kbd(1) User Commands 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 ] [-l] [-a enable | disable | alternate] [-c on | off] [-d keyboard device] [-D autorepeat delay] [-R autorepeat rate]
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 specified 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 super-user using the -a option. The system can be configured to ignore the keyboard abort sequence or trigger on the
standard or alternate sequence.
A BREAK condition that originates from an erroneous electrical 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 SLIP and others should not be run over the serial console port when Alternate Break sequence is in effect.
Although PPP is a binary protocol, it has the ability to avoid using characters that interfere with serial operation. The default alternate
break sequence is <CTRL-m> ~ <CTRL-b>, or 0D 7E 02 in hexidecimal. In PPP, this can be avoided by setting either 0x00000004 or 0x00002000
in the ACCM. This forces an escape for the <CTRL-b> or <CTRL-m> characters, respectively.
To do this in Solaris PPP 4.0, add:
asyncmap 0x00002000
to the /etc/ppp/options file or any of the other configuration files used for the connection. See pppd(1M).
SLIP has no comparable capability, and must not be used if the Alternate Break sequence is in use.
The Alternate Break sequence has no effect on the keyboard abort. For more information on the Alternate Break sequence, see 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 moni-
tor. 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 vari-
able 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.
To set the autorepeat delay by default, set the REPEAT_DELAY variable in the file /etc/default/kbd to the expected value with units in mil-
liseconds (ms). To avoid making the keyboard unusable due to a typographical error, delay values below KIOCRPTDELAY_MIN (defined in
/usr/include/sys/kbio.h) are rejected with EINVAL:
REPEAT_DELAY=500
To set the autorepeat rate by default, set the REPEAT_RATE variable in the file /etc/default/kbd to the expected value with units in mil-
liseconds. Negative and zero repeat rates will be rejected with EINVAL:
REPEAT_RATE=33
To change the current settings of delay and rate, run the command, kbd -i. When the Auto Repeat Delay and/or Auto Repeat Rate are in
effect, only command line mode is affected.
OPTIONS
The following options are supported:
-a enable | disable | alternate
Enables, disables, or alternates 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 system on most systems. The default keyboard
behavior can be changed using this option. The -a option can only be used by a super-user.
enable Enables the default effect of the keyboard abort sequence (suspend the operating system and enter the debugger or the
monitor).
disable Disables the default/alternate effect and ignores keyboard abort sequences.
alternate Enables 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 interpretation, binary protocols
cannot be run over the serial console port when this value is used.
-c on | off
Turns the clicking of the keyboard on or off.
on Enables clicking
off Disables clicking
-d keyboard device
Specifies the keyboard device being set. The default setting is /dev/kbd.
-D autorepeat delay
Sets the autorepeat delay in milliseconds.
-i
Sets 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 super-user.
-l
Returns the layout code of the keyboard being used, and the autorepeat delay and autorepeat rate being used.
-r
Resets the keyboard as if power-up.
-R autorepeat rate
Sets the autorepeat rate in milliseconds.
-t
Returns the type of the keyboard being used.
EXAMPLES
Example 1: Displaying the Keyboard Yype
The following command displays the keyboard type:
example% kbd -t
Type 4 Sun keyboard
example%
Example 2: Setting Keyboard Defaults
The following command sets the keyboard defaults as specified in the keyboard default file:
example# kbd -i
example#
Example 3: Displaying Information
The following command displays keyboard type and layout code. It also displays auto repeat delay and rate settings.
example% kbd -l
type=4
layout=43(0x2b)
delay(ms)=500
rate(ms)=33
example%
Example 4: Setting Keyboard Autorepeat Delay
The following command sets the keyboard autorepeat delay:
example% kbd -D 300
example%
Example 5: Setting Keyboard Autorepeat Rate
The following command sets the keyboard autorepeat rate:
example% kbd -R 50
example%
FILES
/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 attributes:
+-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
| ATTRIBUTE TYPE | ATTRIBUTE VALUE |
+-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
|Architecture |SPARC |
+-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
|Availability |SUNWcsu |
+-----------------------------+-----------------------------+
SEE ALSO
loadkeys(1), svcs(1), inetd(1M), inetadm(1M), kadb(1M), svcadm(1M), pppd(1M), keytables(4), attributes(5), smf(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 position overrides the nor-
mal 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.
The kdb service is managed by the service management facility, smf(5), under the service identifier:
svc:/system/keymap:default
Administrative actions on this service, such as enabling, disabling, or requesting restart, can be performed using svcadm(1M). Responsibil-
ity for initiating and restarting this service is delegated to inetd(1M). Use inetadm(1M) to make configuration changes and to view config-
uration information for this service. The service's status can be queried using the svcs(1) command.
SunOS 5.10 25 Jul 2004 kbd(1)