sys_check(8)sys_check(8)NAME
sys_check, runsyscheck, use_sys_check - Utilities for generating system
configuration information and analysis [Versions 124 through 126]
SYNOPSIS
/usr/sbin/sys_check [options...]
/usr/sbin/use_sys_check -v
/usr/sbin/use_sys_check -help
/usr/sbin/use_sys_check version
OPTIONSsys_check Options
Lists all subsystems, including security information and setld inven‐
tory verification. This option may take a long time to complete. Out‐
puts debugging information to stderr (standard error output). Creates
escalation files for reporting problems to your technical support rep‐
resentative. This option produces one file, TMPDIR/escalate.tar unless
there are crash dump files; if so, it also creates two other files:
TMPDIR/escalate_vmunix.xx.gz and TMPDIR/escalate_vmcore.xx.gz. If you
use the -escalate option, sys_check runs with the -noquick option and
collects the output in the escalate.tar file. Optionally, you can
specify a number (xx) with the -escalate option to define a crash num‐
ber.
See also the ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES section for information on
how you can set the value of TMPDIR. Generates Event Manager
(EVM) warnings. When EVM is configured, warnings are posted as
EVM events identified by the string sys.unix.sys_check.warning.
Six levels of priority ranging from 0-500 are used, as follows:
0 - Information only. 100 - Note 200 - Tuning Note 300 - Tuning
Suggestion 400 - Operational 500 - Warning Produces frame HTML
output, which consists of three files: sys_checkfr.html,
sys_checktoc.html, and sys_check.html (unless you specify a dif‐
ferent file name with the -name option). This option cannot be
used with the -nohtml option. The following options are avail‐
able for use with the -frame option: Specifies the name to use
for the frame files output. The default name is sys_check.
Sets the directory for the frames output. Used only with the
-frame option. The default is the current directory (.). Out‐
puts help information. Produces text output, consisting of one
text file, instead of the default HTML output. This option can‐
not be used with the -frame option. Outputs configuration data
and the setld scan. Excludes security information. Outputs
only performance data and excludes configuration data. This
option takes less time to run than others. Displays the
sys_check version number. Executes only the warning pass. This
option takes less time to run than other options. Executes only
the data gathering pass.
use_sys_check Options
This option displays all the versions of sys_check that are installed
on the system. This option displays a usage message.
OPERANDS
This operand to the use_sys_check utility indicates the version of
sys_check that you want to use, for example, 123. Decimal points are
not permitted.
DESCRIPTION
The sys_check utility is a system census and configuration verification
tool that is also used to aid in diagnosing system errors and problems.
Use sys_check to create an HTML report of your system's configuration
(software and hardware). The size of the HTML output that is produced
by the sys_check utility is usually between .5 MB and 3 MB.
The sys_check utility also performs an analysis of operating system
parameters and attributes such as those that tune the performance of
the system. The report generated by sys_check provides warnings if it
detects problems with any current settings. Note that while sys_check
can generate hundreds of useful warnings, it is not a complete and de‐
finitive check of the health of your system. The sys_check utility
should be used in conjunction with event management and system monitor‐
ing tools to provide a complete overview and control of system status.
Refer to the EVM(5) reference page for information on event management.
Refer to the System Administration guide for information on monitoring
your system.
When used as a component of fault diagnosis, sys_check can reduce sys‐
tem down time by as much as 50% by providing fast access to critical
system data. It is recommended that you run a full check at least once
a week to maintain the currency of system data. However, note that some
options will take a long time to run and can have an impact on system
performance. You should therefore choose your options carefully and
run them during off-peak hours. As a minimum, perform at least one full
run (all data and warnings) as a post-configuration task in order to
identify configuration problems and establish a configuration baseline.
The following table provides guidelines for balancing data needs with
performance impact.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Option Run time Performance Recommended At
impact
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
-warn, -perf Short. Minimal. Regular
updates, at
least weekly
null - no options Medium, perhaps Some likely at Run at least
selected. 15 to 45 minutes peak system use. once post-
depending on pro‐ installation
cessor. and update
after major
configuration
changes. Update
your initial
baseline and
check warnings
regularly.
-noquick, -all, Long, perhaps 45 Very likely at Use only when
-escalate. minutes on fast, peak use. troubleshooting
large systems to a system prob‐
hours on low-end lem or escalat‐
systems. ing a problem
to your techni‐
cal support
representative.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
You can run some sys_check options from the SysMan Menu or the
/usr/sbin/sysman -cli command-line interface. Choose one of the follow‐
ing options from the Menu: >- Support and Services
| Create escalation report [escalation]
| Create configuration report [config_report]
Alternatively, use the config_report and escalation accelerators from
the command line. Note that the escalation option should only be used
in conjunction with a technical support request.
