About:
The Linux kernel can reset the system if serious problems are detected. This can be implemented via special watchdog hardware, or via a slightly less reliable software-only watchdog inside the kernel. Either way, there needs to be a daemon that tells the kernel the system is working fine. If the daemon stops doing that, the system is reset. watchdog is such a daemon. It opens /dev/watchdog, and keeps writing to it often enough to keep the kernel from resetting, at least once per minute. Each write delays the reboot time another minute. After a minute the watchdog hardware will cause the reset. In the case of a software watchdog, the ability to reboot will depend on the state of the machines and interrupts.

Author:
Michael Meskes [contact developer]

Rating:	reset 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
(not rated)

Homepage:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/watchdog
Tar/GZ:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/watchdog
Debian package:
http://ftp.debian.org/debian/pool/main/w/watchdog/

Trove categories: [change]

[Environment]		No Input/Output (Daemon)
[Intended Audience]		End Users/Desktop
[License]		OSI Approved :: GNU General Public License (GPL)

Dependencies: [change]
No dependencies filed

 Branches

Branch	Version	Last release	License	URLs
Default	5.4	17-Aug-2007	GNU General Public License (GPL)