/dev/root acts like not mounted

[wfooshee]

I am a reseller, with a customer machine (Open Server 5.0.5) acting weird. His software vendor tried to install an upgrade, and got an insufficient space error. Running df -v at the # prompt lists /dev/boot only, no /dev/root. You can run df -v /dev/root to specifically ask for root info, and it is reported (8GB total, 19% used). There are no other filesystems. The system is running OK, users are busy as they can be. I don't know if you're supposed to be able to mount and unmount the root filesystem, but it reports as busy if you try, either in multi-user or system maintenance modes. fsck runs OK, no errors. The vendor, whose install script evidently parses df -v and will not proceed without it, is telling me to reinstall the OS. Gads, NO! It took a month to get their system working when we upgraded to this hardware and 5.0.5 some years ago!!! What can I look for? Why is /dev/root acting as if it is unmounted?

Walter Fooshee
Panama City, FL

 

[mrregan]

what are the contents of /etc/fstab?

 

[wfooshee]

There is no /etc/fstab. Maybe that's another UNIX distribution. There is a /etc/default/filesys, and comparing it to other systems, it's correct. I asked the vendor to fix the script to assume enough space existed, and he stammered and stuttered as if I had asked him to nuke Indiana.

 

[stanhubble]

the file is /etc/mnttab
make sure it is very small if you only have / and /stand
when was the last time they did a "shutdown"?

 

[wfooshee]

/etc/mnttab contents:

/dev/boot/standA\275\2376>

where \275 is an ASCII code 275 and \237 is ASCI 237, as it shows in vi. The A, the 6, and the > are characters visible on the line. There is no linefeed at the end of the line.

Obviously, /dev/root is missing. Now what?

 

[apeasecpc]

That doesn't sound right. I don't understand how you would be able to do anything if you don't have a root filesystem. Please post everything you get when you do a straight "df" command.

Have you looked at your filesystem mounts using the scoadmin filesystem manager?

what is currently being mounted to the root "/"? It may be possible to rename that filesystem to root without having to reinstall everything.

 

[vistech1]

I had a similar problem and found SCO TA#112821 helpful.

http://stage.caldera.com/cgi-bin/ssl_reference?112821