NWAMD(1M)NWAMD(1M)NAMEnwamd - network auto-magic daemon
SYNOPSIS
/lib/inet/nwamd
DESCRIPTIONnwamd is a system daemon to manage network interfaces.
This daemon is started automatically and should not be invoked
directly. It does not constitute a programming interface.
Operation
Whether this daemon is enabled or not depends on your installation
medium. To check from within the GNOME desktop environment, double
click on the "Network Manager" icon to open the "Connection Properties"
window. If "Configure network automatically" is checked, then auto-
magic mode is enabled. To check from the command line, enter the fol‐
lowing:
% svcs svc:/network/physical
Two instances will be listed, one online and the other disabled. If the
"nwam" instance is online, then this daemon is running.
To switch between manual and auto-magic mode, you can use the Network
Monitor applet available within the GNOME desktop environment. You can
also switch manually from the command line by entering:
% svcadm disable svc:/network/physical:default
% svcadm enable svc:/network/physical:nwam
To go from auto-magic mode to manual mode:
% svcadm disable svc:/network/physical:nwam
% svcadm enable svc:/network/physical:default
When switching modes like this, keep in mind that all network inter‐
faces will be brought down then back up. Therefore, if a different IP
address is configured in this process, existing applications and ses‐
sions might be disrupted.
There is a limitation that only one link is active at a time in auto-
magic mode. This mode is not recommended for machines that use more
than one link at a time. For machines with wired and wireless links,
wired link are preferred by default, although this can be adjusted from
the GNOME NWAM Manager menu (right-click on the icon), or from the com‐
mand line, by editing the plain text file /etc/nwam/llp. For the lat‐
ter (hand-editing) procedure, the first instance of a link in
/etc/nwam/llp sets the priority of that link. Subsequent instances of
that link set parameters associated with the interface on that link.
The /etc/nwam/llp interface is volatile and might change in a future
release.
Static IP Addresses
A static IP address can be configured by changing the line in the
/etc/nwam/llp file that contains an interface name and the name of the
method for obtaining an IP address. It might look like:
nge0 dhcp
Change this line to one that looks like:
nge0 static I1.I2.I3.I4/P
...where the I's are the digits of the IPv4 address and the P is an
optional prefix. If the prefix is not provided, it is derived, using
classful assumptions.
Configuring IPv6
IPv6 is configured by default on a link. It can also be explicitly
added in the /etc/nwam/llp file by providing a line that contains an
interface name and the string ipv6. It might look like:
nge0 ipv6
If IPv6 should not be plumbed on a given link, a noipv6 entry should be
created in the /etc/nwam/llp file for that link. It might look like:
nge0 noipv6
An optional static IPv6 address can be provided on the same line, imme‐
diately after the ipv6 token. Whether you provide a static address or
not, IPv6 will use DHCPv6 or stateless address configuration, as
directed by the local network configuration.
PROFILES
All interfaces listed in this section are volatile and may change in a
future release. They are documented here so that those wishing to
experiment with this may do so.
Profiles are a mechanism for making multiple related changes to the
system configuration after IP service is available.
There is no direct support for the profiles yet, but a "roll your own"
mechanism is provided for now. Once an interface is brought up and an
IP address is configured for it, the daemon looks for the file
/etc/nwam/ulp/check-conditions. If this file exists and is executable,
it is run. This should print a single line of output, which is the name
of the profile that the user wishes to activate based on the current
conditions. If such a line is read successfully (foo in this example),
then /etc/nwam/ulp/foo/bringup is executed. Likewise, when the inter‐
face gets torn down for whatever reason, /etc/nwam/ulp/foo/teardown is
executed. The "bringup" and "teardown" scripts are invoked via
pfexec(1) with default basic privileges. Samples for each of these
scripts can be found at:
o http://opensolaris.org/os/project/nwam/prototype/check-con‐
ditions
o http://opensolaris.org/os/project/nwam/prototype/bringup
o http://opensolaris.org/os/project/nwam/prototype/teardown
Wireless
If no wired link is available, a scan for wireless LANs is done, and
the resulting list offered via a GUI popup window prompts the console
user to select a preference. If a successful connection is made, the
WLAN in question is stored in the plain text file
/etc/nwam/known_wifi_nets and the daemon may connect to any WLAN in
that list without prompting the user again. If a user wishes to add
other preferences or revoke existing ones, he can do so by bringing up
the NWAM Manager menu with right-click on the icon, and then selecting
"Manage Favorite Wireless Networks...". A user can also edit the
known_wifi_nets file directly. This interface is volatile and might
change in a future release.
ATTRIBUTES
See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:
┌────────────────────┬─────────────────┐
│ ATTRIBUTE TYPE │ ATTRIBUTE VALUE │
├────────────────────┼─────────────────┤
│Interface Stability │ Volatile │
└────────────────────┴─────────────────┘
SEE ALSOsvcs(1), svcadm(1M), attributes(5), smf(5)
See also nwam-manager(1M), available in the JDS/GNOME man page collec‐
tion.
NOTES
The networking service is managed by the service management facility,
smf(5), under the service identifier:
svc:/network/physical
Administrative actions on this service, such as enabling, disabling, or
requesting restart, can be performed using svcadm(1M). The service's
status can be queried using the svcs(1) command.
Nov 24, 2008 NWAMD(1M)