Guidelines for Booting a System
Keep the following in mind when you boot a system:
After a system is shut down, it is booted by using the boot command at the PROM level on a SPARC based system or by using the boot command at the Primary Boot Subsystem Menu on an IA based system.
A system can be rebooted by turning the power off and then back on. This method is not a clean shutdown because system services and processes are terminated abruptly. However, turning a system's power off and back on is an alternative for emergency situations.
SPARC based systems and IA based systems use different hardware components for booting. These differences are described in Chapter 15, The Boot Process (Reference).
Booting a System From the Network
You might need to boot a system from the network under the following situations:
When the system is first installed.
If the system won't boot from the local disk.
If the system is a diskless client.
In addition, there are two network configuration boot strategies available:
RARP (Reverse Address Resolution Protocol and ONC+ RPC Bootparams Protocol)
DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)
The default network boot strategy is set to RARP.
Use this table if you need information on booting a system over the network.
Network Boot Task | For More Information |
|---|---|
Boot a SPARC system or a SPARC diskless client | |
Boot an IA system or an IA diskless client | |
Boot a DHCP client during installation | Solaris 9 Installation Guide |
Configure a DHCP client with DHCP Manager | System Administration Guide: IP Services |
When to Shut Down a System
The following table provides a list of system administration tasks and the type of shut down that is needed to initiate the task.
Table 10-1 Shutting Down a System
Reason for System Shut Down | Appropriate Run Level | For More Information |
|---|---|---|
To turn off system power due to anticipated power outage | Run level 0, where it is safe to turn off power | |
To change kernel parameters in the /etc/system file | Run level 6 (reboot the system) | |
To perform file system maintenance, such as backing up or restoring system data | Run level S (single-user level) | |
To repair a system configuration file such as /etc/system | N/A | |
To add or remove hardware from the system | Reconfiguration boot (also to turn off power when adding or removing hardware) | |
To repair an important system file which is causing system boot failure | N/A | |
To boot the kernel debugger (kadb) to track down a system problem | Run level 0, if possible | |
To recover from a hung system and you want to force a crash dump | N/A |
For examples of shutting down a server or a standalone system, see Chapter 12, Shutting Down a System (Tasks).
When to Boot a System
The following table provides a list of system administration tasks and the corresponding boot type that is used to complete the task.
Table 10-2 Booting a System
Reason for System Reboot | Appropriate Boot Type | Information for SPARC Procedure | Information for IA Procedure |
|---|---|---|---|
To turn off system power due to anticipated power outage | Turn system power back on | ||
To change kernel parameters in the /etc/system file | Reboot the system to run level 3 (multiuser level with NFS resources shared) | "SPARC: How to Boot a System to Run Level 3 (Multiuser Level)" | |
To perform file system maintenance, such as performing a backup or restoring system data | Use Control-D from run level S to bring the system back to run level 3 | "SPARC: How to Boot a System to Run Level S (Single-User Level)" | "IA: How to Boot a System to Run Level S (Single-User Level)" |
To repair a system configuration file such as /etc/system | Interactive boot | ||
To add or remove hardware from the system | Reconfiguration boot (also to turn on system power after adding or removing hardware) | ||
To boot the kernel debugger (kadb) to track down a system problem | Booting kabd | "SPARC: How to Boot the System With the Kernel Debugger (kadb)" | |
To repair an important system file that is causing system boot failure | Recovery boot | ||
To recover from a hung system and you want to force a crash dump | Recovery boot | See example on "SPARC: How to Force a Crash Dump and Reboot the System" | See example on "IA: How to Force a Crash Dump and Reboot the System" |
For examples of booting a system, see Chapter 13, SPARC: Booting a System (Tasks) or Chapter 14, IA: Booting a System (Tasks).