Chapter 13

SPARC: Booting a System (Tasks)

This chapter describes the procedures for using the OpenBoot™ PROM monitor and the procedures for booting a SPARC based system to different run levels.

For information on the procedures associated with booting a SPARC system, see "SPARC: Booting a System (Task Map)".

For overview information about the boot process, see Chapter 10, Shutting Down and Booting a System (Overview). To troubleshoot boot problems, see "What to Do If Rebooting Fails" in System Administration Guide: Advanced Administration.

For step-by-step instructions on booting an IA based system, see Chapter 14, IA: Booting a System (Tasks).

SPARC: Booting a System (Task Map)

Task	Description	For Instructions
Use the Boot PROM	The boot PROM is used to boot a system. You might need to do one of the following:
	Identify the PROM revision number.	"SPARC: How to Find the PROM Revision for a System"
	Change the default boot device when a new disk is added or when you need to change the system boot method.	"SPARC: How to Change the Default Boot Device"
Boot the system	Select one of the following boot methods:
	Boot to run level 3 - Used after shutting down the system or performing some system hardware maintenance task.	"SPARC: How to Boot a System to Run Level 3 (Multiuser Level)"
	Boot to run level S - Used after performing some system maintenance task such as backing up a file system. At this level, only local file systems are mounted and users cannot log into the system.	"SPARC: How to Boot a System to Run Level S (Single-User Level)"
	Boot interactively - Used after making temporary changes to a system file or the kernel for testing purposes.	"SPARC: How to Boot a System Interactively"
	Boot from the network - Used to boot a system from the network. This method is used for booting a diskless client.	"SPARC: How to Boot a System From the Network"
	Boot for recovery purposes - Used to boot the system when a damaged file or file system is preventing the system from booting. You might need to do one or both of the following to boot for recovery purposes:
	First, stop the system to attempt recovery.	"SPARC: How to Stop the System for Recovery Purposes"
	Boot to repair an important system file that is preventing the system from booting successfully.	"SPARC: How to Boot a System for Recovery Purposes"
	Boot `kadb` - Used to troubleshoot system problems.	"SPARC: How to Stop the System for Recovery Purposes"
	Force a crash dump and reboot the system - Used to force a crash dump for troubleshooting purposes.	"SPARC: How to Force a Crash Dump and Reboot the System"

SPARC: Using the Boot PROM

System administrators typically use the PROM level to boot a system. Occasionally, however, you might need to change the way the system boots. For example, you might want to reset which device to boot from or run hardware diagnostics before you bring the system to a multiuser level.

You need to change the default boot device to add a new drive to the system either permanently or temporarily, to change the network boot strategy, or if you want to temporarily boot a standalone system from the network.

For a complete list of PROM commands, see monitor(1M) or eeprom(1M).

SPARC: How to Find the PROM Revision for a System

Display a system's PROM revision level with the banner command.

ok banner
Sun Ultra 5/10 UPA/PCI (UltraSPARC-IIi 333MHz), No Keyboard
OpenBoot 3.15, 128 MB memory installed, Serial #number.
Ethernet address number, Host ID: number.

Hardware configuration information, including the revision number of the PROM, is displayed. In this example, the PROM revision number is 3.15.

SPARC: How to Change the Default Boot Device

Become superuser.

Bring the system to run level 0.
# init 0
The ok PROM prompt is displayed.

For more information, see init(1M).

Change the value of the boot-device parameter.
ok setenv boot-device device[n]
boot-device
Identifies the parameter for setting the device from which to boot.

device[n]
Identifies the boot-device value such as a disk or the network. The n can be specified as the disk number.

Use the probe-scsi-all command if you need help with identifying the disk number.

Verify that the default boot device change.
ok printenv boot-device

Save the new boot-device value.
ok reset
The new boot-device value is written to the PROM.

SPARC: Examples--Changing the Default Boot Device

In this example, the default boot device is set to disk.

# init 0
# 
INIT: New run level: 0
.
.
.
The system is down.
syncing file systems... done
Program terminated
ok setenv boot-device disk
boot-device =         disk
ok printenv boot-device
boot-device           disk                    disk
ok reset
Sun Ultra 5/10 UPA/PCI (UltraSPARC-IIi 333MHz), No Keyboard
OpenBoot 3.15, 128 MB memory installed, Serial #number.
Ethernet address number, Host ID: number.

Boot device: disk  File and args:
SunOS Release 5.9 Version 64-bit
.
.
.
pluto console login:

In this example, the default boot device is set to the network.

# init 0
# 
INIT: New run level: 0
.
.
.
The system is down.
syncing file systems... done
Program terminated
ok setenv boot-device net
boot-device =         net
ok printenv boot-device
boot-device           net                    disk
ok reset
Sun Ultra 5/10 UPA/PCI (UltraSPARC-IIi 333MHz), No Keyboard
OpenBoot 3.15, 128 MB memory installed, Serial #number.
Ethernet address number, Host ID: number.



Boot device: net  File and args:
.
.
.
pluto console login: