kbd(1)
NAME
kbd - manipulate the state of keyboard, or display the type
of keyboard, or change the default keyboard abort sequence
effect
SYNOPSIS
kbd [-r] [-t ] [-a enable | disable | alternate ] [-c on |
off ] [-d keyboard device ]
kbd [-i] [-d keyboard device ]
DESCRIPTION
The kbd utility manipulates the state of the keyboard, or
displays the keyboard type, or allows the default keyboard
abort sequence effect to be changed. The abort sequence also
applies to serial console devices. The kbd utility sets the
/dev/kbd default keyboard device.
EXTENDED DESCRIPTION
The -i option reads and processes default values for the
keyclick and keyboard abort settings from the
/etc/default/kbd keyboard default file. Only keyboards that
support a clicker respond to the -c option. To turn clicking
on by default, add or change the value of the KEYCLICK
variable in the /etc/default/kbd file to:
KEYCLICK=on
Next, run the command kbd -i to change the setting. Valid
settings for the KEYCLICK variable are on and off; all other
values are ignored. If the KEYCLICK variable is not speci-
fied in the default file, the setting is unchanged.
The keyboard abort sequence effect (L1-A or STOP-A on the
keyboard, and BREAK on the serial console input device on
most systems) can only be changed by a superuser using the
-a option. The system can be configured to ignore the key-
board abort sequence or trigger on the standard or alternate
sequence.
A BREAK condition that originates from an erroneous electri-
cal signal cannot be distinguished from one deliberately
sent by remote DCE. As a remedy, use the -a option with
Alternate Break to switch break interpretation. Due to the
risk of incorrect sequence interpretation, binary protocols
such as PPP, SLIP, and others should not be run over the
serial console port when Alternate Break sequence is in
effect. The Alternate Break sequence has no effect on the
keyboard abort. For more information on the Alternate Break
sequence, se zs(7D) ,se(7D), and asy(7D).
On many systems, the default effect of the keyboard abort
sequence is to suspend the operating system and enter the
debugger or the monitor. Some systems feature key switches
with a secure position. On these systems, setting the key
switch to the secure position overrides any software default
set with this command.
To permanently change the software default effect of the
keyboard abort sequence, first add or change the value of
the KEYBOARD_ABORT variable in the /etc/default/kbd file to:
KEYBOARD_ABORT=disable
Next, run the command kbd -i to change the setting. Valid
settings are enable, disable, and alternate; all other
values are ignored. If the variable is not specified in the
default file, the setting is unchanged.
To set the abort sequence to the hardware BREAK, set the
value of the KEYBOARD_ABORT variable in the /etc/default/kbd
file to:
KEYBOARD_ABORT=enable
To change the current setting, run the command kbd -i. To
set the abort sequence to the Alternate Break character
sequence, first set the current value of the KEYBOARD_ABORT
variable in the /etc/default/kbd file to:
KEYBOARD_ABORT=alternate
Next, run the command kbd -i to change the setting. When the
Alternate Break sequence is in effect, only serial console
devices are affected.
OPTIONS
The kbd utility supports the following options:
-i Set keyboard defaults from the keyboard default file.
With the exception of -d keyboard device, this option
cannot be used with any other option. The -i option
instructs the keyboard command to read and process
keyclick and keyboard abort default values from the
/etc/default/kbd file. The -i option can only be used
by a superuser.
-r Reset the keyboard as if power-up
-t Return the type of the keyboard being used
-c on/off state
Turn the clicking of the keyboard on or off.
on Enable clicking
off Disable clicking
-a enable/disable/alternate state
Enable, disable, or alternate the keyboard abort
sequence effect. By default, a keyboard abort sequence
(typically Stop-A or L1-A on the keyboard and BREAK on
the serial console device) suspends the operating sys-
tem on most systems. The default keyboard behavior can
be changed using this option. The -a option can only
be used by a superuser.
enable
Enable the default effect of the keyboard abort
sequence (suspend the operating system and enter
the debugger or the monitor)
disable
Disable the default/alternate effect and ignore
keyboard abort sequences
alternate
Enable the alternate effect of the keyboard
abort sequences (suspend the operating system
and enter the debugger or the monitor) upon
receiving the Alternate Break character sequence
on the console. The Alternate Break sequence is
defined by the drivers zs(7D), se(7D), asy(7D).
Due to a risk of incorrect sequence interpreta-
tion, binary protocols cannot be run over the
serial console port when this value is used.
-d keyboard device
Specify the keyboard device being set. The default
setting is /dev/kbd.
EXAMPLES
Example 1: Displaying the keyboard type
To display the keyboard type:
example% kbd -t
Type 4 Sun keyboard
example%
Example 2: Setting keyboard defaults
To set the keyboard defaults as specified in the keyboard
default file:
example# kbd -i
example#
FILES
/etc/rcS
shell script containing commands necessary to get the
system to single-user mode
/dev/kbd
keyboard device file
/etc/default/kbd
keyboard default file containing software defaults for
keyboard configurations.
ATTRIBUTES
See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attri-
butes:
____________________________________________________________
| ATTRIBUTE TYPE | ATTRIBUTE VALUE |
|_____________________________|_____________________________|
| Architecture | SPARC |
|_____________________________|_____________________________|
| Availability | SUNWcsu |
|_____________________________|_____________________________|
SEE ALSO
loadkeys(1), kadb(1M), keytables(4), attributes(5),
kb(7M), zs(7D), se(7D), asy(7D)
NOTES
Some server systems have key switches with a secure key
position that can be read by system software. This key posi-
tion overrides the normal default of the keyboard abort
sequence effect and changes the default so the effect is
disabled. When the key switch is in the secure position on
these systems, the keyboard abort sequence effect cannot be
overridden by the software default, which is settable with
the kbd utility.
Currently, there is no way to determine the state of the
keyboard click setting.
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