing happens if I boot up an instance and use chef-client against a  
> Chef server. Says it's starting, says it supports status, says it's  
> running, it's not.
> 
> chef-apply with the same service declaration works correctly on that  
> instance as well.
> 
> _[2015-05-12T15:44:11+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] supports status,  
> running[2015-05-12T15:44:13+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started_
> 
> But running \*service pound status \*returns an exit code of 3 and there  
> are no processes called 'pound'
> 
> Is Chef actually using the init scripts? I thought if \*supports :status  
> =\> true \*was set then essentially \*service pound status \*was run, and if _supports  
> :status =\> false_ then Chef checks for a process name (based on the  
> declaration name?). In both cases it should fail?
> 
> On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:13 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> 
> > The init script already includes /etc/rc.d/init.d/functions, which is the  
> > same thing.
> > 
> > Why is chef-apply working but not Chef solo?
> > 
> > On Mon, May 11, 2015 at 9:12 PM, Fouts, Chris [Chris.Fouts@sensus.com](mailto:Chris.Fouts@sensus.com)  
> > wrote:
> > 
> > > On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try  
> > > adding the following line
> > > 
> > > . /etc/init.d/function
> > > 
> > > Chris
> > > 
> > > Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook [http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)
> > > 
> > > _From:_ Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > _Sent:_ 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
> > > _To:_ chef  
> > > _Subject:_ [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
> > > Hi,
> > > 
> > > I'm having trouble understanding why Chef isn't detecting that a  
> > > service is failing to start. I'm attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work.  
> > > The package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the  
> > > service is started when it's not. I'm running via chef solo at the moment  
> > > (it's a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging  
> > > produces the following:
> > > 
> > > - [2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified a  
> > > status command, running.. pound is stopped pound 0:off  
> > > 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > [FAILED] [2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started - start  
> > > service service[pound]\*
> > > 
> > > This are my recipe declaration:
> > > 
> > > \*# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template package  
> > > 'Pound' do options '--enablerepo=epel' end template '/etc/pound.cfg' do  
> > > source 'pound.cfg.erb' mode 0644 end service 'pound' do supports  
> > > :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true action [:start,  
> > > :enable] end \*  
> > > I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as well  
> > > as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option
> > > 
> > > If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it with \*chef-apply  
> > > \*then it fails as it should:
> > > 
> > > _[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL:  
> > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: service[pound] ((chef-apply  
> > > cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an error:  
> > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with [0],  
> > > but received '1' ---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
> > > STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED] STDERR: starting... ---- End output of  
> > > /sbin/service pound start ---- Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1_
> > > 
> > > The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit code  
> > > is returned on unsuccessful start of pound.
> > > 
> > > There are no processes called pound running on the system and there are  
> > > no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.
> > > 
> > > What am I missing?
> > > 
> > > Cheers
> > > 
> > > --  
> > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > Ops Engineer  
> > > Indochino  
> > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > 
> > --  
> > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > Ops Engineer  
> > Indochino  
> > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> 
> --  
> Yoshi Spendiff  
> Ops Engineer  
> Indochino  
> Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

--  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.chef.io/yoshi_spendiff/32/13_2.png) [@Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Yoshi_Spendiff)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2015, 8:25pm UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/5 "2015-05-12T20:25:15Z")

</div>

Looks like it's not just the pound service either. I changed my recipe to  
remove all Listen entries for the ports.conf file in apache configuration  
(so they can be pushed out via vhost), which generates an error when  
attempting to start httpd, and httpd failed silently also.

