Restarting, and what that costs

`reload` restarts the switch. It comes back as its startup configuration, so anything in the running configuration that was not saved is gone.

Hone is a place to practise programming. This is one of its lessons, written out in full and free to read without an account.

What it is for

It is the single most expensive fact about a switch, and it is also, used deliberately, the only undo one has.

How to think about it

Before typing it, ask one question: is the version I want the SAVED one, or the running one? If it is the running one, save first. If somebody has just made a mess and not saved, a reload is the fastest fix there is.

Worked example

enable

The # prompt.

configure terminal

Into configuration mode.

hostname GOOD

The version worth keeping.

end

Out.

write memory

Saved, so this is what a reload would bring back.

configure terminal

Now the mess.

hostname BAD

A change nobody wants, and nobody has saved.

end

Out.

reload

The switch restarts and reads startup-config.

enable

A reboot logs you out, so you are back at Switch> and have to get to the # prompt again. That surprises people every time.

show running-config

GOOD. The bad change was never written anywhere, so it simply does not exist.

Your turn

Restart the switch so it comes back as its saved configuration.

The trap

Reloading to fix something after you have saved. The save made the mess permanent; the reload then loads the mess.

Practise reloading on HoneA question on it now, a coding challenge where there is one, and it is remembered for review. Free, no email needed.