The effect of -b changes depending on whether -w is present.
-b without -w creates a new master device as named by -d (the default is d_master) and with the page size as specified by -z (the default is 2048). If the named device:
File already exists. You must remove the existing file before attempting to create a new one using the server's -b option. Unable to create master device.
Names an existing raw partition – the attempt fails unless you include the-f flag. This reinitializes the raw partition as a server master device.
-b with -w master tells dataserver to use the size specified in -z for the master device when re-creating the master database. It implies nothing about creating a new device.
-w model – the -z and -b flags are accepted but ignored.
-w master for new installations – -z and -b are not required because the device size information is stored in the config_block.
-w master to upgrade older installations:
The server requires -b and/or -z if the config_block does not contain a valid entry for the associated size(s). The command fails if it cannot get valid data for the page size or device size.
Provide -b and/or -z when the config_block contains valid entries for the sizes they represent. However if the sizes do not match what is in the config_block, add -f to force your new size preferences.