Fixing Corrupted Files and wtmpx Errors

Unfortunately, system accounting is not foolproof. Occasionally, a file becomes corrupted or lost. Some of the files can simply be ignored or restored from backup. However, certain files must be fixed to maintain the integrity of system accounting.

The wtmpx files seem to cause the most problems in the daily operation of the system accounting. When the date is changed manually and the system is in multiuser mode, a set of date change records is written into the /var/adm/wtmpx file. The wtmpfix utility is designed to adjust the time stamps in the wtmp records when a date change is encountered. However, some combinations of date changes and reboots slip through the wtmpfix utility and cause the acctcon program to fail.