Linux Uptime

Moving a Server with 945 Days of Uptime 2


Linux UptimeI stumbled across this video today of a server move from a few years ago in 2009. I never even knew it existed until today! It was uploaded by one of my buddies, Chuck Goolsbee, who used to work at our colo center (but now works at Facebook).

Because of some expansion in the colo facility where we store our servers, my biz partner Steve Cook and I needed to relocate all our CheatCodes.com servers to a new rack. However, one of our RedHat Enterprise Linux servers had over 2.5 years of uptime (no shutdowns or reboots), and in some circles, that grants us a healthy amount of “geek cred” — particularly considering that this server was attached directly to the Internet and was under constant (and unsuccessful) attack by hackers around the world. So, we hatched a plan… that involved extension cords.

Now, eventually, we were forced to reboot this server to replace some failed hardware, but not until months later, with over 1,110 days of uptime!

If you’re reading this, scratching your head, and wondering why four digits of uptime is awesome, then I’m sorry — there’s simply no way I’ll ever be able to explain it to you. 🙂