One new feature in 8.2.2+ that hasn’t been given much press (thanks to Curtis @ NetApp U) is the ability to boot directly into the boot menu or maintenance mode from the loader prompt. This feature will mainly be helpful for field personnel who frequently setup up and build out NetApp Clustered Data ONTAP systems. See below for a list of commands that are required to boot a cDOT system into each respective area.
- Boot directly to the boot menu by entering the following from the controller’s loader prompt
boot_ontap menu
- Boot directly to maintenance mode by entering the following from the controller’s loader prompt
boot_ontap maint
UPDATE #1 2015-05-21: A fellow NetApper mentioned that this functionality only exists if you are running a version of the BIOS and loader firmware which supports it.
UPDATE #2 2017-04-06: It looks like the “prompt” argument no longer works and has been replaced by “menu” so I have updated the post to reflect that change.