Chapter 25. Troubleshooting Miscellaneous Software Problems (Tasks)
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Chapter 25. Troubleshooting Miscellaneous Software Problems (Tasks)

Table of Contents

What to Do if Rebooting Fails
What to Do if You Forgot Root Password
What to Do if the SMF Boot Archive Service Fails During a System Reboot
What to Do if a System Hangs
What to Do if a File System Fills Up
File System Fills Up Because a Large File or Directory Was Created
A TMPFS File System is Full Because the System Ran Out of Memory
What to Do if File ACLs Are Lost After Copy or Restore
Troubleshooting Backup Problems
The root (/) File System Fills Up After You Back Up a File System
Make Sure the Backup and Restore Commands Match
Check to Make Sure You Have the Right Current Directory
Interactive Commands
Troubleshooting Common Agent Container Problems in the Solaris OS
Port Number Conflicts
Compromised Security for Superuser Password

What to Do if Rebooting Fails

If the system does not reboot completely, or if it reboots and then crashes again, there might be a software or hardware problem that is preventing the system from booting successfully.

Cause of System Not Booting

How to Fix the Problem

The system can't find /platform/`uname -m`/kernel/unix.

You may need to change the boot-device setting in the PROM on a SPARC based system. For information on changing the default boot device, see Chapter 10, Booting a System (Tasks), in System Administration Guide: Basic Administration .

Solaris 10: There is no default boot device on an x86 based system. The message displayed is:

Not a UFS filesystem.

Solaris 10: Boot the system by using the Configuration Assistant/boot diskette and select the disk from which to boot.

Solaris Express 6/05: The GRUB boot archive has become corrupted. Or, the SMF boot archive service has failed. An error message is displayed if you run the svcs x command.

Solaris Express 6/05: Boot the failsafe archive.

There's an invalid entry in the /etc/passwd file.

For information on recovering from an invalid passwd file in the Solaris 10 OS, see Chapter 10, Booting a System (Tasks), in System Administration Guide: Basic Administration or Chapter 12, Booting a System (Tasks), in System Administration Guide: Basic Administration . For information on recovering from an invalid passwd file in the Solaris Express 6/05 release, see Chapter 11, GRUB Based Booting (Tasks), in System Administration Guide: Basic Administration .

There's a hardware problem with a disk or another device.

Check the hardware connections:

  • Make sure the equipment is plugged in.

  • Make sure all the switches are set properly.

  • Look at all the connectors and cables, including the Ethernet cables.

  • If all this fails, turn off the power to the system, wait 10 to 20 seconds, and then turn on the power again.

If none of the above suggestions solve the problem, contact your local service provider.

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