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We are trying to set up an Apache server on a remote machine, but we experience strange behaviour. Checking with telnet remote.machine 80, one of these things happen randomly:

  • Connect and serve content normally (no delay)
  • Connect after a long pause
  • Connect normally, then time out without response
  • Timeout on connect

Once connected, the request seems to be processed normally. These things do not occur if I connect from that machine directly to localhost 80.

The Apache is dedicated, as is the server it runs on (runs only this one application, no-one else is using it for anything else). I am not an administrator of the remote site, and I do not know the network architecture over there, but apparently it's firewalled: (HTTP port is open, SSH port is IP-restricted, most others are closed).

If there was any one pattern, I might have some ideas, but this variety of symptoms baffles me. Any ideas as to what could be causing this?

Apache is 2.2; Server version is:

Linux version 2.6.9-22.ELsmp (bhcompile@porky.build.redhat.com)
(gcc version 3.4.4 20050721 (Red Hat 3.4.4-2)) #1 SMP
Mon Sep 19 18:32:14 EDT 2005

UPDATE: The administrators over there found the error - apparently, they had some anti-intrusion heuristics software running. When they disabled it, everything started working as it should. Thank you for thinking with me, though!

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The behavior you have described seems a little inconsistent. To me this sounds like there is possibly an IP conflict (Although if you are connected via ssh I would expect problems there as well if this is the case), but could be other things as well. I would recommend you try to get the network administrator of the remote site involved.

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"Little inconsistent" is an understatement :) We'll probably do exactly that, but I'm trying to see if there's anything in Apache (mis)configuration that might do this before we hand it over to the network people. Thanks. – Amadan Jun 11 '10 at 14:14
If you ssh in a few times does it always work or do you see problems there as well? – Kyle Brandt♦ Jun 11 '10 at 15:49
Could also be maybe to many open file descriptors or something like that as well. Anything in the apache error.log? – Kyle Brandt♦ Jun 11 '10 at 17:27
I didn't find anything suspicious in error_log - the worst thing are File does not exists, like favicon.ico. I couldn't see anything that would suggest to me some abnormal operation. I did not experience any strangeness with ssh. – Amadan Jun 11 '10 at 19:05
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