The following table provides a list of system administration tasks and the type of shut down needed to initiate the task.
Table 7-2 Shutting Down a System
If You Are ... |
Change To This Run Level ... |
See ... |
---|---|---|
Turning off system power due to anticipated power outage |
Run level 0, where it is safe to turn off power | |
Changing kernel parameters in the /etc/system file |
Run level 6 (reboot the system) | |
Performing file system maintenance, such as backing up or restoring system data |
Run level S (single-user mode) | |
Repairing a system configuration file such as /etc/system |
N/A |
|
Adding or removing hardware from the system |
Reconfiguration boot (plus turning off power when adding or removing hardware) | |
Repairing an important system file which is causing system boot failure |
N/A |
|
Booting the kernel debugger (kadb) to track down a system problem |
Run level 0, if possible | |
Recovering from a hung system and you want to force a crash dump |
N/A |
See Chapter 9, Shutting Down a System (Tasks) for examples of shutting down a server or standalone system.