"W"

WARNING: add_spec: No major number for sf

Cause

The system prints the following warning message while booting:

        SunOS Release 5.5.1 Version Generic_103640-03 [UNIX(R)
        System V Release 4.0]
        Copyright (c) 1983-1996, Sun Microsystems, Inc.
        WARNING: add_spec: No major number for sf

Action

If there is no SENA attached to the system, the message can be safely ignored. To stop seeing the message comment out the last line in /kernel/drv/ssd.conf that references sf(7D).

If you do this, and then later attach a SENA to your system, please remember to uncomment this line again.

WARNING: Clock gained int days-- CHECK AND RESET THE DATE!

Cause

Each workstation contains an internal clock powered by a rechargeable battery. After the system is halted and turned off, the internal clock continues to keep time. When the system is powered on and reboots, the system notices that the internal clock has gained time since the workstation was halted.

Action

In most cases, especially if the power has been off for less than a month, the internal clock keeps the correct time, and you do not have to reset the date. Use the date(1) command to check the date and time on your system. If the date or time is wrong, become superuser and use the date(1) command to reset them.

WARNING: No network locking on string: contact admin to install server change

Cause

The Solaris 2 mount(1M) command issues this message whenever it mounts a filesystem that doesn't have NFS locking, such as a standard SunOS 4.1 exported filesytem. Data loss is possible in applications that depend on locking.

Action

On the remote SunOS 4.1 system, install the appropriate rpc.lockd jumbo patch to implement NFS locking. For SunOS 4.1.4, install patch #102264; for SunOS 4.1.3, install patch #100075; for earlier 4.1 releases, install patch #101817.

WARNING: processor level 4 interrupt not serviced

Cause

This message is basically a diagnostic from the SCSI driver. Especially on machines with the sun4c architecture, it can appear on the console every 10 minutes or so.

Action

To reduce the frequency of this message, add this line near the bottom of the /etc/system file and reboot:

set esp:esp_use_poll_loop=0

Technical Notes

You might also see this message repeatedly after manually removing a CD when it was busy. Don't do this! To get the system back to normal, reboot the system with the -r (reconfigure) option.

WARNING: /tmp: File system full, swap space limit exceeded

Cause

The system swap area (virtual memory) has filled up. You need to reduce swap space consumption by killing some processes or possibly by rebooting the system.

Action

See the message "Not enough space" for information about increasing swap space.

WARNING: TOD clock not initialized-- CHECK AND RESET THE DATE!

Cause

This message indicates that the Time Of Day (TOD) clock reads zero, so its time is the beginning of the UNIX epoch: midnight 31 December 1969. On a brand-new system, the manufacturer might have neglected to initialize the system clock. On older systems it is more likely that the rechargeable battery has run out and requires replacement.

Action

First replace the battery according to the manufacturer's instructions. Then become superuser and use the date(1) command to set the time and date. On SPARC systems the clock is powered by the same battery as the NVRAM, so a dead battery also causes loss of the machine's Ethernet address and host ID, which are more serious problems for networked systems.

WARNING: Unable to repair the / filesystem. Run fsck

Cause

This message comes at boot time from the /etc/rcS script whenever it gets a bad return code from fsck(1M) after checking a filesystem. The message recommends an fsck(1M) command line, and instructs you to exit the shell when done to continue booting. Then the script places the system in single-user mode so fsck(1M) can be run effectively.

Action

See "/dev/rdsk/variable: UNEXPECTED INCONSISTENCY" for information about repairing UFS filesystems.

See "THE FOLLOWING FILE SYSTEM(S) HAD AN UNEXPECTED INCONSISTENCY" for information about repairing non-UFS filesystems.

Watchdog Reset

Cause

This fatal error usually indicates some kind of hardware problem. Data corruption on the system is possible.

Action

Look for some other message that might help diagnose the problem. By itself, a watchdog reset doesn't provide enough information; because traps are disabled, all information has been lost. If all that appears on the console is an ok prompt, issue the PROM command below to view the final messages that occurred just before system failure:

ok f8002010 wector p

The result is a display of messages similar to those produced by the dmesg(1M) command. These messages can be useful in finding the cause of system failure.

Technical Notes

This message doesn't come from the kernel, but from the OpenBoot PROM monitor, a piece of Forth software that gives you the ok prompt before you boot UNIX. If the CPU detects a trap when traps are disabled (an unrecoverable error), it signals a watchdog. The OpenBoot PROM monitor detects the watchdog, issues this message, and brings down the system.

Who are you?

Cause

Many networking programs can print this message, including from(1B), lpr(1B), lprm(1B), mailx(1), rdist(1), sendmail(1M), talk(1), and rsh(1). The command prints this message when it cannot locate a password file entry for the current user. This might occur if a user logged in just before the superuser deleted that user's password entry, or if the network naming service fails for a user who has no entry in the local password file.

Action

If a user's password file entry was accidentally deleted, restore it from backups or from another password file. If a user's login name or user ID was changed, ask that user to logout and login again. If the network naming service failed, check the NIS server(s) and repair or reboot as necessary.

Technical Notes

There is a known problem (bug 1138025) with starting hundreds of rsh(1) processes on another machine. This message appears because rsh(1) hangs while binding to a reserved port, and responds too slowly to interact with the network naming service.

Window Underflow

Cause

This message often occurs at boot time, sometimes along with a "Watchdog Reset" error. It comes from the OpenBoot PROM monitor, which was passed a processor trap from the hardware. This error indicates that some program tried to access a SPARC register window that wasn't accessible from the processor.

Action

On some system architectures, specifically sun4c, the problem could be that different capacity memory chips are mixed together. Someone might have placed 1MB SIMMs in the same bank with 4MB SIMMs. If this is so, rearrange the memory chips. Make sure to put higher-capacity SIMMs in the first bank(s), and lower-capacity SIMMs in the remaining bank(s); never mix different capacity SIMMs in the same bank.

The problem could also be that cache memory on the motherboard has gone bad and needs replacement. If main memory is installed correctly, try swapping the motherboard.

Technical Notes

The best way to isolate the problem is to look at the %pc register to see where it got its arguments, and why the arguments were bad. If you can reproduce the condition causing this message, your system vendor might be able to help diagnose the problem.