How do I reboot a server via the console?

If a server fails and you are not able to secure shell to investigate and fix the problem, the first step is to attempt to access the server via it's dom0 (if the server is a domU). Check our server overview page to see if the server in question is a domU and if so which dom0 it belongs to.

If the server in question is a stand alone server or a dom0 than it should be accessible via the serial console. The console should provide information about the crash. You can reboot the server by using the ​raising skinny elephants trick.

Since the console is provided via [deb:cereal], you need to use special break characters. The exact sequence is:

ctrl-\-b-r
ctrl-\-b-s
ctrl-\-b-e
ctrl-\-b-i
ctrl-\-b-u
ctrl-\-b-b

After each line you should get confirmation on screen that it was run.