Responding to System Problems

The AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference provides information to help you investigate, define, and fix system problems. This book is for system users who are having problems with software or hardware operation, the operating system, or other programs installed on the system. The chapters in the AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference cover general symptoms, specific problems, and problem-solving tools.

General Symptoms

Chapter 1 of AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference gives you a Symptom Index to help you identify your problem.

Specific Problems

Chapters 2 through 8 of AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference contain information to help you solve these specific problems:

• Inactive system
• Terminal problems
• Inaccurate system clock
• Device problems
• Media problems
• Network problems
• Printing problems

Problem Solving Tools

Chapters 9 through 12 of AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference document the following tools you can use to investigate and fix problems:

• A hardware diagnostics facility to obtain a service request number (SRN) for assistance in restoring your system to correct operation.
• An error logging facility for recording hardware and software problems and providing informational messages about system operation.
• A trace facility for monitoring system events to isolate system problems.
• A system dump facility to generate a file containing information on the state of working memory when a severe error occurs.

The appendixes at the back of AIX Version 4.3 Problem Solving Guide and Reference contain information on the following:

• Booting from maintenance mode
• Software validation to verify that an installed software product (or licensed product) has not been damaged or corrupted
• Error identifiers for the error log
• Recovering volume groups.