ifdown(8)

💅 ifdown(8) — the "bestie, take it down" manual

okay so this is ifdown, straight out of the System Manager's Manual, and she is here to deconfigure your interfaces. yes queen, we're going down today 💀

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✨ NAME ✨

ifdown — take interfaces down 🫶

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

ifdown [<options>...] <interfaces>

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

ifdown is the go-to for deconfiguring interfaces, and it does it according to how they are configured in the configuration database. so like, it doesn't just freestyle — it reads the config db and does the thing properly. main character behaviour honestly 👑

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🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

• -a, --auto — only match interfaces that are marked as auto. picky queen energy, love that for her 💅
• -f, --force — forces deconfiguration of the interface. and ngl, this option literally exists for compatibility with other implementations — it's a vibe, not a whole personality 🫶
• -h, --help — displays supported options to ifquery. and yes, bestie, it really does say ifquery in the manual — not me side-eyeing 🙈 but that's what it says, so that's what we're telling you.
• -i, --interfaces FILE — use FILE as the config database. your config, your rules ✨
• -n, --no-act — shows you what commands would be run instead of actually running them. it's giving dress rehearsal 🎀 super useful for testing configuration changes before you commit.
• -v, --verbose — shows what commands are being run as they're executed. she narrates her own life, and honestly? iconic 🌸
• -E, --executor-path PATH — look for executors in the given PATH. go find your people, girl 🦋
• -I, --include PATTERN — include PATTERN when matching against the config or state database. bring her in, she's with us 💖
• -S, --state-file FILE — use FILE as the state database. different book, same slay 👑
• -T, --timeout TIMEOUT — wait up to TIMEOUT seconds for executors to complete before raising an error. she's patient but she's not that patient 😭
• -V, --version — print the ifupdown-ng version and exit. identity check, love that ⭐
• -X, --exclude PATTERN — exclude PATTERN when matching against the config or state database. sorry babe, not you 🚫💀

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🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

ifupdown-ng.conf(5) · ifup(8) · ifquery(8) · interfaces(5)

like, go read the whole family, they're all linked, iykyk 💜

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👑 AUTHORS 👑

Ariadne Conill <ariadne@dereferenced.org> — thank her, she wrote this, absolute legend 🫶

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and that's the whole manual, bestie — no cap, every flag accounted for. this page is from the ifupdown-ng crew, dated 2026-05-10, and it's ifdown(8) all the way down 🦋 💖 ✨