Ubuntu Manpage: invoke-rc.d - executes System-V style init script actions

Provided by: init-system-helpers_1.29ubuntu4_all

NAME

       invoke-rc.d - executes System-V style init script actions

SYNOPSIS

       invoke-rc.d  [--quiet]  [--force]  [--try-anyway] [--disclose-deny] [--query] [--no-fallback] name action
       [init script parameters...]

       invoke-rc.d [--help]

DESCRIPTION

       invoke-rc.d is a generic interface to execute  System  V  style  init  script  /etc/init.d/name  actions,
       obeying runlevel constraints as well as any local policies set by the system administrator.

       All access to the init scripts by Debian packages' maintainer scripts should be done through invoke-rc.d.

       This  manpage  documents  only  the  usage and behavior of invoke-rc.d.  For a discussion of the System V
       style init script arrangements please see init(8).  More information on invoke-rc.d can be found  in  the
       section on runlevels and init.d scripts of the Debian Policy Manual.

INIT SCRIPT ACTIONS

       The  standard  actions  are:  start,  stop, force-stop, restart, reload, force-reload, and status.  Other
       actions are accepted, but they can cause problems to policy-rc.d (see the INIT SCRIPT POLICY section), so
       warnings are generated if the policy layer is active.

       Please  note  that  not all init scripts will implement all the actions listed above, and that the policy
       layer may override an action to another action(s), or even deny it.

       Any extra parameters will be passed to the init script(s) being executed.

       If an action must be carried out regardless of any local policies, use the --force switch.

OPTIONS

       --help Display usage help.

       --quiet
              Quiet mode, no error messages are generated.

       --force
              Tries to run the init script regardless of policy and init script subsystem errors.  Use  of  this
              option in Debian maintainer scripts is severely discouraged.

       --try-anyway
              Tries to run the init script if a non-fatal error is detected.

       --disclose-deny
              Return  status code 101 instead of status code 0 if the init script action is denied by the policy
              layer.

       --query
              Returns one of the status codes 100-106. Does not run the init script, and implies --disclose-deny
              and --no-fallback.

       --no-fallback
              Ignores  any  fallback  action  requests by the policy layer.  Warning: this is usually a very bad
              idea for any actions other than start.

STATUS CODES

Should an init script be executed, invoke-rc.d always returns the status code returned by the init
script. Init scripts should not return status codes in the 100+ range (which is reserved in Debian and by
the LSB). The status codes returned by invoke-rc.d proper are:

0 Success. Either the init script was run and returned exit status 0 (note that a fallback action
may have been run instead of the one given in the command line), or it was not run because of
runlevel/local policy constrains and --disclose-deny is not in effect.

1 - 99 Reserved for init.d script, usually indicates a failure.

100 Init script ID (name) unknown. This means the init script was not registered successfully through
update-rc.d or that the init script does not exist.

101 Action not allowed. The requested action will not be performed because of runlevel or local
policy constraints.

102 Subsystem error. Init script (or policy layer) subsystem malfunction. Also, forced init script
execution due to --try-anyway or --force failed.

103 Syntax error.

104 Action allowed. Init script would be run, but --query is in effect.

105 Behavior uncertain. It cannot be determined if action should be carried out or not, and --query
is in effect.

106 Fallback action requested. The policy layer denied the requested action, and supplied an allowed
fallback action to be used instead.

INIT SCRIPT POLICY

       invoke-rc.d  introduces the concept of a policy layer which is used to verify if an init script should be
       run or not, or if something else should be done instead.  This layer has various uses, the most immediate
       ones  being  avoiding  that  package upgrades start daemons out-of-runlevel, and that a package starts or
       stops daemons while inside a chroot jail.

       The policy layer has the following abilities: deny or approve the execution of an  action;  request  that
       another  action  (called  a  fallback)  is  to be taken, instead of the action requested in invoke-rc.d's
       command line; or request multiple actions to be tried in order, until one of them  succeeds  (a  multiple
       fallback).

       invoke-rc.d  itself  only  pays  attention to the current runlevel; it will block any attempts to start a
       service in a runlevel in which the service is disabled.  Other policies are implemented with the  use  of
       the policy-rc.d helper, and are only available if /usr/sbin/policy-rc.d is installed in the system.

FILES

       /etc/init.d/*
              System V init scripts.

       /usr/sbin/policy-rc.d
              Init script policy layer helper (not required).

       /etc/runlevel.conf
              file-rc runlevel configuration (if the file-rc package is being used).

       /etc/rc?.d/*
              System V runlevel configuration (if the sysv-rc package is being used).

NOTES

       invoke-rc.d  special  cases the status action, and returns exit status 4 instead of exit status 0 when it
       is denied.

BUGS

       Please report any bugs using the Debian bug tracking system, http://bugs.debian.org/, packages sysv-rc or
       file-rc (depending on which version of invoke-rc.d you are using).