How to Troubleshoot “Connection Was Terminated” or “Connection Terminated Unexpectedly” Errors in Applications Using DataSunrise Proxies

In a world increasingly dependent on seamless digital communication and data exchange, encountering errors like “Connection was terminated” or “Connection terminated unexpectedly” can disrupt critical business operations. These errors can be particularly challenging in environments that use DataSunrise proxies, which act as security and compliance gatekeepers between applications and databases. This blog post will guide you through a comprehensive troubleshooting process to resolve these issues, ensuring minimal disruption and optimal performance of your applications.

Understanding the Problem

Connection errors can occur at various levels of the network and application stack. These issues might manifest due to problems in the application connection pool, load balancer configurations, network settings, or even within DataSunrise itself or the backend databases. We’ll explore each of these components in detail, providing actionable solutions to identify and resolve the underlying causes of these frustrating errors.

1. Application Connection Pool

One common source of “Connection was terminated” errors lies within the application connection pool. Connection pools manage a set of database connections that can be reused for future requests. However, if connections remain idle for too long, the database might drop them, leading to errors when the application attempts to use the stale connection.

Solutions:

• Adjust Pool Settings: Ensure that your connection pool settings are tailored to manage idle connections effectively. Implement features like connection timeouts, which close idle connections after a set period.
• Use Validation Queries: Configuring your pool to send a simple validation query before using a connection can help detect and close dead connections.

2. Load Balancer Configuration

Load balancers distribute incoming network traffic across multiple servers to enhance the performance and reliability of applications. However, they can also be a source of connection issues if not configured correctly.

Solutions:

• Review Timeout Settings: Verify that the timeout settings on your load balancer are sufficient to accommodate the expected duration of database queries and transactions.
• Implement Keep-Alives: If supported, enable TCP keep-alive settings on your load balancer to help maintain idle connections.

3. Network Configuration and TCP Keepalive

Proper network configuration is crucial for maintaining stable connections. TCP keepalive is a mechanism that sends a packet to the other side of the connection to check if it is still available and/or reset the idle timeout.

Solutions:

• Check System Configurations: On Linux systems, ensure your TCP keepalive settings are optimized in the /etc/sysctl.conf file. Recommended settings might include:
  
  

  net.ipv4.tcp_keepalive_time = 60
  net.ipv4.tcp_keepalive_intvl = 10
  net.ipv4.tcp_keepalive_probes = 6

• Apply Settings Across the Board: These settings should be consistent across both application and database servers to prevent premature connection drops.

4. DataSunrise Specific Checks

DataSunrise operates as a database security proxy, analyzing and intercepting database traffic for threats and compliance issues. Issues within DataSunrise can lead to connection interruptions.

Solutions:

• Monitor Logs and Health: Regularly check DataSunrise logs for warnings or errors and ensure the system is healthy without unexpected restarts.
• Verify Cloud Instances: In cloud environments, ensure that the instance running DataSunrise hasn’t been inadvertently terminated or restarted.
• Review Security and Masking Rules: Incorrectly configured rules might terminate sessions they shouldn’t. Review these rules carefully to ensure they align with your intended security policies.
• Audit Connections: Use DataSunrise’s auditing tools to trace problematic connections and identify the cause of terminations.

5. Database Server Issues

Finally, issues at the database server level can cause connection terminations. These can range from server restarts to misconfigured settings.

Solutions:

• Examine Database Logs: Check the logs for any signs of errors that might indicate why connections are being dropped.
• Server Stability: Confirm that there have been no recent database server restarts, which can drop all active connections.

Conclusion

Troubleshooting “Connection was terminated” or “Connection terminated unexpectedly” errors involves a meticulous examination of each layer involved in the data transmission path—from application to database through DataSunrise. By methodically checking each area, adjusting configurations, and ensuring all components are optimally set up, you can significantly reduce the occurrence of these disruptions and maintain the robustness of your data security infrastructure.