IBM 6.00E+04, 6C4 manual Service Processor Reboot/Restart Recovery, Boot IPL Speed

Service Processor Reboot/Restart Recovery

Reboot describes bringing the system hardware back up; for example, from a system reset or power-on. The boot process ends when control passes to the operating system process.

Restart describes activating the operating system after the system hardware is reinitialized. Restart must follow a successful reboot.

Boot (IPL) Speed

When the system enters reboot recovery, slow IPL is automatically started, which gives the POST an opportunity to locate and report any problems that might otherwise be unreported.

Failure During Boot Process

During the boot process, either initially after system power-on or upon reboot after a system failure, the service processor monitors the boot progress. If progress stops, the service processor can reinitiate the boot process (reboot) if enabled to do so. The service processor can re-attempt this process according to the number of retries selected in the Reboot/Restart Policy Setup Menu.

Failure During Normal System Operation

When the boot process completes and control transfers to the operating system (OS), the service processor can monitor operating system activity (see the Set Surveillance Parameters option in the SERVICE PROCESSOR SETUP MENU). If OS activity stops due to a hardware- or software-induced failure, the service processor can initiate a reboot/restart process based on the settings in the Service Processor Reboot/Restart Policy Setup Menu and the OS automatic restart settings (see the operating system documentation).

If you are using the AIX operating system, the menu item under SMIT for setting the restart policy is Automatically Reboot After Crash. The default is false. When the setting is true, and if the service processor parameter ″Use OS-Defined Restart Policy″ is yes (the default), the service processor takes over for AIX to reboot/restart after a hardware or surveillance failure.

Service Processor Reboot/Restart Policy Controls

The operating system's automatic restart policy (see operating system documentation) indicates the operating system response to a system crash. The service processor can be instructed to refer to that policy by the Use OS-Defined Restart Policy setup menu.

If the operating system has no automatic restart policy, or if it is disabled, then the service processor-restart policy can be controlled from the service processor menus. Use the Enable Supplemental Restart Policy selection.

Chapter 3. Using the Service Processor 59