NSS does not use VREPAIR. Instead, a new utility is used for NSS that rebuilds corrupted NSS volumes. The REBUILD utility salvages the data it finds on a corrupted NSS volume and rebuilds the NSS volume. This utility only protects against software failures, not hardware failures.
NetWare users may be used to repairing traditional NetWare volumes with VREPAIR. The VREPAIR utility is only used for traditional NetWare volumes, and REBUILD is only used for NSS volumes. The REBUILD utility works well with NSS because it recovers the data that is not corrupted. It takes much less time to recover an NSS volume than a NetWare volume.
Rebuild verifies and uses the existing leaves of an object tree to rebuild all the other trees in the system. While NSS volumes are being verified and rebuilt, they are placed in maintenance mode. This means the NSS volumes are unusable until this process is finished, and the volume is remounted.
REBUILD also copies rebuild information: errors, transactions, etc., into an error file called volume_name.rlf at the root of the Sys volume on your server. Every time you rebuild a particular NSS volume, the previous error file is overwritten. If you want to keep old error files, move them to another location. You can check the error file whenever an NSS volume will not come up in active mode after a rebuild.
WARNING: Always back up your data. If an NSS volume becomes corrupted, use the REBUILD utility first. You might have to create a new NSS volume or restore your old NSS volume from backup.
You can rebuild volumes using either the NSS Administration menus or the server console. Your NSS volumes can be either mounted or dismounted, but they need to be active so you can view the volume list. REBUILD places mounted NSS volumes in maintenance mode when it runs. See Using the NSS Administration Menus or Using the Server Command Line for instructions. This task is not available in NWCONFIG.
To use the REBUILD utility, do the following:
Load NSS.
Open the NSS Administration menus.
From Utilities, select Rebuild NSS Volume.
Select the volume to rebuild.
Return to Utilities at the main menu and select Verify NSS volume to check your volume's integrity.
To use the REBUILD utility, do the following:
Load NSS.
Rebuild your NSS volume.
Choose one of the following options.
| To... | Use this command... |
|---|---|
See a list of volumes you can rebuild, and select a volume to rebuild |
nss /rebuild |
Rebuild a single volume |
nss /rebuild=nss volume_name |
Rebuild more than one volume at once |
nss /rebuild=NSS volume_name, NSS volume_name |
You can rebuild as many NSS volumes as you want, but NSS will only rebuild five at a time. To switch screens and view other NSS volumes that are being rebuilt, press Alt + Esc.
Check the output screen.
This screen indicates the time elapsed, the time remaining, the total elapsed time, the number of objects processed, and so on, so you will know how long the rebuild will take.
Verify your rebuilt NSS volume. Enter nss /verify=NSS volume_name or nss /verify=all.
You can also verify a volume by entering nss /verify for a list of volume names, and then selecting the volume name.
Verify accounts for all blocks in the system. If errors are found, they are reported to the screen. The NSS volume is left in maintenance mode; otherwise, it is placed back to the active state. You may have to mount the volume.