On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 1:01 PM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
[yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:

> This is doing my nut in.
> 
> The redhat service provider is used, I can see that from the debug output:
> 
> - 
> - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] INFO:  
> Processing service[pound] action start (indochino-role::web-server line  
> 94)[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG: providers for generic service  
> resource enabled on node include: [Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
> Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat,  
> Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> providers that refused resource service[pound] were:  
> [Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> providers that support resource service[pound] include:  
> [Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
> Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> providers that survived replacement include:  
> [Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> service[pound] you have specified a status command, running..pound  
> 0:off 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:offStarting Pound:  
> starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF  
> 1[2015-05-12T16:35:53+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started\*
> 
> I've tried to follow the stack as best I could, with my admittedly meager  
> ruby grokking skills, and as far as I can work out an exception should be  
> raised if the service fails to start.
> 
> So from what I can tell:
> 
> 1. The redhat provider (Chef::Provider::Service::Init::Redhat) is loaded,  
> which sets the following parameter _@init\_command = "/sbin/service  
> #{@new\_resource.service\_name}"_, which is correct
> 2. The service is loaded using load\_current\_resource in  
> Chef::Provider::Service::Simple. The status is then verified either by a  
> custom command if specified or the default using the default\_init\_script  
> from the provider above.
> 3. If the condition for starting is met (i.e. the service is not running)  
> and the start action is specified then the action\_start function in  
> Chef::Provider::Service is run, which adds the start\_service function to  
> convergence using 'converge\_by'. The start\_service function comes from  
> either Chef::Provider::Service::Simple or Chef::Provider::Service::Init  
> depending on if a custom start command is specified. Either way the command  
> is sent to a shell out.
> 4. The start command is execute via the shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> function in Chef::Mixin::ShellOut which calls  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale, which in turn calls shell\_out\_command, which  
> in turn creates an instance of Mixlib::ShellOut to run the command
> 5. The .error! method of Mixlib::ShellOut is called against the instance  
> after the command is run, which should generate a ShellCommandFailed  
> exception with the message _invalid!("Expected process to exit with  
> #{valid\_exit\_codes.inspect}, but received '#{exitstatus}'") if error?_
> 
> The last is the message I see if I run the recipe by chef-apply (and what  
> I'm pretty sure I normally see when a service fails). Adding some hacky  
> debugging to the chef code on a test instance I can see that  
> Mixlib::ShellOut picks up the non-zero exit code, confirms it's not a valid  
> exit code and I can see the error status is set to generate an error if the  
> .error! method is called, which it is.  
> I can only assume that whatever in the convergence causes the service  
> start command to loop 5 times also catches the exception and handles it  
> somehow, I can't work that bit out.
> 
> This is the debugging fwiw (unsure why action\_start and start\_service  
> aren't called the first time on the loop):
> 
> - 
> - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: ShellOut  
> exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> INFO: action\_start method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> start\_service method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed  
> exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error  
> status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error status is  
> true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> [0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00]  
> INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> [0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started -  
> start service service[pound]\*
> 
> This is where I need someone to tell me it's either working as intended  
> and I'm doing it wrong or it's a bug, because I'm outta talent.
> 
> On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:52 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> 
