[P1] Hot swapping

[Jack Rodgers]

On Sunday, May 4, 2003, at 09:47  PM, Brian Olesky wrote:

> When I use my iBook at my desk, I usually hook it up to an external 
> monitor
> with the VGA adapter, plug in a USB cable attached to a hub that 
> controls an
> external keyboard, scanner, printer, etc, and plug an external speaker 
> cable
> into the audio/video port.
>
> My question is, when I want to unhook and go portable, should I pull 
> those
> cables out while the Book is sleeping or awake? Or doesn't it matter?
>
> Occasionally I've noticed that things go a little nutty for a minute 
> or so
> when I pull out the VGA cable if the computer's asleep. It doesn't 
> happen
> often, but just enough for me to wonder if there's a right or wrong 
> way to
> hot swap.

When the book is asleep, it cannot update itself when you remove a 
connection. Sometimes this causes a crash and other times the book can 
update itself in its groggy state.

Some things should only be connected when the book is turned off, not 
just disconnected from the wall plug. SCSI devices and monitors where 
always on this list. USB and Firewire advertise as being hot swappable, 
except for those times when they short out something, of course.

The absolute safest is to plug things in and to unplug them only when 
the book is turned off and there is no power to create tiny zaps when 
the connection is made or severed.

Sleep is never the appropriate mode for plugging and unplugging, even 
though you may get away with it unless you have some extremely valuable 
document you have spent seven hours on and have not yet saved. At this 
time your actions will ensure a kernel panic, freeze or whatever it 
takes to loose that work.

In computers, the stock market and anything less than a Royal FLush in 
poker, there are no guarantees.

---
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