Solaris Volume Manager: 'boot -a' with Default Root Device Will Not Boot Properly if Root Disk is Mirrored With SVM / SDS (Doc ID 1001569.1)

Last updated on DECEMBER 06, 2021

Applies to:

Symptoms

Typically system administrators use "boot -a"  when they need to boot with an alternative /etc/system file, or control how a system boot, or troubleshoot booting problems. Unfortunately with Solaris 10 even if the correct boot parameters are provided during a "boot -a"  the system will still fail to boot, the system panic at boot time.

Dependant on the versions of Solaris and the circumstances under which the "boot -a" was needed, will determine the action required to resolve the issues seen.

For Solaris 8 and Solaris 9, with a correctly functioning system that boot normally, the problem can be resolved, by providing the "pseudo" device during the "boot -a" interactive phase.

For Solaris 10 even providing the correct "pseudo" device does not work as expected (the system panic's), the recommended solution  is to boot "failsafe" or alternate media, and unmirror / unencapsulate the root disk before attempting to use "boot -a"..

Example 1: Boot failure Solaris 8 and 9 "boot -a"  with the default parameters

Changes

Cause