Prepare for a crash!

[ExpertBeginner]

Although I realise nothing is full proof, how stable should I consider Linux (Mandriva) to be, in comparison to Windows XP?

For example, you pretty much know when Windows has crashed, because it’ll either hang or blue screen, etc, and you know you just got to press that power button (if the keyboard doesn’t respond).

How does one interpret this type of scenario with Linux? I take it you shouldn’t assume the system has crashed if it hangs, and do the ‘poweroffwiththebutton’ thing that I have been so accustomed to with Windows (by the way this method is executed only after I find the ctrlaltdel etc to fail with the recovery). If you powerdown a Linux system without halting I understand you risk messing up the filesystem and loss of data.

I haven’t had a system crash yet with Linux, so my confidence with its stability is pretty high. I occasionally get the message ‘stalled’ when an app or window is loading (assume waiting for a hardware response?)

In addition to my initial question, are there any tips and tricks for recovering from a crashed system (like windows ctrlaltdel etc), for Linux Mandriva?

[borromini]

Linux itself crashes very rarely. Your X window system (graphical interface) is far more likely to crash, and you can restart that by pressing ctrl+alt+backspace.

As for system crashes, you should have a journaling file system on your hd's. Something like Ext3 or ReiserFS. Those systems are far more reliable than Windows file systems, including NTFS.

[onlinebacon]

My linux box has never crashed, not even X, and for some reason, my windows box is always at it. I love the stability of linux.

[fingal]

It's uncommon for an entire Linux OS to hang or crash, but it can and does happen occasionally. I've found that games are the worst culprits. Sometimes there are issues with graphics cards or drivers, and bang, you need to hit the restart button.

Recovering from this is often a case of allowing Mandriva to realise that you exited the system 'uncleanly'. You then get the option to run a file system integrity check at boot time - Old file settings can then be restored, because your distro keeps a copy of these.

It's common for buggy applications to crash - and Mandriva has a few of these! In KDE you can kill them by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Esc. Your cursor turns into a skull and crossbones, which you point at the app. to click and zap Press the right mouse button to return to normal.

Yes, you will have more stability, but free software isn't always bug-free.

[psic]

My linux box has never crashed, not even X, and for some reason, my windows box is always at it. I love the stability of linux.

Same here, been using linux for a year. Though I don't play any games which require hardware acceleration, or use things like Wine and Cedega.

[insurgio]

I usually use ctrl-alt-backspace to restart X.
If that doesn't work I'll try ctrl-alt-F2 and log in and kill X.
If that doesn't work I'll try logging in over serial or ethernet.
After it's screwed time to reboot.

I hope that helps somewhat.

[Weedman]

IMHO, i would say that basing linux crashing on mandriva is not i good idea. Personally, i had a lot of problems with mandriva when i used it.