kernel(1M) manual page
Table of Contents
kernel - UNIX system executable file containing basic operating
system services
/platform/platform-name/kernel/unix [ -arsv ]
/kernel/genunix
SUNWcar
The operating system
image, or kernel, is the collection of software made up of the core image
file (unix) and all of the modules loaded at any instant in time. The
system will not function without a kernel to control it.
The kernel is loaded
by the boot(1M)
command in a machine-specific way. The kernel may be loaded
from disk or CD-ROM
("diskfull boot") or over the network ("diskless boot").
In either case, the directories under /platform and /kernel must be readable
and must contain executable code which is able to perform the required
kernel service. If the -a flag is given, the user is able to supply
different pathnames for the default locations of the kernel and modules.
The ’moddir’ variable contains a colon-separated list of directories that
the kernel searches for modules. ’moddir’ can be set in the /etc/system
file; it defaults to /platform/platform-name/kernel:/kernel:/usr/kernel
(where platform-name is the name of the platform implementation). On PowerPC
based systems the value of ’moddir’ defaults to /platform/platform-name/kernel:/platform/hardware-class-name/kernel:/kernel:/usr/kernel.
platform-name can be found using the -i option of uname(1)
. hardware-class-name
can be found using the -m option of uname(1)
.
The kernel configuration
can be controlled using the /etc/system file (see system(4)
).
/kernel/genunix
is the platform-independent component of the base kernel.
- -a
- Ask
the user for configuration information, such as where to find the system
file, where to mount root, and even override the name of the kernel itself.
Default responses will be contained in square brackets ([]), and the
user may simply enter RETURN
to use the default response (note that RETURN
is labeled ENTER
on some keyboards). /dev/null may be entered at the
prompt which asks for the pathname of the system configuration file. See
system(4)
.
- -r
- Reconfiguration boot. The system will probe all attached
hardware devices and assign nodes in the file system to represent only
those devices actually found. It will also configure the logical namespace
in /dev as well as the physical namespace in /devices. See add_drv(1M)
and rem_drv(1M)
for additional information about maintaining device drivers.
- -s
- Boot only to init level ’s’. See init(1M)
.
- -v
- Boot with verbose messages
enabled. If this flag is not given, the messages are still printed, but
the output is directed to the system logfile. See syslogd(1M)
.
To boot in single-user interactive mode, respond
to the ok prompt with one of the following:
- boot -as
- boot kernel/unix -as
- boot disk3 kernel/unix -as
To boot in single-user interactive
mode, respond to the > prompt one of the following:
- b -as
- b kernel/unix
-as
- /kernel
- Contains kernel components common to all platforms within
a particular instruction set that are needed for booting the system. of
the core image file.
- /platform/platform-name/kernel
- The platform-specific
kernel components.
- /platform/hardware-class-name/kernel
- The kernel components
specific to this hardware class.
- /usr/kernel
- Contains kernel components
common to all platforms within a particular instruction set.
Each of the
directories listed above can potentially contain the following subdirectories:
- drv
- Loadable device drivers
- exec
- The modules that execute programs stored
in various file formats.
- fs
- File system modules
- misc
- Miscellaneous system-related
modules
- sched
- Operating system schedulers
- strmod
- System V STREAMS
loadable
modules
- sys
- Loadable system calls
- mach
- x86 hardware support
uname(1)
, add_drv(1M)
, boot(1M)
, init(1M)
, kadb(1M)
, rem_drv(1M)
, savecore(1M)
,
syslogd(1M)
, system(4)
monitor(1M)
The kernel gives
various warnings and error messages. If the kernel detects an unrecoverable
fault, it will panic or halt.
Bugs in the kernel often result in kernel
panics.
Reconfiguration boot does not currently remove filesystem entries
for devices that have been physically removed from the system.
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