How did I get two instances of vim?

[Eric Weir]

Or, more importantly, how do I get rid of the second?

I'm using the vim-session plugin. This morning I've been getting the following error message when I attempt to open a session:
session.vim 1.5: The 'default' session is locked by another Vim instance named 'VIM
1'! Use :OpenSession! to override.

Didn't understand what it was telling me at first---because I *assumed* I did. Just realized this means I've got two sessions of vim running. Have no idea how I got two. Certainly didn't do it deliberately.

How do I get rid of the second instance?

Thanks,
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir

“You will be needed in the movement when you realize
that you are not needed in the movement.”

- Chris Crass

[Tim Gray]

Post by Eric Weir
Or, more importantly, how do I get rid of the second?

The second session might have already been closed. Or crashed, or just
improperly shut down. Who knows without looking at your computer. As
long as you don't have any vim instances running in a terminal somewhere
that you've forgotten about, or MacVim windows that you might have
minimized and forgotten about, it's probably fine to ignore the warning.

You could use Activity Monitor to search for running or hung instances
of vim if you are concerned, and (force) quit them from there.

Post by Eric Weir
Didn't understand what it was telling me at first---because I *assumed*
I did. Just realized this means I've got two sessions of vim running.

In my experience, starting up vim from scratch results in an instance
called VIM. Starting up a second one creates an instance called VIM1.
In MacVim, these instance (server) names are in the title bar of the vim
window. Presumably your only MacVim window currently says 'VIM'. If
you open up more OS X windows, not vim panes, windows, or tabs, but
windows in the OS, you start a new instance. Do you have multiple
windows that you opened with command-N or through the 'New Window'
command in the File menu? If so, you have multiple vim instances
running. Each OS X window in MacVim is it's own vim instance.

Post by Eric Weir
How do I get rid of the second instance?

If it's still running somewhere in some window, just quit it. If it's
not running anywhere and the message is the result of improper session
cleanup, remove ~/.vim/sessions/default.vim.lock. Or just follow the

Post by Eric Weir
Use :OpenSession! to override.

[Eric Weir]

You could use Activity Monitor to search for running or hung instances of vim if you are concerned, and (force) quit them from there.

Thanks, Tim. I found three. I forced all three to quit. When I started Vim back up and tried to load my session, I got the same error message, only this time referencing an instance named vim2. Only one shows in Activity Monitor.

In my experience, starting up vim from scratch results in an instance called VIM. Starting up a second one creates an instance called VIM1. In MacVim, these instance (server) names are in the title bar of the vim window. Presumably your only MacVim window currently says 'VIM'. If you open up more OS X windows, not vim panes, windows, or tabs, but windows in the OS, you start a new instance. Do you have multiple windows that you opened with command-N or through the 'New Window' command in the File menu? If so, you have multiple vim instances running. Each OS X window in MacVim is it's own vim instance.

I have on occasion opened a second OS X window of vim with command-N. Don't recall having done so recently. [This problem just showed up this morning. Have never encountered it before.] I always quit vim with command-q. If there's a warning about buffers being open, I write my files and then use command-q again.

Post by Eric Weir
How do I get rid of the second instance?
Use :OpenSession! to override.

When I do this, I get a "swap file already exists" *every* time I load a file---no matter how many times I load it. Even after I've written the file. I tried deleting "~/.vim/sessions/default.vim.lock." That at least got the session to load when vim is started up, but I get the "swap file already exists" warning with it too. Again, *every* time I open the file. Even after writing it.

I went to the folders for the documents in my session and deleted all the swap files. There were two instances of each vimwiki swap file. Two taskpaper files had four instances. One had three. I deleted them all.

I went back to Activity Monitor. Found three new instances of vim. Quit them. Started vim. Default session didn't load. Tried OpenSession. Got the warning about the session being locked by another instance of vim---vim1 again. Deleted "~/.vim/sessions/default.vim.lock" again.

Finally, I think I have only one instance of vim. The default session loads when I start up vim. I don't get repeated "swap file already exists" warnings.

I quite vim and restart it. It opens as vim1 again! The default session doesn't load I look at the Activity Monitor and there are two instances of vim again! What the hell is going on?

I'm wondering if the way I've been using vim-session is part of, or all of, the problem. Do I need to close the session before quitting vim? I've been assuming that if the default session has the files I want on startup, I wouldn't need to, that simply quitting vim, making sure all files are written before doing so, would be OK.

Thanks for the suggestions of things to do. Haven't fixed the problem, but at least I have some things to work with.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir
Decatur, GA
***@bellsouth.net

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors,
we borrow it from our children."

- Chief Seattle.