> > Same thing happens if I boot up an instance and use chef-client against a  
> > Chef server. Says it's starting, says it supports status, says it's  
> > running, it's not.
> > 
> > chef-apply with the same service declaration works correctly on that  
> > instance as well.
> > 
> > _[2015-05-12T15:44:11+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] supports status,  
> > running[2015-05-12T15:44:13+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started_
> > 
> > But running \*service pound status \*returns an exit code of 3 and there  
> > are no processes called 'pound'
> > 
> > Is Chef actually using the init scripts? I thought if \*supports :status  
> > =\> true \*was set then essentially \*service pound status \*was run, and if _supports  
> > :status =\> false_ then Chef checks for a process name (based on the  
> > declaration name?). In both cases it should fail?
> > 
> > On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:13 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> > [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> > 
> > > The init script already includes /etc/rc.d/init.d/functions, which is  
> > > the same thing.
> > > 
> > > Why is chef-apply working but not Chef solo?
> > > 
> > > On Mon, May 11, 2015 at 9:12 PM, Fouts, Chris [Chris.Fouts@sensus.com](mailto:Chris.Fouts@sensus.com)  
> > > wrote:
> > > 
> > > > On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try  
> > > > adding the following line
> > > > 
> > > > . /etc/init.d/function
> > > > 
> > > > Chris
> > > > 
> > > > Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook [http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)
> > > > 
> > > > _From:_ Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > > _Sent:_ 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
> > > > _To:_ chef  
> > > > _Subject:_ [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
> > > > Hi,
> > > > 
> > > > I'm having trouble understanding why Chef isn't detecting that a  
> > > > service is failing to start. I'm attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work.  
> > > > The package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the  
> > > > service is started when it's not. I'm running via chef solo at the moment  
> > > > (it's a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging  
> > > > produces the following:
> > > > 
> > > > - [2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified  
> > > > a status command, running.. pound is stopped pound 0:off  
> > > > 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > [FAILED] [2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started - start  
> > > > service service[pound]\*
> > > > 
> > > > This are my recipe declaration:
> > > > 
> > > > \*# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template package  
> > > > 'Pound' do options '--enablerepo=epel' end template '/etc/pound.cfg' do  
> > > > source 'pound.cfg.erb' mode 0644 end service 'pound' do supports  
> > > > :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true action [:start,  
> > > > :enable] end \*  
> > > > I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as  
> > > > well as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option
> > > > 
> > > > If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it  
> > > > with \*chef-apply \*then it fails as it should:
> > > > 
> > > > _[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL:  
> > > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: service[pound] ((chef-apply  
> > > > cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an error:  
> > > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with [0],  
> > > > but received '1' ---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
> > > > STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED] STDERR: starting... ---- End output of  
> > > > /sbin/service pound start ---- Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1_
> > > > 
> > > > The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit code  
> > > > is returned on unsuccessful start of pound.
> > > > 
> > > > There are no processes called pound running on the system and there  
> > > > are no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.
> > > > 
> > > > What am I missing?
> > > > 
> > > > Cheers
> > > > 
> > > > --  
> > > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > > Ops Engineer  
> > > > Indochino  
> > > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > > 
> > > --  
> > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > Ops Engineer  
> > > Indochino  
> > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > 
> > --  
> > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > Ops Engineer  
> > Indochino  
> > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> 
> --  
> Yoshi Spendiff  
> Ops Engineer  
> Indochino  
> Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

