Can you debug a program while it's in production and being used?
Systems engineers constantly address issues that occur in real-time while the systems are running and producing the information the users need. Fixing a system while it's in production is a critical skill systems engineers need to have. You should be able to describe how you go about doing this when asked by the Cisco interviewer.
"Some, but not all applications can be repaired even while they are open and being used. The criteria for doing this are whether the application is running in the background, booted properly, and whether it can be put into sleep mode. There are many different tools available that allow you to monitor the performance of applications and systems to determine if a problem exists and what the root cause may be. Once you understand the problem and determine what will be required to remediate it, you can decide whether you can do this while the application is still up and running or requires a system shutdown. When a shutdown is required, the Cisco users should be notified in advance, and the application and any data should be backed up before shutting it down. If you can fix it while the application is still running, make sure that the data is mirrored, so if a problem occurs, it can be retrieved."
