BUG #1210: 8beta1 msi installer crashes when creating shared memory segment

The following bug has been logged online:

Bug reference: 1210
Logged by: wolfgang teschner

Email address: wolfgang(dot)teschner(at)impress(dot)com

PostgreSQL version: 7.5 Dev

Operating system: win2000 server SP4

Description: 8beta1 msi installer crashes when creating shared
memory segment

Details:

I am logged in as Administrator via remdesk.exe (a windows remote login
tool) and starting the msi
(postgresql-8.0-beta1-20040809.msi).
The disk is NTFS with > 3 GB free (from 8); Intel 550MHz CPU/single proc.
256 MB phys memory, 900MB virtual (300 free).

After I filled a few options in the installer menu,
a DOS window starts and within it, scripts are run etc.
After a short while, and error-msg box shows up:

Failed to run initdb: 1!
Please see the logfile in 'C:\Program
Files\PostgreSQL\8.0-beta1\tmp\initdb.log'.

Strangely, a "No error" brought the installation to a halt...

initdb.log:

fixing permissions on existing directory C:/Program
Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/global ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/pg_xlog ... ok
creating directory C:/Program
Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/pg_xlog/archive_status ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/pg_clog ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/pg_subtrans
... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/base ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/base/1 ... ok
creating directory C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/pg_tblspc ...
ok
selecting default max_connections ... 10
selecting default shared_buffers ... 50
creating configuration files ... ok
creating template1 database in C:/Program
Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data/base/1 ... FATAL: could not create shared
memory segment: No error
DETAIL: Failed system call was shmget(key=1, size=1196032, 03600).
child process was terminated by signal 1
initdb: failed
initdb: removing contents of data directory "C:/Program
Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data"

----
After the error, nearly everything below the pg root directory was deleted
(30MB).
Only an empty "C:/Program Files/PostgreSQL/8.0-beta1/data"
survived.

Installing into another pg root does not help.
If I install without starting initdb (db cluster), I get a warning and the
installation proceeds so far ok.
The service is installed as well and starting it takes a while, then stops
unsuccessful :-(
No clear error msg, just that pgsql-8.0-beta1 failed to start.
When I look into the property of the service, I see that the
installation path is still hard wired (and I had tried to use a
different one).
I copied everything to the default directory and tried a manual start.
Now windows itself comes with an error msg box, stating
that the service didn't start but didn't return an error.
Then I installed without the "service" feature,
which worked. But then I have to use the
more or less complicated way like with 7.4.
When I do an install without enabling the "service", it
starts immediately and I CANNOT choose a different directory for pg root :o(

Besides:
The installer checks if postgres is a "power user" or belongs to some higher
Admingroup, so this works fine.

Best regards,
wolfgang teschner
repository manager
Impress SW AG
germany, hannover
(porting an application from orcl to pg)