Determine what method failed and why. Consult the service's log file, typically in /var/svc/log and named based on the service's FMRI. (Very early in boot, service logs are placed in /etc/svc/volatile.) If the stop method failed, processes which belonged to the service may still be running.

Once the problem has been fixed, run svcadm clear service_fmri to request that the Solaris Service Manager clear the maintenance state and treat the service normally. If it is enabled and its dependencies are met, it will be started.

The restarter of a service manipulates it by executing the methods its configuration specifies. If a method fails, the restarter may choose to retry the method, or it may choose to place the service in the maintenance state, to await administrative intervention.

If a service's restarter is svc:/system/svc/restarter:default and a method is configured to be a program, the restarter considers the method to have failed if it exits with a non-zero exit status or is terminated by a signal.

The Message ID:   SMF-8000-8Q indicates that the service's restarter placed the service into the maintenance state because a method failed. This outcome can indicate a misunderstanding of the requirements of various software components, a misconfiguration of the system, or a defect in Solaris.

If the Suggested Action fails, contact Sun Service with the output of svcs -x and svcs -l service_fmri.

See "Predictive Self-Healing" for additional information and reference the "SMF How To Guide".

If the above Action doesn't help, use the instructions in document 203634 to place svc.startd in debug mode to collect additional services output then contact your service provider.