Re: Problems with max_connections parameter

Jorge Augusto Meira <jmeira(at)c3sl(dot)ufpr(dot)br> writes:
> The error message was:
> "Erro Conexo: A tentativa de conexo falhou."
> or
> "Erro Conexo: FATAL: connection limit exceeded for non-superusers"

Hmm ... I can't find the first of those anywhere in the 8.4 message
lists; but the second one definitely says that you *are* hitting the
max_connections limit, whether you think you should be or not.

I wonder whether you are neglecting to allow for the fact that backends
have a nonzero shutdown time? If you disconnect and immediately
reconnect, it's possible that your old backend is still around, so that
the new connection attempt causes max_connections to be exceeded. This
is particularly likely if the test program is on the same machine as the
database server, because the test program itself is likely to have a
higher scheduling priority than the old backend.

regards, tom lane