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Errors To Avoid

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(lock files, shutdown)
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* Forgetting proper shutdown: Some programs that should only exist once will to leave "lock" files in /home/username/.ProgramName/SomeSubDirectory to prevent running the same program in coexistence; but if you crash or turn off the computer without using [[shutdown]] the "lock" file will stay and prevent running the program again. This happens a lot with browsers and the lock file (literally named "lock" in many cases such as mozilla) can be deleted safely to be able to restart the program. Also, not doing a proper shutdown can have effects from losing random information on your hard disk (rare) to extra delay when booting (common) - and a few commands or applications almost garantee trouble if not shutdown properly.
 
* Forgetting proper shutdown: Some programs that should only exist once will to leave "lock" files in /home/username/.ProgramName/SomeSubDirectory to prevent running the same program in coexistence; but if you crash or turn off the computer without using [[shutdown]] the "lock" file will stay and prevent running the program again. This happens a lot with browsers and the lock file (literally named "lock" in many cases such as mozilla) can be deleted safely to be able to restart the program. Also, not doing a proper shutdown can have effects from losing random information on your hard disk (rare) to extra delay when booting (common) - and a few commands or applications almost garantee trouble if not shutdown properly.
  
[[Category : Newbie Friendly]]
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[[Category : New_User_Tips_and_FAQs ]]

Revision as of 15:02, 23 February 2005

There are errors take may take days to recover from, or may be unrecoverable. Mentors would be wise to have their students know of this list to save precious time and aggravation.

  • Never interrupt Portupgrade. Recovery may take days of work/compile and isn't always a success.
  • Never delete directly from /usr/ports and its subdirectories. If you delete even a small and silly game with no dependencies, you can still break things as some package might require it. To save space the command you probably intended is "make clean" or "make distclean"; the latter will clean /usr/ports/distfiles and any packages that were built for your system.
  • Never forget to take notes when your mentor walks you thru a complicated and risky process. If he won't give you the time to write it down, check your Logs later.
  • Make sure your backups are up to date before doing anything risky to your system, and always read at least the man pages!
  • Check for other lists like this one on the net. Knowledge of what to avoid is crucial if mentor/technician patience is limited.
  • Forgetting proper shutdown: Some programs that should only exist once will to leave "lock" files in /home/username/.ProgramName/SomeSubDirectory to prevent running the same program in coexistence; but if you crash or turn off the computer without using shutdown the "lock" file will stay and prevent running the program again. This happens a lot with browsers and the lock file (literally named "lock" in many cases such as mozilla) can be deleted safely to be able to restart the program. Also, not doing a proper shutdown can have effects from losing random information on your hard disk (rare) to extra delay when booting (common) - and a few commands or applications almost garantee trouble if not shutdown properly.
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