RBOOTD(8)

💖 RBOOTD 💖 — the HP remote boot server, bestie edition

okay so real talk, rbootd is section 8 of the System Manager's Manual and it's giving ancient network sorcery, but honestly? iconic. let's get into it 🎀

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✨ NAME ✨

rbootd — HP remote boot server 👑

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

rbootd [-ad] [-i interface] [config_file]

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so the rbootd utility services boot requests from Hewlett-Packard workstations over a local area network. that's the whole gig bestie, it's the plug that hands out boot files 📡

the rules tho, and these matter:

• All boot files must reside in the boot file directory. no exceptions, no sneaking files in from elsewhere 💅
• if a client supplies path information in its boot request, it will be silently stripped away before processing. like, not even a warning, it's just gone 🫥
• By default, rbootd only responds to requests from machines listed in its configuration file. so if you're not on the list? you're not getting in 🙅‍♀️

The options are as follows:

• -a — Respond to boot requests from any machine. ngl this one is a little unhinged because the configuration file is ignored if this option is specified. like fully ignored. bye 👋
• -d — Run rbootd in debug mode. Packets sent and received are displayed to the terminal. so you can literally watch the tea get spilled in real time 🍵
• -i interface — Service boot requests on specified interface. If unspecified, rbootd searches the system interface list for the lowest numbered, configured `up` interface (excluding loopback). Ties are broken by choosing the earliest match. very "first come first served" of it ✨

Specifying config_file on the command line causes rbootd to use a different configuration file from the default. main character move, honestly 💖

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📝 the configuration file 📝

The configuration file is a text file where each line describes a particular machine. Here's the breakdown bestie:

• A line must start with a machine's Ethernet address, followed by an optional list of boot file names.
• An Ethernet address is specified in hexadecimal with each of its six octets separated by a colon.
• The boot file names come from the boot file directory.
• The ethernet address and boot file(s) must be separated by white-space and/or comma characters.
• A pound sign (#) causes the remainder of a line to be ignored. very "this is not for you" energy 🙈

Here is a sample configuration file:

#
# ethernet addr     boot file(s)        comments
#
08:00:09:0:66:ad    SYSHPBSD            # snake (4.3BSD)
08:00:09:0:59:5b                        # vandy (anything)
8::9:1:C6:75        SYSHPBSD,SYSHPUX    # jaguar (either)

look at jaguar getting either boot file, we love a flexible queen 🐆✨

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📢 logging & errors 📢

rbootd logs status and error messages via syslog(3). here's the vibe:

• A startup message is always logged. it's the "i have arrived" moment 💅
• in the case of fatal errors (or deadly signals) a message is logged announcing the server's termination. dramatic but deserved 💀
• In general, a non-fatal error is handled by ignoring the event that caused it — e.g. an invalid Ethernet address in the config file causes that line to be invalidated. so it just... pretends it didn't see that 😭

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⚡ SIGNALS ⚡

The following signals have the specified effect when sent to the server process using the kill(1) command:

• SIGHUP — Drop all active connections and reconfigure. it's giving "we're starting over" 🔄
• SIGUSR1 — Turn on debugging, do nothing if already on. no double-debugging, that's illegal 🚫
• SIGUSR2 — Turn off debugging, do nothing if already off. symmetric queen 👑

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📁 FILES 📁

• /etc/rbootd.conf — configuration file
• /tmp/rbootd.dbg — debug output
• /var/lib/rbootd — directory containing boot files
• /var/run/rbootd.pid — process id

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👀 SEE ALSO 👀

kill(1), socket(2), signal(3), syslog(3),

iykyk, go read those next, they're the supporting cast 🫶

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🐛 BUGS 🐛

okay bestie, listen up because this part is important:

• If multiple servers are started on the same interface, each will receive and respond to the same boot packets. chaos. actual chaos. 💀
• The interface should be specified in a configuration file rather than having to be put on the command line as an argument. so like, ideally we wouldn't be doing this the hard way, but here we are 😔
• Also the location of the boot images is hardcoded into the binary at compile time. yeah. no cap. you cannot change it without recompiling, so plan accordingly 🧚

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fr fr, this page is old old. like, older than most of the internet. respect the elders 🎀

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and that's the whole page bestie!! this came to you from the Debian edition of the manual, dated December 11, 1993 — yeah, a real vintage drop 👑💜 slay, go boot something 🦋✨