> >Peter Memishian has pointed out that the statement that >/etc/path_to_inst is a "pure cache" is not correct. >It is true that a functional instance file can be rebuilt >but solaris does rely on the instance number ordering >in the instance file not to change, otherwise devices >could be renumbered. Additions to the instance file >aren't necessary to boot, because the earlier version >must have been bootable too. And since changes are >cumulative, any additions in the updated file can be merged >without needing manual intervention. Hence a discrepancy >between the two instance files is not cause to invalidate >the archive.
With the proviso that under no circumstances the version in the archive can be used to assign NEW device instances. I.e., when you have a new USB device plugged in at boot and the /etc/path_to_inst file has a record of old USB devices not yet reflected in the boot archive, there must not be overlap in device IDs. In other words: we must be using the non-bootarchive version of /etc/path_to_inst before assigning new device instance numbers. Casper
