The number of processes you can fork off (and I am going to assume Un*x here) depends on some kernel tuning parameters. One of which is the total number of processes system wide that may be created as well as a second that determines how many each user may create. The total max processes system wide is a product of a calculation that takes into consideration the maximum users the system is configured to handle, the max processes per user allowed and is constrained by the physical memory of the system.

All of this differs between flavors of Un*x as well as the whims of the Unix System Administrator administering the system.

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Peter L. Berghold	Brewer of Belgian Ales
Peter@Berghold.Net	www.berghold.net
Unix Professional

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