I will never forget the day that I connected to a remote switch and typed “no ip” into the config. At the time, I was trying to change the management IP for the switch and didn’t quite think through the whole process. I’ve blown my networking legs off several times since then. Most of the time, I have to do a call of shame and ask someone at the site to reset the device for me.
When I am doing something particularly risk now, I use the reload after command to automatically fix any mistakes. I would start the session by typing reload after 15. This schedules a restart of the device in 15 minutes.
- If I make a mistake while configuring the router and am disconnected, the device will restart itself without saving the misconfiguration. After the reload, I can SSH back in with my AD credentials and figure out what went wrong.
- If everything goes smoothly, I simply type no reload and save my configuration. I can check for any schedule restarts by running show reload after.
These commands are for HP Procurve switches but many other manufacturers have a similar command. Cisco uses reload in instead of reload after. To cancel a restart, type reload cancel. If you have another make which supports a similar command, leave a comment below containing the command. Together, we can stop the call of shame.