In message <Pine.NEB.4.53.0302081157160.389@dev.6nations.co.uk>, David Brownlee
 writes:
>On Fri, 7 Feb 2003, Steven M. Bellovin wrote:
>
>> >Try putting ddb.onpanic=0 into your /etc/sysctl.conf. In case of kernel
>> >panic the memory should be dumped and a backtrace should be written to
>> >the kernel mesg buffer. You should find this message in
>> >/var/log/messages or read it with dmesg after rebooting.
>> ><CTRL>+<ALT>+<ESC> seems to be futile while your running X (at least on
>> >i386) - sometimes the keyboard is still useable but often it's not and
>> >then you cannot even sync the disks making the panic even worse.
>>
>> I've had that setting for a long time.  It's not panicking; it's
>> hanging.
>
>	Could you try switching out of X before suspending?
>

It doesn't seem to want to do that...  When I do cntl+alt+F2, for 
example, I either get a blank screen or weird colors.  I tried logging 
in, blind, but that didn't work.  I believe my ttys entries are 
correct, and ps shows getty running on ttyE1 and ttyE2.  And yes, 
cntl+alt+F4 switches back to X.   (Aside: unlike some of my other 
machines, this one (a T21) does exit X successfully, i.e., with a 
normal console display.

While I would certainly like to solve the stability issue, the 
discussion thus far has answered my original question:  I haven't seen 
anyone else report symptoms anything like mine.  This suggests that my 
problem is peculiar to my system, rather than due to some problem with 
1.6.1.  But I have to power down one of my other 1.6 machines soon 
(building power is being turned off); it will be a good occasion to 
update it.

		--Steve Bellovin, http://www.research.att.com/~smb (me)
		http://www.wilyhacker.com (2nd edition of "Firewalls" book)