Smokeping_probes_FPing(3)

Hey bestie 💖 welcome to Smokeping_probes_FPing(3), aka the manual page for Smokeping::probes::FPing — the FPing probe for SmokePing. Lowkey iconic, highkey useful. Let's get into it ✨

💖 NAME 💖

Smokeping::probes::FPing — FPing Probe for SmokePing. That's the whole vibe: it's the FPing probe, plugged into SmokePing, doing its lil ping thing. 🫶

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

Here's the config layout, bestie — copy it exactly, no freestyling the punctuation:

        *** Probes ***

        +FPing

        binary = /usr/bin/fping # mandatory
        blazemode = true
        hostinterval = 1.5
        interface = eth0
        mininterval = 0.001
        offset = 50%
        packetsize = 5000
        pings = 20
        protocol = 4
        sourceaddress = 192.168.0.1
        step = 300
        timeout = 1.5
        tos = 0x20
        usestdout = true

        # The following variables can be overridden in each target section
        /^influx_.+/ = influx_location = In the basement

        # [...]

        *** Targets ***

        probe = FPing # if this should be the default probe

        # [...]

        + mytarget
        # probe = FPing # if the default probe is something else
        host = my.host
        /^influx_.+/ = influx_location = In the basement

🌸 DESCRIPTION 🌸

Okay so this probe integrates FPing as a probe into smokeping. Fr fr. The variable binary must point to your copy of the FPing program. If it is not installed on your system yet, you can get a slightly enhanced version from "pub" in www.smokeping.org.

The (optional) packetsize option lets you configure the packetsize for the pings sent.

Since version 3.3 fping sends its statistics to stdout. Set usestdout to 'true' so make smokeping read stdout instead of stderr.

In blazemode, FPing sends one more ping than requested, and discards the first RTT value returned as it's likely to be an outlier.

The FPing manpage has the following to say on this topic:

Number of bytes of ping data to send. The minimum size (normally 12) allows room for the data that fping needs to do its work (sequence number, timestamp). The reported received data size includes the IP header (normally 20 bytes) and ICMP header (8 bytes), so the minimum total size is 40 bytes. Default is 56, as in ping. Maximum is the theoretical maximum IP datagram size (64K), though most systems limit this to a smaller, system-dependent number.

🎀 VARIABLES 🎀

Supported probe-specific variables:

• binary — the location of your fping binary.
  • Example value: /usr/bin/fping
  • Mandatory: this setting is mandatory. No cap, you need it.
• blazemode — send an extra ping and then discard the first answer since the first is bound to be an outlier. Dramatic? Yes. Useful? Also yes.
  • Example value: true
• hostinterval — the fping -p parameter, but in (possibly fractional) seconds rather than milliseconds, for consistency with other Smokeping probes. From fping(1):

This parameter sets the time that fping waits between successive packets to an individual target.

• Example value: 1.5

• interface — the name of the network interface to perform the ping on.
  • Example value: eth0
• mininterval — the fping -i parameter, but in (probably fractional) seconds rather than milliseconds, for consistency with other Smokeping probes. From fping(1):

The minimum amount of time between sending a ping packet to any target.

• Example value: 0.001
• Default value: 0.01

• offset — if you run many probes concurrently you may want to prevent them from hitting your network all at the same time. Using the probe-specific offset parameter you can change the point in time when each probe will be run. Offset is specified in % of total interval, or alternatively as 'random', and the offset from the 'General' section is used if nothing is specified here. Note that this does NOT influence the rrds itself, it is just a matter of when data acquisition is initiated. (This variable is only applicable if the variable 'concurrentprobes' is set in the 'General' section.)
  • Example value: 50%
• packetsize — the ping packet size, in the range of 12-64000 bytes.
  • Example value: 5000
• pings — how many pings should be sent to each target, if different from the global value specified in the Database section. Note that the number of pings in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally generated, and if you change this parameter afterwards, you'll have to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them.
  • Example value: 20
• protocol — choose if the ping should use IPv4 or IPv6.
  • Example value: 4
• sourceaddress — the fping -S parameter. From fping(1):

Set source address.

• Example value: 192.168.0.1

• step — duration of the base interval that this probe should use, if different from the one specified in the 'Database' section. Note that the step in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally generated, and if you change the step parameter afterwards, you'll have to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them. (This variable is only applicable if the variable 'concurrentprobes' is set in the 'General' section.)
  • Example value: 300
• timeout — the fping -t parameter, but in (possibly fractional) seconds rather than milliseconds, for consistency with other Smokeping probes. Note that as Smokeping uses the fping 'counting' mode (-C), this apparently only affects the last ping.
  • Example value: 1.5
• tos — set the type of service (TOS) of outgoing ICMP packets. You need at least fping-2.4b2_to3-ipv6 for this to work. Find a copy on www.smokeping.org/pub.
  • Example value: 0x20
• usestdout — listen for FPing output on stdout instead of stderr ... (version 3.3+ sends its statistics on stdout).
  • Example value: true

💅 AUTHORS 💅

Tobias Oetiker tobi@oetiker.ch — that's the author, bestie. Show some love 🫶

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And that's the whole page, babes ✨ This lil manual is from SmokePing 2.9.0, dated 2025-06-30, and its manual name is Smokeping_probes_FPing(3). Go ping something cute 💖