Four Levels of Diagnostics

For enhanced serviceability and availability, the system provides four different levels of diagnostic testing: power-on self-test (POST), OpenBoot diagnostics (OBDiag), SunVTS(TM), and Solstice(TM) SyMON(TM).

POST and OBDiag are firmware-resident diagnostics that can run even if the server is unable to boot the operating system. Application-level diagnostics, such as SunVTS and Solstice SyMON, offer additional troubleshooting capabilities once the operating system is running.

POST diagnostics provide a quick but thorough check of the most basic hardware functions of the system. For more information about POST, see "About Power-On Self-Test (POST) Diagnostics" and "How to Use POST Diagnostics".

OBDiag provides a more comprehensive test of the system, including external interfaces. OBDiag is described in "About OpenBoot Diagnostics (OBDiag)" and "How to Use OpenBoot Diagnostics (OBDiag)".

At the application level, you have access to SunVTS diagnostics. Like OBDiag, SunVTS provides a comprehensive test of the system, including its external interfaces. SunVTS also allows you to run tests remotely over a network connection. You can only use SunVTS if the operating system is running. For more information about SunVTS, see "About SunVTS Software", "How to Use SunVTS Software", and "How to Check Whether SunVTS Software Is Installed".

Another application-level program, called Solstice SyMON, provides you with a variety of continuous system monitoring capabilities. It allows you to monitor system hardware status and operating system performance of your server. For more information about SyMON, see "About Solstice SyMON Software".