IBM AIX 7.3 – Common Problem 131 – Diagnosis and Fix

📖 ~1 min read

Table of contents

1. Symptom & Impact
2. Environment & Reproduction
3. Root Cause Analysis
4. Quick Triage
5. Step-by-Step Diagnosis
6. Solution – Primary Fix
7. Solution – Alternative Approaches
8. Verification & Acceptance Criteria
9. Rollback Plan
10. Prevention & Hardening
11. Related Errors & Cross-Refs
12. References & Further Reading

Symptom & Impact

After reboot the LPAR cannot reach the gateway and `netstat -nr` shows no default route.

Environment & Reproduction

AIX 7.3 with `chdev -l inet0` route configured but `/etc/rc.net` overrides it.

Root Cause Analysis

Static route in ODM was not made persistent or was clobbered by a duplicate `chdev`.

Quick Triage

Run `netstat -nr`, `lsattr -El inet0` and inspect `/etc/rc.net` and `/etc/netsvc.conf`.

Step-by-Step Diagnosis

Capture `odmget -q ‘name=inet0’ CuAt` to verify the route stanza is present.

Solution – Primary Fix

Add the route persistently: `chdev -l inet0 -a route=net,-hopcount,0,,0,`.

Solution – Alternative Approaches

Use `mkdev -l inet0` after editing `rc.net` if the customer manages routes there.

Verification & Acceptance Criteria

`netstat -nr` shows the default route after a reboot test and pings to the gateway succeed.

Rollback Plan

Remove the route stanza with `chdev -l inet0 -a delroute=…` and revert `rc.net`.

Prevention & Hardening

Standardise on ODM-managed routes and lock down `rc.net` via configuration management.

Related Errors & Cross-Refs

Related to `route: 0815-061` and `if_config` start failures during `cfgmgr`.

Related tutorial: View the step-by-step tutorial for aix-7.3.

View all aix-7.3 tutorials on the Tutorials Hub →

Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.

References & Further Reading

IBM Docs: AIX 7.3 TCP/IP configuration, `chdev inet0`, `/etc/rc.net`.