The runsyscheck script will run sys_check as a cron task automatically
if you do not disable the crontab entry in
/var/spool/cron/crontabs/root. Check for the presence of an automati‐
cally generated log file before you create a new log, as it may save
time.
When you run the sys_check utility without command options, it gathers
configuration data excluding the setld scan and the security informa‐
tion and displays the configuration and performance data by default. It
is recommended that you do this at least once soon after initial system
configuration to create a baseline of system configuration, and to con‐
sider performing any tuning recommendations.
On the first run, the sys_check utility creates a directory named
/var/recovery/sys_check. On subsequent runs, sys_check creates addi‐
tional directories with a sequential numbering scheme: The previous
sys_check directory is renamed to /var/recovery/sys_check.0 while the
most recent data (that is, from the current run) is always maintained
in /var/recovery/sys_check. Previous sys_check directories are renamed
with an incrementing extension; /var/recovery/sys_check.0 becomes
/var/recovery/sys_check.1, and so on, up to /var/recovery/sys_check.5.
There is a maximum of seven directories. This feature ensures that you
always have up to seven sets of data automatically. Note that if you
only perform a full run once, you may want to save the contents of that
directory to a different location.
Depending on what options you choose, the /var/recovery/sys_check.*
directories will contain the following data: Catastrophic recovery
data, such as an etcfiles directory, containing copies of important
system files. In this directory, you will find copies of files such as
/etc/group, /etc/passwd, and /etc/fstab. Formatted stanza files and
shell scripts and that you can optionally use to implement any configu‐
ration and tuning recommendations generated by asys_check run. You use
the sysconfigdb command or run the shell scripts to implement the
stanza files. See the sysconfigdb(8) reference page for more informa‐
tion.
The use_sys_check utility provides an easy way to set the version of
sys_check used by the system. It is useful when multiple versions of
sys_check are installed on the system.
NOTES
You must be root to invoke the sys_check utility from the command line;
you must be root or have the appropriate privileges through Division of
Privileges (DoP) to run Create Configuration Report and Create Escala‐
tion Report from the SysMan Menu. The sys_check utility does not change
any system files.
The sys_check utility is updated regularly. You can obtain the latest
version of the sys_check utility from either of two sources: The most
up-to-date version of the sys_check kit is located on the sys_check
tool web site, http://www.tru64unix.compaq.com/sys_check/sys_check.html
You can also obtain sys_check from the patch kit, see http://www.sup‐
port.compaq.com/patches/.
You should run only one instance of sys_check at a time. The sys_check
utility prevents the running of multiple instances of itself, provided
that the value of the TMPDIR environment variable is /var/tmp,
/usr/tmp, /tmp, or a common user-defined directory. This avoids possi‐
ble collisions when an administrator attempts to run sys_check while
another administrator is already running it. However, no guarantees can
be made for the case when two administrators set their TMPDIR environ‐
ment variables to two different user-defined directories (this presumes
that one administrator does not choose /var/tmp, /usr/tmp, or /tmp).
The sys_check utility does not perform a total system analysis, but it
does check for the most common system configuration and operational
problems on production systems.
Although the sys_check utility gathers firmware and hardware device
revision information, it does not validate this data. This must be
done by qualified support personnel.
The sys_check utility uses other system tools to gather an analyze
data. At present, sys_check prefers to use DECevent and you should
install and configure DECevent for best results.
If DECevent is not present, the sys_check utility issues a warning mes‐
sage as a priority 500 EVM event and attempts to use uerf instead. In
future releases, Compaq Analyze will also be supported on certain pro‐
cessors.
Note that there are restrictions on using uerf, DECevent and Compaq
Analyze that apply to: The version of UNIX that you are currently
using. The installed version of sys_check. The type of processor.
EXIT STATUS
The following exit values are returned: Successful completion. An
error occurred.
LIMITATIONS
DECevent or Compaq Analyze may not be able to read the binary error log
file if old versions of DECevent are being used or if the
binary.errlog file is corrupted. If this problem occurs, install a
recent version of DECevent and, if corrupted, recreate the
binary.errlog file.
HSZ controller-specific limitations include the following: The
sys_check utility uses a free LUN on each target in order to communi‐
cate with HSZ40 and HSZ50 controllers. To avoid data gathering irregu‐
larities, always leave LUN 7 free on each HSZ SCSI target for HSZ40 and
HSZ50 controllers. The sys_check utility uses a CCL port in order to
communicate with HSZ70 controllers. If a CCL port is not available,
sys_check will use an active LUN. To avoid data gathering irregulari‐
ties, enable the CCL port for each HSZ70 controller.