--  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.chef.io/yoshi_spendiff/32/13_2.png) [@Yoshi\_Spendiff](https://discourse.chef.io/u/Yoshi_Spendiff)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 5:23pm UTC](https://discourse.chef.io/t/re-not-detecting-service-start-failure/6568/6 "2015-05-13T17:23:31Z")

</div>

Happens in chef client 12.3 and 12.0.3

Is there a global _ignore\_failure true_ that can be/is set that could be on  
accidentally?

Has this behaviour changed in Chef 12+?

On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 1:25 PM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
[yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:

> Looks like it's not just the pound service either. I changed my recipe to  
> remove all Listen entries for the ports.conf file in apache configuration  
> (so they can be pushed out via vhost), which generates an error when  
> attempting to start httpd, and httpd failed silently also.
> 
> On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 1:01 PM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> 
> > This is doing my nut in.
> > 
> > The redhat service provider is used, I can see that from the debug output:
> > 
> > - 
> > - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] INFO:  
> > Processing service[pound] action start (indochino-role::web-server line  
> > 94)[2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG: providers for generic service  
> > resource enabled on node include: [Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
> > Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat,  
> > Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> > providers that refused resource service[pound] were:  
> > [Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> > providers that support resource service[pound] include:  
> > [Chef::Provider::Service::Init,  
> > Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> > providers that survived replacement include:  
> > [Chef::Provider::Service::Redhat][2015-05-12T16:35:51+00:00] DEBUG:  
> > service[pound] you have specified a status command, running..pound  
> > 0:off 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:offStarting Pound:  
> > starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> > starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> > starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> > starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF 1Starting Pound:  
> > starting...[FAILED]POUND INIT COMMAND EXITED WITH CODE OF  
> > 1[2015-05-12T16:35:53+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started\*
> > 
> > I've tried to follow the stack as best I could, with my admittedly meager  
> > ruby grokking skills, and as far as I can work out an exception should be  
> > raised if the service fails to start.
> > 
> > So from what I can tell:
> > 
> > 1. The redhat provider (Chef::Provider::Service::Init::Redhat) is loaded,  
> > which sets the following parameter _@init\_command = "/sbin/service  
> > #{@new\_resource.service\_name}"_, which is correct
> > 2. The service is loaded using load\_current\_resource in  
> > Chef::Provider::Service::Simple. The status is then verified either by a  
> > custom command if specified or the default using the default\_init\_script  
> > from the provider above.
> > 3. If the condition for starting is met (i.e. the service is not running)  
> > and the start action is specified then the action\_start function in  
> > Chef::Provider::Service is run, which adds the start\_service function to  
> > convergence using 'converge\_by'. The start\_service function comes from  
> > either Chef::Provider::Service::Simple or Chef::Provider::Service::Init  
> > depending on if a custom start command is specified. Either way the command  
> > is sent to a shell out.
> > 4. The start command is execute via the shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> > function in Chef::Mixin::ShellOut which calls  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale, which in turn calls shell\_out\_command, which  
> > in turn creates an instance of Mixlib::ShellOut to run the command
> > 5. The .error! method of Mixlib::ShellOut is called against the instance  
> > after the command is run, which should generate a ShellCommandFailed  
> > exception with the message _invalid!("Expected process to exit with  
> > #{valid\_exit\_codes.inspect}, but received '#{exitstatus}'") if error?_
> > 
> > The last is the message I see if I run the recipe by chef-apply (and what  
> > I'm pretty sure I normally see when a service fails). Adding some hacky  
> > debugging to the chef code on a test instance I can see that  
> > Mixlib::ShellOut picks up the non-zero exit code, confirms it's not a valid  
> > exit code and I can see the error status is set to generate an error if the  
> > .error! method is called, which it is.  
> > I can only assume that whatever in the convergence causes the service  
> > start command to loop 5 times also catches the exception and handles it  
> > somehow, I can't work that bit out.
> > 
> > This is the debugging fwiw (unsure why action\_start and start\_service  
> > aren't called the first time on the loop):
> > 
> > - 
> > - service[pound] action start[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: ShellOut  
> > exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> > INFO: action\_start method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> > start\_service method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! method called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:34+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed  
> > exit codes are [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error  
> > status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error status is  
> > true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> > method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> > [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> > true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> > status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> > method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> > [0][2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> > true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> > status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> > method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:35+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> > ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> > [0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> > true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> > status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: start\_service method  
