---
title: Increasing file descriptor limits (systemd)
description: Increase file descriptor limits in a systemd environment to enable PingAccess to handle a high volume of concurrent requests.
component: pingaccess
version: 9.0
page_id: pingaccess:reference_guides:pa_increasing_file_descriptor_limits_systemd
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingaccess/9.0/reference_guides/pa_increasing_file_descriptor_limits_systemd.html
revdate: January 12, 2024
section_ids:
  steps: Steps
---

# Increasing file descriptor limits (systemd)

Increase file descriptor limits in a systemd environment to enable PingAccess to handle a high volume of concurrent requests.

## Steps

1. Edit the `/etc/systemd/system/pingaccess.service` file.

2. Modify the following line under the `[Service]` section:

   ```
   LimitNOFILE=<value>
   ```

   *\<value>* is the new value. The default value of 65536 (64K) should be sufficient for most environments.

   |   |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
   | - | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
   |   | The number of open file descriptors is limited by the physical memory available to the host. You can determine this limit with the following command:```
   cat /proc/sys/fs/file-max
   ```If the file-max value is significantly higher than the 65536 limit, consider increasing the file descriptor limit to between 10% and 15% of the system-wide file descriptor limit. For example, if the file-max value is 810752, you can set the file descriptor limit to 100000. If the file-max value is lower than 65536, the host is likely not sized appropriately for PingAccess. |

3. Run the following command as root:

   ```
   systemctl daemon-reload
   ```

4. Restart the PingAccess service.