INVOKE-RC.D(8)                           Debian GNU/Linux                          INVOKE-RC.D(8)



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 Pol‐
       icy Manual.


INIT SCRIPT ACTIONS
       The standard actions are: start, stop, force-stop, restart, reload, force-reload, and sta‐
       tus.  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  suc‐
              cessfully 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  sup‐
              plied 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).

SEE ALSO
       Debian Policy manual,
       /etc/init.d/skeleton,
       update-rc.d(8),
       init(8),
       /usr/share/doc/sysv-rc/README.policy-rc.d



Debian Project                             1 March 2001                            INVOKE-RC.D(8)