[Eric Weir]

Post by Eric Weir
I'm wondering if the way I've been using vim-session is part of, or all of, the problem. Do I need to close the session before quitting vim? I've been assuming that if the default session has the files I want on startup, I wouldn't need to, that simply quitting vim, making sure all files are written before doing so, would be OK.

My guess is this is the source of the problem. I cleaned everything out. Got rid of all the swap files. Got down to one instance of vim. When I started it up, the default session loaded. I opened files and didn't get "swap already exists." Saved the session, then closed the session. Restarted vim. Repeated the process. Symptoms not recurring now.

Quitting vim without closing the session leaves ~/.vim/session/default.vim.lock in existence. Closing the session before quitting vim gets rid of ~/.vim/session/default.vim.lock.

I had been quitting vim without closing the session since starting to use vim-session several days ago. This is the first time I've encountered this problem.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir
Decatur, GA
***@bellsouth.net

"Style is truth."

- Ray Bradbury

[Tim Gray]

Post by Eric Weir
When I do this, I get a "swap file already exists" *every* time I load
a file---no matter how many times I load it. Even after I've written
the file. I tried deleting "~/.vim/sessions/default.vim.lock." That at
least got the session to load when vim is started up, but I get the
"swap file already exists" warning with it too. Again, *every* time I
open the file. Even after writing it.

Well, if you don't remove the swap file, then you should get that
warning every time. Note, this isn't a session.vim issue, this is just
a vim issue. You have swap files sitting around. You get warnings when
you try to open a file and there is a swap file for it already. Vim
makes swap files when you open a file. It's supposed to remove them
when you close a buffer. If the buffer hasn't been closed properly (vim
crashes, you lose power, or something else), then the swap file doesn't
get deleted and you get warned the next time you open that file. "Hey,
there's a swap file here, do you want to edit it?" Another common
reason to get that warning is if you start editing a file that is
already open by another instance of vim.

The question is why is why do you have swap files sitting around?

Post by Eric Weir
I quite vim and restart it. It opens as vim1 again! The default session
doesn't load I look at the Activity Monitor and there are two instances
of vim again! What the hell is going on?

The processes in Activity Monitor are not necessarily all separate
instances of Vim. When I start up MacVim, I get one process named
MacVim and two named Vim. Opening up a new instance (VIM1), gives me
one extra process named Vim in Activity Monitor.

I didn't bring up Activity Monitor as a way for you to count Vim
instances. It was a way to make sure that you could have nothing
related to vim running. Quit Vim. Then check Activity Monitor for
anything called vim in there. If you've quit all instances of vim,
there shouldn't be anything there related to vim. Then you can start
from a clean slate.

Post by Eric Weir
I'm wondering if the way I've been using vim-session is part of, or all
of, the problem. Do I need to close the session before quitting vim?

That would make sense to me. I'm not sure if the lock file is cleaned
up if you don't close the session. I've not looked at the code to
check. I also don't particularly care because I just use :CloseSession
when I'm done.

You seem to think all of your problems are always from whatever plugin
you are running. I would look into why a newly started MacVim instance
is starting as VIM1 and not VIM. I don't think that's a session thing.
I also don't think it's a session thing that you have swap files
scattered about. That sounds like something related to improper shut
down to me.

If you completely quit vim and restart it, you should have a vim server
running with the name VIM (on MacVim at least). If it's something else,
like VIM1, something funny is going on - Vim must seem to think instance
VIM is occupied. This isn't a session thing (most likely).

[Eric Weir]

.... You have swap files sitting around. You get warnings when you try to open a file and there is a swap file for it already. Vim makes swap files when you open a file. It's supposed to remove them when you close a buffer. If the buffer hasn't been closed properly (vim crashes, you lose power, or something else), then the swap file doesn't get deleted and you get warned the next time you open that file..... Another common reason to get that warning is if you start editing a file that is already open by another instance of vim.
The question is why is why do you have swap files sitting around?

I haven't a clue. None of the suggestions above ring a bell. I don't think vim has ever crashed for me, I always write my files before quitting vim, etc., etc.

The processes in Activity Monitor are not necessarily all separate instances of Vim. When I start up MacVim, I get one process named MacVim and two named Vim. Opening up a new instance (VIM1), gives me one extra process named Vim in Activity Monitor.
I didn't bring up Activity Monitor as a way for you to count Vim instances. It was a way to make sure that you could have nothing related to vim running. Quit Vim. Then check Activity Monitor for anything called vim in there. If you've quit all instances of vim, there shouldn't be anything there related to vim. Then you can start from a clean slate.

Don't know if I've ever seen a process called MacVim when I start MacVim. Yesterday and today, at least, they been called Vim, Vim!, or Vim2. As I recall, in beginning to work with your suggestions yesterday, I believe I had three processes called Vim running after I had quit vim.

