shutdown -p now

[Derrick Ryalls]

> 
> I'm trying to get my computer to shut down and turn the power 
> off. I'm aware of the command "shutdown -p now". It doesn't 
> work for me, and after reading the handbook, I conclude that 
> I must not have ACPI supported hardware. However, with Linux 
> (and Windows) on this same computer, I can tell the machine 
> to shut down and turn off the power. In Linux, this requires 
> that the apm module be loaded - enabling apm in FBSD doesn't 
> seem to do the trick for me (or do I need to recompile the 
> kernel for this to work?).
> 

Yes.

I don't run apm myself yet, but I believe these are the steps

Look for the line in your kernel:

device          apm0    at nexus? disable flags 0x20 

and make it look like this (I think)

device          apm0

Recompile your kernel and add 

apmd_enable="true"
to /etc/rc.conf

> A bigger problem is that FBSD seems to have disabled the 
> power button on the front of the computer. In order for me to 
> turn off the machine, I have to reach behind the computer and 
> turn off the master switch on the power supply (or else, pull 
> the power cord out of the wall). I assume that this is done 
> as a security measure - to prevent evil-minded individuals 
> from shutting down the server when the system administrator 
> is on his lunch break. That probably makes sense in a 
> corporate network setting, but I don't need that level of 
> security at home. More importantly, when I install FBSD on my 
> laptop (I have not yet done so), I'm concerned that I won't 
> be able to shut down the machine at all unless I remove the battery.

What happens when you hold the power button on the front of the machine
for 6 seconds?