<<i need help on setting up the autoboot system on mpeix. i figured out how to set the flag on sysgen (i think) but i do not know how to create the autoexec file.>> It sounds like you might have overlooked Chapters 2 and 3 of the "System Startup, Configuration, and Shutdown Reference Manual". If you haven't read those, it would be a good idea to do so. The AUTOBOOT file is simply an image of the START command that would be manually entered at the ISL> prompt. Note that it must be an *exact* image of that command-including the carriage return/linefeed sequence at the end. That's where most people run into problems. Exactly how you enter the CF/LF into the file depends on your editor. <<i need to put in "start norecovery". also, can where does the login (when the system goes back up) reside. i need to change the way it logs-in.>> Same thing; as documented in the manual mentioned above, the ISL>START command includes a "LOGON=" optional parameter to specify the user/account that the system uses for the initial logon. However, if you want to actually get a session logged on to the console at each startup for a user that has a password, you'll need to see if the START command accepts the user/pass.acct form; I haven't tried, and the manual doesn't say. Another option would be to issue a STARTSESS command from the SYSSTART file. But any of these methods result in either a user name with no password (bad idea most of the time) or text files on the system with embedded passwords (also a bad idea). If you embed passwords, you'll probably want to ALTSEC the file to keep it safe from prying eyes. <<also (again) after the autoboot executes, then the console logs-in i need it to execute sysstart.pub.sys. many thanks in advance.>> SYSSTART is executed automatically by any boot (AUTOBOOT or otherwise) unless the "NOSYSSTART" option of ISL>START is used. But the sequence is not necessarily as you mention, because the SYSSTART file is executed completely independently of any logon that may or may not happen on the console. If you need guaranteed sequencing, you can stream a job from SYSSTART, and have that job issue the appropriate STARTSESS, PAUSE, and other commands in the required order (PAUSE is not allowed in SYSSTART, though I have no idea why). If you have user logging on your databases (and if you don't, you probably should ;-), make sure that you *don't* use the "NORECOVERY" form of the START command, since it will usually cause the logging processes to fail to properly restart, resulting in no log process running on a database that has logging enabled, resulting in failed DBOPENs. I did this to myself dozens of times on manual restarts, trying to save a little time. It wasn't worth it. Steve