Index for Section 4

Alphabetical listing for I

inetd.conf(4)
NAME
  inetd.conf - The default configuration file for the inetd daemon

SYNOPSIS
  /etc/inetd.conf

DESCRIPTION
  If the inetd daemon is started without specifying an alternate
  configuration file, the inetd daemon reads this file for information on how
  to handle Internet service requests. The inetd daemon reads its
  configuration file only when the inetd daemon starts or when the inetd
  daemon receives a SIGHUP signal.  Each line in the inetd configuration file
  defines how to handle one Internet service request.

  Each line is of the form:

       ServiceName SocketType ProtocolName Wait/NoWait UserName \
						ServerPath ServerArgs

  These fields must be separated by spaces or tabs.  Continuation lines are
  terminated with a \ (backslash).  Comments are denoted with a # (number
  sign).  The fields have the following meanings:

  ServiceName
      Contains the name of an Internet service defined in the /etc/services
      file. For services provided internally by the inetd daemon, this name
      must be the official name of the service. That is, the name must be
      identical to the first entry on the line that describes the service in
      the /etc/services file.

  SocketType
      Contains the name for the type of socket used for the service.  You can
      use either the stream value for a stream socket, the dgram value for a
      datagram socket, the raw value for a raw socket, the rdm value for a
      reliably delivered message socket, or the seqpacket value for a
      sequenced packet socket.	You can also use xstream and xdgram to permit
      the transparent mode of connections for stream and datagram sockets,
      respectively.  Currently, only application gateways for firewall
      services use the transparent mode of connection.

  ProtocolName
      Contains the name of an Internet protocol defined in the /etc/protocols
      file.  For example, use the tcp  value for a service that uses the
      TCP/IP protocol and the udp value for a service that uses the UDP
      protocol.

      For RPC services the field consists of the string rpc followed by a
      slash (/) and one of the following:

	·
	An asterisk (*)

	·
	One or more nettypes

	·
	One or more netids

	·
	A combination of nettypes and netids

      If you specify an invalid nettype, it is treated as a netid.  For
      example, if you specify rpc/*, it specifies the service uses all the
      transports supported by the system.

  Wait/NoWait
      Contains either the wait or the nowait instruction.  For datagram
      servers, specify wait. This instructs the inetd daemon to wait for a
      datagram server to read at least one datagram from the socket before
      exiting.	Single-threaded datagram servers process all incoming
      datagrams, then they time out (for example, comsat, biff, and talkd).
      Multithreaded datagram servers read one datagram from the socket,
      create a new socket, then fork and exit (for example, tftpd).

      For servers using stream sockets, specify nowait for multithreaded
      servers.	This instructs inetd to accept connection requests and pass a
      newly accepted socket that is connected to the client of the service to
      the server.  Specify wait for single-threaded servers.  This instructs
      inetd to pass the listening socket to the server and wait.  The server
      must accept at least one connection request before exiting.

  UserName
      Specifies the username that the inetd daemon should use to start the
      server.  This variable allows a server to be given less permission than
      root.

  ServerPath
      Specifies the full pathname of the server that the inetd daemon should
      execute to provide the service.  For services that the inetd daemon
      provides internally, this field should be internal.

  ServerArgs
      Specifies the command line arguments that the inetd daemon should use
      to execute the server.  These arguments begin with the name of the
      server used.  For services that the inetd daemon provides internally,
      this field should be empty.

EXAMPLES
  The following are sample entries in the /etc/inetd.conf file for an inetd
  daemon that:

    ·  Uses the ftpd daemon for servicing ftp requests

    ·  Uses the talkd daemon for ntalk requests

    ·  Provides time requests internally











       ftp stream tcp nowait root /usr/sbin/ftpd ftpd
       ntalk dgram udp wait root /usr/sbin/talkd talkd
       time stream tcp nowait root internal
       time dgram udp wait  root internal

RELATED INFORMATION
  Commands: biff(1), comsat(8).

  Daemons: inetd(8), talkd(8), tftpd(8).

  Files: protocols(4), services(4).