Increasing the number of file handles on Linux workstations

About this task

Important: Before you install or upgrade your DevOps product you must increase the number of file handles available. A system administrator must make this change.

Use caution when increase the allowed number of file descriptors on Linux™. Failure to follow the instructions can result in a computer that does not start correctly. For the best results, have your system administrator perform this procedure.

Procedure

To increase the file descriptor limit:
  1. Log in as root. If you do not have root access, you must obtain it before you can continue.
  2. Change to the /etc/security directory.
  3. Locate the limits.conf file. Open the file or create it with a Linux text editor.
  4. On the first line, set ulimit to a number larger than 1024, the default on most Linux computers. For example:

    ulimit -n 4096

    CAUTION: Setting ulimit too high can affect system-wide performance.
  5. On the second line, type eval exec "$4".
  6. Save and close the shell script.

Red Hat

For Red Hat systems, follow a similar procedure, editing the /etc/security/limits.conf file. In this file, add lines similar to the following: 
* soft nofile 16383
* hard nofile 16383

What to do next

For more information about the ulimit command, refer to the system man page for ulimit.