1AHCPD(8)                    System Manager's Manual                   AHCPD(8)
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NAME

6       ahcpd - ad-hoc configuration daemon
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SYNOPSIS

9       ahcpd option...  [ -- ] interface...
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DESCRIPTION

12       AHCP  is  a  configuration  protocol  that can replace DHCP on networks
13       without transitive connectivity, such as mesh networks.
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OPTIONS

16       -m multicast-address
17              Specify the link-local multicast address to  be  used  by  AHCP.
18              The default is ff02::cca6:c0f9:e182:5359.
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20       -p port
21              Specify  the UDP port number to be used by AHCP.  The default is
22              5359.
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24       -n     Operate as a forwarder: participate in  the  flooding  protocol,
25              but don't actually perform any configuration.
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27       -4     Only attempt to configure IPv4 addresses.
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29       -6     Only attempt to configure IPv6 addresses.
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31       -N     Do not configure DNS.
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33       -t time
34              Specify  the  time,  in seconds, for which leases are requested.
35              The default is slightly over one hour.   Must  be  between  five
36              minutes and a year.
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38       -s script
39              Specify  the  configuration  script  to  run.   The  default  is
40              /etc/ahcp/ahcp-config.sh.
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42       -d level
43              Set the debug level to level (default 1).
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45       -i filename
46              Specify the filename containing  this  host's  unique  id.   The
47              default  is  /var/lib/ahcp-unique-id.   If  it doesn't exist, it
48              will be created by ahcpd.
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50       -c filename
51              Specify the name of the configuration file.
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53       -C statement
54              Specify a configuration statement directly on the command line.
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56       -D     Daemonise at startup.
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58       -L logfile
59              Specify a file to log random ``how do  you  do?''  messages  to.
60              This  defaults  to  standard  error  if  not daemonising, and to
61              /var/log/ahcpd.log otherwise.
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63       -I pidfile
64              Specify a file to write our  process  id  to.   The  default  is
65              /var/run/ahcpd.pid.
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CONFIGURATION FILE FORMAT

68       The configuration is a sequence of lines, each of which starts with one
69       of the keywords below.  Blank lines are ignored.  Comments  are  intro‐
70       duced with an octothorp ``#'' and terminate at the end of the line.
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72       The following keywords are recognised:
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74       mode server|client|forwarder
75              Specifies  whether the daemon operates as a server, a client, or
76              a forwarder.  If omitted, the default is to operate as a client,
77              unless  the -n flag is present on the command line.  If present,
78              this must be the first line in the configuration file.
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80       prefix prefix
81              Specifies a prefix to use for configuring clients.  This keyword
82              is  only  valid  in  server configurations, and may be specified
83              twice, once for IPv4 and once for IPv6.
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85       lease-dir directory
86              Specifies a directory to store lease  files.   This  keyword  is
87              only valid in server configurations.
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89       name-server address
90              Specifies the address of a DNS server to configure clients with.
91              This keyword is only valid in server configurations, and may  be
92              repeated multiple times.
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94       ntp-server address
95              Specifies  the  address  of  an  NTP server to configure clients
96              with.  This keyword is only valid in server configurations,  and
97              may be repeated multiple times.
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FILES

100       /var/lib/ahcp-unique-id
101              An  8-byte  long  file  containing this host's unique id.  If it
102              doesn't exist, a new unique id will be generated from an  inter‐
103              face's MAC address.
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105       /etc/ahcp/ahcp-config.sh
106              The  script  that performs the actual configuration.  It will be
107              passed one argument, which is either start or stop.
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109       /etc/ahcp/ahcp-local.sh
110              If this is an executable script, it will be called by  ahcp-con‐
111              fig.sh  just  after  configuring  or  deconfiguring.  It will be
112              passed one argument, which is either start or stop.
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SIGNALS

115       SIGUSR1
116              Print ahcpd's status to standard output or to the log file.
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118       SIGUSR2
119              Check all interfaces for status changes,  then  reopen  the  log
120              file.
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NOTES

123       Since  the AHCP protocol is designed for mesh networks, it doesn't have
124       any provisions for setting routing parameters such as a  default  gate‐
125       way, the IPv4 network mask and the IPv6 list of on-link prefixes; these
126       are expected to be provided by a full-fledged routing protocol for mesh
127       nodes, and by router advertisements for ordinary nodes.
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129       The  AHCP  server should use NTP to synchronise its clock.  If a server
130       instance of ahcpd doesn't detect time  synchronisation,  it  will  only
131       give  out leases for a short period of time, and be extremely conserva‐
132       tive about releasing them.  Note that an SNTP client is  not  enough  —
133       ahcpd actually checks with the kernel for time synchronisation, so real
134       NTP is necessary.
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SEE ALSO

137       dhcpcd(8), dhclient(8), babeld(8), olsrd(8), ntpd(8), The  Ad-Hoc  Con‐
138       figuration Protocol.
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AUTHOR

141       Juliusz Chroboczek.
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145                                                                      AHCPD(8)
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