.TH HOTSWAP 1 4th\ November\ 2002  
.SH NAME
hotswap \- register and unregister hotswappable  IDE hardware
.SH SYNOPSIS
\fBhotswap\fR [ \-c | \-\-ide\-controller \fBN\fR] [\-h | \-\-help] [\-n | \-\-nocheck] [\-v | \-\-verbose] [\-V | \-\-version] [\fBACTION\fR]
.SH DESCRIPTION
hotswap allows you to register and
unregister hotswappable IDE devices, for
example notebook computer modules, with the Linux kernel.
.PP
It has been developed on and for a Dell Latitude
C600, but does not rely on any specific properties of
that machine.
.PP
By default, the command line utility guides you through
the hotswapping process interactively. It is also possible to
specify an \fIACTION\fR, for example
unregistering the current device, rescanning the
IDE bus, &c. This feature is primarily
intended for use with scripts and GUI
frontends such as \fBxhotswap\fR(1).
.PP
By using an XML configuration file,
system administrators can specify arbitrary shell
scripts to be run before and after registering and unregistering
devices. This is particularly helpful for automatic
configuration of CD\-RW drives, which require
SCSI emulation and bypass normal access via
the IDE subsystem. By default, the
configuration file is located at
\fB/etc/hotswaprc\fR; its syntax is described in
\fBhotswaprc\fR(5).
.SH OPTIONS
The program follows the usual GNU command line syntax,
with long options starting with two dashes (`\-').
.TP 
\fB\-c\fR, \fB\-\-ide\-controller\fR \fIN\fR
Use IDE controller \fIN\fR.
.TP 
\fB\-h\fR, \fB\-\-help\fR
Print a brief help text and exit successfully.
.TP 
\fB\-n\fR, \fB\-\-nocheck\fR
Do not perform sanity checks before attempting an
action. Use with care, as this option may cause some steps
to fail silently.
.TP 
\fB\-v\fR, \fB\-\-verbose\fR
Print more information.
.TP 
\fB\-V\fR ,\fB\-\-version\fR
Print version information and exit successfully.
.SH ACTIONS
Besides the above options, the program allows you to specify
one of the following actions on the command line:
.TP 
\fBprobe\-ide\fR
Detect the currently configured
IDE device.
.TP 
\fBmounted\-ide\fR
Detect whether a file system on the currently
configured IDE device is mounted.
.TP 
\fBunregister\-ide\fR
Unregister the currently configured
IDE device.
.TP 
\fBrescan\-ide\fR
Scan the IDE bus for a new device.
If a device has been found, register it with the
kernel.
.PP
If no \fIACTION\fR is specified,
interactive mode is entered. In this mode the program guides you
through the hotswapping process as appropriate for the current
configuration.
.SH NOTES
There is generally no need to manage floppy disk devices.
The FDC is always present and configured. Floppy disk drives do
not connect to the IDE controller, even if they
come in the same modules as IDE devices and use
the same connector.
.PP
The Linux kernel requires hotswappable devices to be the
only device connected to their IDE controller.
.PP
The \fBmounted\-ide\fR action assumes file systems
have been mounted as \fB/dev/hdc\fR. If this is not
the case (i.e., you've used a symbolic link such as
\fB/dev/cdrom\fR) the command will not work.
.SH FILES
.TP 
\fB/etc/hotswaprc\fR
The default location for the XML configuration file.
.SH REPORT\ BUGS
Report bugs to t.stadelmann1@physics.ox.ac.uk.
.SH AUTHOR
Written by Tim Stadelmann.
.PP
This manual page is based on an earlier version kindly
contributed by Wouter Verhelst.
.SH SEE\ ALSO
\fBxhotswap\fR(1), \fBhdparm\fR(8), \fBhotswaprc\fR(5).
.SH COPYRIGHT
Copyright (c) 2002\-2003 Wouter Verhelst, Tim Stadelmann.
.PP
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
document under the terms of the GNU General
Public License (GPL), Version 2 or any later
version published by the Free Software Foundation.