> > called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale!  
> > method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> > shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00]  
> > INFO: shell\_out\_command method called[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO:  
> > ShellOut exit status was 1. Allowed exit codes are  
> > [0][2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_command error status is  
> > true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: shell\_out\_with\_systems\_locale! error  
> > status is true[2015-05-12T19:35:36+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started -  
> > start service service[pound]\*
> > 
> > This is where I need someone to tell me it's either working as intended  
> > and I'm doing it wrong or it's a bug, because I'm outta talent.
> > 
> > On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:52 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> > [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> > 
> > > Same thing happens if I boot up an instance and use chef-client against  
> > > a Chef server. Says it's starting, says it supports status, says it's  
> > > running, it's not.
> > > 
> > > chef-apply with the same service declaration works correctly on that  
> > > instance as well.
> > > 
> > > _[2015-05-12T15:44:11+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] supports status,  
> > > running[2015-05-12T15:44:13+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started_
> > > 
> > > But running \*service pound status \*returns an exit code of 3 and there  
> > > are no processes called 'pound'
> > > 
> > > Is Chef actually using the init scripts? I thought if \*supports :status  
> > > =\> true \*was set then essentially \*service pound status \*was run, and  
> > > if _supports :status =\> false_ then Chef checks for a process name  
> > > (based on the declaration name?). In both cases it should fail?
> > > 
> > > On Tue, May 12, 2015 at 8:13 AM, Yoshi Spendiff \<  
> > > [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)\> wrote:
> > > 
> > > > The init script already includes /etc/rc.d/init.d/functions, which is  
> > > > the same thing.
> > > > 
> > > > Why is chef-apply working but not Chef solo?
> > > > 
> > > > On Mon, May 11, 2015 at 9:12 PM, Fouts, Chris [Chris.Fouts@sensus.com](mailto:Chris.Fouts@sensus.com)  
> > > > wrote:
> > > > 
> > > > > On top of the script in /etc/init.d that starts the service, try  
> > > > > adding the following line
> > > > > 
> > > > > . /etc/init.d/function
> > > > > 
> > > > > Chris
> > > > > 
> > > > > Sent from my iPad using Mail+ for Outlook [http://taps.io/mailplus](http://taps.io/mailplus)
> > > > > 
> > > > > _From:_ Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > > > _Sent:_ 5/11/15, 9:57 PM  
> > > > > _To:_ chef  
> > > > > _Subject:_ [chef] Not detecting service start failure  
> > > > > Hi,
> > > > > 
> > > > > I'm having trouble understanding why Chef isn't detecting that a  
> > > > > service is failing to start. I'm attempting to get Pound (proxy) to work.  
> > > > > The package installs fine and I have a service declaration that says the  
> > > > > service is started when it's not. I'm running via chef solo at the moment  
> > > > > (it's a vagrant box) and running a chef-solo run with debug logging  
> > > > > produces the following:
> > > > > 
> > > > > - [2015-05-12T01:45:50+00:00] DEBUG: service[pound] you have specified  
> > > > > a status command, running.. pound is stopped pound 0:off  
> > > > > 1:off 2:on 3:on 4:on 5:on 6:off Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > > [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting... [FAILED] Starting Pound: starting...  
> > > > > [FAILED] [2015-05-12T01:45:52+00:00] INFO: service[pound] started - start  
> > > > > service service[pound]\*
> > > > > 
> > > > > This are my recipe declaration:
> > > > > 
> > > > > \*# Install pound and deploy configuration file from template package  
> > > > > 'Pound' do options '--enablerepo=epel' end template '/etc/pound.cfg' do  
> > > > > source 'pound.cfg.erb' mode 0644 end service 'pound' do supports  
> > > > > :restart =\> false, :reload =\> false, :status =\> true action [:start,  
> > > > > :enable] end \*  
> > > > > I have tried using the init\_command and status\_command options, as  
> > > > > well as disabling and enabling the supports :status =\> true option
> > > > > 
> > > > > If I put the above service declaration into a test file and run it  
> > > > > with \*chef-apply \*then it fails as it should:
> > > > > 
> > > > > _[2015-05-12T01:56:28+00:00] FATAL:  
> > > > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: service[pound] ((chef-apply  
> > > > > cookbook)::(chef-apply recipe) line 5) had an error:  
> > > > > Mixlib::ShellOut::ShellCommandFailed: Expected process to exit with [0],  
> > > > > but received '1' ---- Begin output of /sbin/service pound start ----  
> > > > > STDOUT: Starting Pound: [FAILED] STDERR: starting... ---- End output of  
> > > > > /sbin/service pound start ---- Ran /sbin/service pound start returned 1_
> > > > > 
> > > > > The pound init script is set up to run correctly, a non-zero exit  
> > > > > code is returned on unsuccessful start of pound.
> > > > > 
> > > > > There are no processes called pound running on the system and there  
> > > > > are no other service declarations called pound in all of my cookbooks.
> > > > > 
> > > > > What am I missing?
> > > > > 
> > > > > Cheers
> > > > > 
> > > > > --  
> > > > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > > > Ops Engineer  
> > > > > Indochino  
> > > > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > > > 
> > > > --  
> > > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > > Ops Engineer  
> > > > Indochino  
> > > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > > 
> > > --  
> > > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > > Ops Engineer  
> > > Indochino  
> > > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> > 
> > --  
> > Yoshi Spendiff  
> > Ops Engineer  
> > Indochino  
> > Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> > Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)
> 
> --  
> Yoshi Spendiff  
> Ops Engineer  
> Indochino  
> Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
> Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)

--  
Yoshi Spendiff  
Ops Engineer  
Indochino  
Mobile: +1 778 952 2025  
Email: [yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com](mailto:yoshi.spendiff@indochino.com)