CONDOR_UPDATE_MACHINE_AD(1)

💖 CONDOR_UPDATE_MACHINE_AD(1) — the HTCondor Manual 💖

okay bestie, welcome to the <rainbow>condor_update_machine_ad</rainbow> page, straight out of the HTCondor Manual. pull up a chair, grab a boba, we're doing machine ClassAd surgery today 🦋

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✨ NAME ✨

condor_update_machine_ad — update a machine ClassAd 💅

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

condor_update_machine_ad [-help | -version ]

condor_update_machine_ad [-pool centralmanagerhostname[:portnumber]]
[-name startdname] path/to/update-ad

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✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

so basically, condor_update_machine_ad goes in and modifies the machine ClassAd of the condor_startd daemon you point it at. the ClassAd sitting in the file at path/to/update-ad is the one that carries the changed attributes. those changes stick around until condor_startd restarts — so like, it's giving temporary glow-up, not permanent ✨. and if you don't hand it a file on the command line? no worries, condor_update_machine_ad just reads the update ClassAd from stdin. 🫶

the content of that file or stdin has to be a complete ClassAd — no half-finished vibes allowed. every single line must end with a newline character, including the very last line of the file. the lines look like this:

<attribute> = <value>

and here's the tea: changing certain ClassAd attributes makes condor_startd go regenerate the values of other ClassAd attributes. iconic domino effect honestly. an example is setting HasVM — doing that causes OfflineUniverses, VMOfflineTime, and VMOfflineReason to change too. 🔥

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✨ OPTIONS ✨

• -help — shows you the usage info and dips out. 👋
• -version — prints the HTCondor version and exits. 💫
• -pool centralmanagerhostname[:portnumber] — tells it which pool you mean, by giving the central manager's host name plus an optional port number. 🌐
• -name startdname — sends the command to a machine identified by startdname. 🎯

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🌸 GENERAL REMARKS 🌸

ngl, this tool is meant for system administrators — specifically when they're dealing with offline universes. iykyk. 👑

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🌈 EXAMPLES 🌈

1️⃣ to re-enable matching with the VM universe jobs — drop a complete ClassAd onto stdin (ending newline included, don't forget it!!) to change the value of ClassAd attribute HasVM:

$ echo "HasVM = True
" | condor_update_machine_ad

2️⃣ to stop vm universe jobs from matching with the machine:

$ echo "HasVM = False
" | condor_update_machine_ad

3️⃣ to stop vm universe jobs from matching and give a reason:

$ echo "HasVM = False
VMOfflineReason = \"Cosmic rays.\"
" | condor_update_machine_ad

⚠️ heads up bestie — those quotes around the reason are required by ClassAds, and they have to be escaped because of the shell. 😭 and honestly? using a file instead of stdin is way preferable in these situations, because then you need neither quoting nor escape characters. so much chiller. 🧚

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✨ EXIT STATUS ✨

condor_update_machine_ad exits with a status value of 0 (zero) when it slays ✨, and 1 (one) when it does not. 💀

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💜 AUTHOR 💜

HTCondor Team 👑

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🎀 COPYRIGHT 🎀

1990-2026, Center for High Throughput Computing, Computer Sciences Department, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, US. Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0.

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and that's the whole page, bestie!! 🦋 this was the CONDOR_UPDATE_MACHINE_AD(1) page from the HTCondor Manual, dated Oct 16, 2026 — mwah, take care of those offline universes, and remember: newline at the end of the file or it's not complete. periodt. 💅💖✨