NonStop NS-Series Operations Guide (H06.12+)

Routine hardware maintenance procedures are described in Section 17, Preventive Maintenance.
Operating Disk Drives and Tape Drives
Refer to the documentation shipped with the drive.
Responding to Spooler Problems
Refer to the Spooler Utilities Reference Manual.
Updating Firmware
Refer to the H06.xx Software Installation and Upgrade Guide
Determining the Cause of a Problem: A Systematic Approach
Continuous availability of your NonStop system is important to system users, and your
problem-solving processes can help make such availability a reality. To determine the cause of
a problem on your system, start by trying the easiest, least expensive possibilities. Move to more
complex, expensive possibilities only if the easier solutions fail.
This subsection presents an approach you can use in your operations environment to:
• Determine the possible causes of problems
• Systematically fix or escalate such problems
• Develop ways of preventing the same problems from recurring
The four basic steps in systematic problem solving are:
Task
“Task 1: Get the Facts” (page 28)
“Task 2: Find and Eliminate the Cause of the Problem” (page 29)
“Task 3: Escalate the Problem If Necessary” (page 30)
“Task 4: Prevent Future Problems” (page 30)
A Problem-Solving Worksheet
Table 1-1 is a worksheet that you can use to help you through the problem-solving process. Use
this worksheet to:
• Get the facts about a problem
• Find and eliminate the cause of the problem
• Make any appropriate escalation decisions
• Prevent future problems
Make copies of this worksheet and use it to collect and analyze facts regarding a problem you
are experiencing. The results might not tell you exactly what is occurring, but they will narrow
down the number of possible causes.
You are authorized by HP to reproduce this worksheet only for the purpose of operating your
system.
Table 1-1 Problem-Solving Worksheet
Possible CausesProblem Facts
What?
Where?
When?
Determining the Cause of a Problem: A Systematic Approach 27