The file rc.conf contains descriptive information about the local host name, configuration details for any potential network interfaces and which services should be started up at system initial boot time.

The purpose of rc.conf is not to run commands or perform system startup actions directly. Instead, it is included by the various generic startup scripts in /etc which conditionalize their internal actions according to the settings found there.


So you cannot reload file w/o reboot or just start appropriate service from /etc directory.

Hope this clears your doubt