Post by Eric Weir
I'm wondering if the way I've been using vim-session is part of, or all of, the problem. Do I need to close the session before quitting vim?

That would make sense to me. I'm not sure if the lock file is cleaned up if you don't close the session. I've not looked at the code to check. I also don't particularly care because I just use :CloseSession when I'm done.

Yes, the lock file goes away when you close the session. Since starting to close the session prior to quitting vim I've not had multiple instances of vim or persisting swap files.

You seem to think all of your problems are always from whatever plugin you are running. I would look into why a newly started MacVim instance is starting as VIM1 and not VIM. I don't think that's a session thing. I also don't think it's a session thing that you have swap files scattered about. That sounds like something related to improper shut down to me.

Again, I could be overlooking something, but none of your suggestions---improper shut down, etc.---rings a bell. All I know is when I deleted all those swap files and started closing the session before quitting vim, I haven't had the problem.

If you completely quit vim and restart it, you should have a vim server running with the name VIM (on MacVim at least). If it's something else, like VIM1, something funny is going on - Vim must seem to think instance VIM is occupied. This isn't a session thing (most likely).

I'm puzzled how there could be instances of vim running that don't show up anywhere, at least in the places I would expect them---in the menu bar, minimized on the desktop, in Activity Monitor.

Bottom line, the symptoms have been eliminated, though the problem, the underlying reason, has not been solved.

Even that much would not have been possible without your feedback.

So thanks,
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir
Decatur, GA
***@bellsouth.net

"Everywhere the crisis of the private financial system
has been transformed into a tale of slovenly and overweening government
that perpetuates and is perpetuated by a dependent and demanding population."

- Marilynne Robinson

[Eric Weir]

Post by Eric Weir

You seem to think all of your problems are always from whatever plugin you are running. I would look into why a newly started MacVim instance is starting as VIM1 and not VIM. I don't think that's a session thing. I also don't think it's a session thing that you have swap files scattered about. That sounds like something related to improper shut down to me.

Again, I could be overlooking something, but none of your suggestions---improper shut down, etc.---rings a bell.

One thing I haven't mentioned: I start MacVim with QuickSilver. I type <ctrl> <space> to bring up qs, then mv to get the MacVim icon displayed, then hit <return> to start vim.

I don't know if that could get multiple surreptitious instances of vim going or not.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir
Decatur, GA
***@bellsouth.net

"What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from a great loneliness of spirit."

- Chief Seattle

[Tim Gray]

Post by Eric Weir
Again, I could be overlooking something, but none of your
suggestions---improper shut down, etc.---rings a bell. All I know is
when I deleted all those swap files and started closing the session
before quitting vim, I haven't had the problem.

You really shouldn't have to manually delete swap files if you are
saving and closing your files properly. Something is amiss. You should
ask the list directly about that.

Post by Eric Weir
I'm puzzled how there could be instances of vim running that don't show
up anywhere, at least in the places I would expect them---in the menu
bar, minimized on the desktop, in Activity Monitor.

They aren't necessarily running. I'm not sure how Vim records that it
has instances up and running, but if it fails to record that an
instances has CLOSED, then it might think the VIM instance is
active (and it's not), so when you start up a new instance, you get
VIM1.

To me, the signs point that your installation of Vim isn't doing proper
housekeeping when you shut things down. Maybe session.vim is involved,
maybe not. You could deactivate it and see the swap file behavior is
different. You could also keep an eye out on your instance names with
it deactivated. The only time you should see VIM1 is if you start up a
second instance while one is already running.

[Eric Weir]

To me, the signs point that your installation of Vim isn't doing proper housekeeping when you shut things down. Maybe session.vim is involved, maybe not. You could deactivate it and see the swap file behavior is different. You could also keep an eye out on your instance names with it deactivated. The only time you should see VIM1 is if you start up a second instance while one is already running.

I can produce the symptoms---multiple instances of vim, persisting swap files. I can do it reliably. Write all my files. Then quit vim without closing the session that was loaded.

When I do that the vim process in Activity Monitor persists. The swap files for all the files included in the session persist. The next time vim is started it starts as vim1. The default session will not be loaded automatically. A second set of swap files will be created when I do OpenSession manually.

If I go through the same process with vim1 as I did with vim, the same thing happens. The two vim processes in Activity Monitor persist. The swap files persist. The next time vim is started it starts as vim2. Etc., etc., etc.

If I close the session before quitting vim, the symptoms don't occur. If I don't, they do.

My conclusion: Quitting vim without closing the open session causes the problem.

Again, I could not have discovered this without your initial suggestions. So thank you again.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Weir
Decatur, GA
***@bellsouth.net

"What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from a great loneliness of spirit."

- Chief Seattle