| System Administration Commands | nwamd(1M) |
/lib/inet/nwamd
nwamd is a system daemon to manage network interfaces.
This daemon is started automatically by svc:/network/physical:nwam and should not be invoked directly. It does not constitute a programming interface.
Whether this daemon is enabled or not depends on your installation medium. To check, enter the following at the command line:
% svcs svc:/network/physicalTwo instances will be listed, one online and the other disabled. If the “nwam” instance is online, then this daemon will be running.
To go from manual mode to auto-magic mode, enter the following at the command line:
% svcadm disable svc:/network/physical:default % svcadm enable svc:/network/physical:nwamTo go from auto-magic mode to manual mode:
% svcadm disable svc:/network/physical:nwam % svcadm enable svc:/network/physical:defaultWhen switching modes like this, keep in mind that all network interfaces will be brought down then back up. Therefore, if a different IP address is configured in this process, existing applications and sessions may be disrupted.
The default configuration policy is to have one link active at a time. If a wired link is available (i.e. physically connected), it will be preferred over wireless links. This default policy can be changed by creating alternate Network Configuration Profiles (NCPs); the nwam-manager GUI tool or the nwamcfg(1M) command may be used to create and modify NCPs.
If you used an earlier version of nwamd, which created an /etc/nwam/llp configuration file, configuration present in that file will automatically be incorporated into the "User" NCP upon upgrade to the current version of nwamd.
The automatic behavior provided by the nwam service requires that management
of the network configuration be handed over to nwamd. Thus any
manual changes to the network configuration may be lost if conditions change
such that a new profile is activated, or if nwamd is restarted.
If persistent changes are desired, the recommended approach is to create an
ENM which can be activated and deactivated as needed by the nwam service.
The NWAM service manages network configuration by storing desired property values in profiles. It then determines which profile should be active at a given time, depending on current network conditions, and activates that profile. In addition to the Network Configuration Profiles (NCPs) discussed in the previous section, nwamd also manages Location and External Network Modifier (ENM) profiles.
An NCP specifies the configuration of the local network components, including physical links, IP tunnel links, and IP interfaces. An IP interface must be associated with an underlying link of either type. These components are collectively referred to as Network Configuration Units, or NCUs.
A Location specifies system-wide network configuration, including areas such as name services, domain, IP Filter and IPsec configuration.
External Network Modifiers are, as the name suggests, applications external to the NWAM service that may modify and/or create network configuration. nwamd will activate/deactivate an ENM depending on conditions that are specified as part of the ENM profile.
See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:
| ATTRIBUTE TYPE | ATTRIBUTE VALUE |
|---|---|
| Availability | SUNWcsr |
| Interface Stability | Committed |
svcs(1), netcfgd(1M), nwamadm(1M), nwamcfg(1M), svcadm(1M), attributes(5), smf(5), nwam-manager(1M)
The networking service is managed by the service management facility, smf(5), under the service identifier:
svc:/network/physicalAdministrative 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.