The console is the text output device for system administration messages, particularly those from the BIOS or boot loader, the kernel, from the init system and from the system logger. This article is about the software. ... The word kernel has a a variety of meanings in a several fields. ... init is the program on Unix and Unix-like systems which spawns all other processes. ... syslog is a de facto standard for forwarding log messages in an IP network. ...

On traditional minicomputers, the console is an RS-232 serial link to a terminal such as a DEC VT100. This terminal is usually kept in a secured room and is continually observed by the minicomputer's operators. Large systems from Sun, Hewlett-Packard and IBM still use serial consoles. In larger installations, the console ports are attached to multiplexers or network-connected multiport serial servers that let an operator connect his terminal to any of the attached servers. RS-232 (also referred to as EIA RS-232C or V.24) is a standard for serial binary data interchange between a DTE (Data terminal equipment) and a DCE (Data communication equipment). ... Digital Equipment Corporation was a pioneering company in the American computer industry. ... The VT100 was a video terminal made by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) which became the de facto standard used by terminal emulators. ... The Sun (or Sol) is the star at the center of our Solar system. ... The Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ), commonly known as HP, is a very large, global company headquartered in Palo Alto, California, United States. ... International Business Machines Corporation (IBM, or colloquially, Big Blue) NYSE: IBM (incorporated June 15, 1911, in operation since 1888) is headquartered in Armonk, NY, USA. The company manufactures and sells computer hardware, software, and services. ...

On PCs, the computer's attached keyboard and monitor have the equivalent function. Since the monitor cable carries video signals, it cannot be extended very far. Often, installations with many servers therefore use keyboard/video multiplexers (KVM switches) and possibly video amplifiers to centralize console access. In recent years, KVM/IP devices have become available that allow a remote computer to view the video output and send keyboard inout via any TCP/IP network and therefore the Internet. PC has meanings in multiple areas: // People Pierre Cardin P Chidambaram, finance minister of India Patrick Carpenter, a DJ and one of the collaborators in the Ninja Tune recording outfit, DJ Food. ... A computer keyboard is a peripheral modelled after the typewriter keyboard. ... Nineteen inch (48 cm) CRT computer monitor E-waste A computer display, monitor or screen is a computer peripheral device capable of showing still or moving images generated by a computer and processed by a graphics card. ... A KVM switch (with KVM being an acronym for Keyboard, Video, Mouse) is a hardware device that allows a user to control multiple computers from a single keyboard, video monitor and mouse. ... A diagram of how a KVM switch functions. ...

Some BIOSs, especially in servers, support serial consoles, and give access to the BIOS through the serial console, so that these servers can use the simpler and cheaper serial console infrastructure used by minis. Even if that is not possible, it may be possible to configure the operating system to support the serial console either during bootup, or after startup. Unix-like operating systems such as FreeBSD and Linux have built-in support for serial console access. This article is about the software. ... In computing, an operating system (OS) is the system software responsible for the direct control and management of hardware and basic system operations. ... Wikibooks has more about this subject: Guide to UNIX Unix or UNIX is a computer operating system originally developed in the 1960s and 1970s by a group of AT&T Bell Labs employees including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, and Douglas McIlroy. ... FreeBSD is a Unix-like free software operating system descended from AT&T UNIX via the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) branch through 386BSD and 4. ... Tux, a cartoon penguin frequently featured sitting, is the official Linux mascot. ...

It is usually possible to log in from the console. A login session from the console is treated by many parts of the operating system as being more trustworthy than a login session from other sources. Logging in as the root super-user from the console (root console) is the Command Line of Last Resort when faced with a misbehaving system. A login (also log in, log on, signon, sign on) is the process of accessing a computer system by identification of the user in order to obtain credentials to permit access. ... On many computer operating systems, superuser is the term used for the special user account that is controlled by the system administrator. ... Last Resort is a shootem up released in 1992 for the Neo Geo system. ...

See also

• for graphic (no-text) window see XFree86.
• Command line interface
• Win32 console

XFree86 is an implementation of the X Window System. ... Screenshot of a sample Bash session, taken on Linux. ... Win32 console is a special type of window within the system of Windows API. A Win32 console has a screen buffer and an input buffer. ...

External links

• Remote Serial Console HOWTO - how to configure Linux to attach a serial console