HSV controller-specific limitations include the following: The
sys_check utility uses the SANscript utility (sssu) to collect data
from an Enterprise controller. This utility is included with the Enter‐
prise Platform Kit; verify that this utility is installed in /usr/lbin
and ensure that it has execute permissions.
The sys_check utility cannot dynamically determine the SAN
appliance or appliances used to manage your Enterprise storage.
To do so, create the file /etc/enterprise.txt with the element
name, the user name, and the password (separated by colons) of
the SAN appliance as shown below; these values may contain
embedded spaces. Set the permissions of this file to 600. ele‐
ment:user:password element 1:user 1:password
The sys_check utility attempts to check the NetWorker backup schedule
against the /etc/fstab file. For some older versions of Networker, the
nsradmin command contains a bug that prevents sys_check from correctly
checking the schedule. In addition, the sys_check utility will not
correctly validate the NetWorker backup schedule for TruCluster ser‐
vices.
EXAMPLES
The following command creates escalation files that are used to report
problems to your technical support organization: # sys_check-escalate
The following command outputs configuration and performance informa‐
tion, excluding security information and the setld inventory, and pro‐
vides an analysis of common system configuration and operational prob‐
lems: # sys_check > file.html The following command outputs all infor‐
mation, including configuration, performance, and security information
and a setld inventory of the system: # sys_check-all > file.html The
following command outputs only performance information: # sys_check-perf > file.html The following command provides HTML output with
frames, including configuration and performance information and the
setld inventory of the system: # sys_check-frame -noquick The follow‐
ing command starts the SysMan Menu config_report task from the command
line: # /usr/sbin/sysman config_report
Entering this command invokes the SysMan Menu, which prompts you
to supply the following optional information: Save to (HTML) - A
location to which the HTML report should be saved, which is
/var/adm/hostname_date.html by default. Export to Web (Default)
- Export the HTML report to Insight Manager. Refer to the System
Administration for information on Insight Manager. Advanced
options - This option displays another screen in which you can
choose a limited number of run time options. The options are
equivalent to certain command line options listed in the OPTIONS
section.
In this screen, you can also specify an alternate temporary
directory other than the default of /var/tmp. Log file - The
location of the log file, which is /var/adm/hostname_date.log by
default. The following is an example of a stanza file vm.stanza
in /var/recovery/sys_check.*: vm: vm_page_free_target=256 The
following is an example of a shell script apply.kshin
/var/recovery/sys_check.*: #!/bin/ksh -p cd /var/cluster/mem‐
bers/member/recovery/sys_check/ llist="vm.stanza " for stf in
$llist; do print " $stf "
stanza=`print $stf | awk -F . '{print $1 }'` print
"/sbin/sysconfigdb -m -f $stf $stanza"
/sbin/sysconfigdb -m -f $stf $stanza done print "The
system may need to be rebooted for these changes to take effect"
The following command displays all versions of the sys_check
utility currently installed on the system: # use_sys_check -v
The following command specifies the use of version 122 of the
sys_check utility: # use_sys_check 122
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
The following environment variables affect the execution of the
sys_check utility. Normally, you only change these variables under the
direction of your technical support representative, as part of a fault
diagnosis procedure. Specifies a default parent directory for the
sys_check working subdirectory, whose name is randomly created; this
working subdirectory is removed when sys_check exits. The default value
for TMPDIR is /var/tmp. Specifies the number of lines of log file text
that sys_check includes in the HTML output. The default is 500 lines.
Specifies the number of files in a directory, above which a directory
is considered excessively large. The default is 15 files. Specifies
the file size, above which a file is considered excessively large. The
default is 3072 KB. Specifies the minimum amount of free space that
sys_check requires in the TMPDIR directory. The default is 15 MB and
should not be reduced. The sys_check utility will not run if there is
insufficient disk space. Specifies the location for the sys_check
recovery data. The default is /var/recovery. The sys_check utility
automatically cleans up data from previous command runs. The typical
size of the output generated by each sys_check utility run is 400 KB.
This data may be useful in recovering from a catastrophic system fail‐
ure. Specifies the location at which sys_check expects to find the
text files to include in the HTML output. The default is the
/var/adhoc directory. Specifies the location at which sys_check
expects to find the binaries for the tools that it calls. The default
is /usr/lbin.
FILES
Specifies the command path.
Note
This file may be a symbolic link. Various utilities in this
directory are used by sys_check.
Note
These files may be symbolic links.
The sys_check utility reads many system files.
SEE ALSO
Commands: dop(8), sysconfigdb(8), sysman_cli(8), sysman_menu(8)
Miscellaneous: EVM(5), insight_manager(5)
Books: System Administration, System Configuration and Tuning
sys_check(8)