#systemd

Operating Systems Bug Report

Script works in the shell but fails as a systemd service: PATH and missing environment

Daniel Tran · Aug 12, 2025 · 8 min read

Our nightly report export ran perfectly when we typed it, and failed every night as a systemd service with node: command not found. Services get no login shell, no .bashrc and a working directory of /. Here is how we made the unit self-contained.

Performance & Scaling Bug Report

Too many open files under load while ulimit -n says 65535: systemd LimitNOFILE

Daniel Tran · Jan 30, 2025 · 8 min read

Our thumbnail service hit Errno 24 at about 1,000 concurrent connections even though ulimit -n showed 65535. systemd services never read limits.conf. We set LimitNOFILE in a drop-in and fixed a client leak that was eating descriptors.