The system hangs/freezes/doesn't do anything, but sit there.  It is
completely locked up.  No console, no remote access, nothing.  As I said,
we're using IP Filter NOT iptables.  It has nothing to do with DNS, DHCP, NFS
or anything else like that.  It is IP Filter that freezes the entire system.
     Since my post 2 months ago, I've made a few changes.  The IP Filter
startup script is started later after a few more things have started, which
has helped some, but not completely fixed things.  I've also changed the
script so that a `reload' of filters doesn't stop and start IP Filter, but
loads the new filter list into the non-active filter set, then swaps the
active set for the new set.  This has helped a lot.  We went for over a month
with out a system freeze, then this week it froze and the next reboot froze
when IP Filter started up.  I had to go to rescue mode, copy backup copies of
the /etc/fstab and /etc/sysconfig/hwconf files to the real ones, and reboot
(these always seem to get corrupted some how when the system freezes).  Now
things are running ok again, but I haven't tried updating the filter rules
since then as I haven't needed to yet.

-- 

  Brent L. Bates (UNIX Sys. Admin.)
  M.S. 912				Phone:(757) 865-1400, x204
  NASA Langley Research Center	  	  FAX:(757) 865-8177
  Hampton, Virginia  23681-0001
  Email: [log in to unmask]	http://www.vigyan.com/~blbates/