SMC_RNICS(8)

📦 version 1.8.8, in opensuse-leap 16.0

💅 SMC_RNICS(8) — like, the whole manual, bestie

ok so this is smc_rnics from the Linux Programmer's Manual — yes it's section 8, yes it's a sysadmin baddie, and yes I'm gonna walk you through every single line of it 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

smc_rnics — list, enable and disable (R)NICs as used by SMC-R and SMC-D. that's it. that's the whole job. iconic behavior tbh 👑

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

smc_rnics [-ahrv] [-d FID] [-e FID] [FID]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

so the SMC protocol needs an (R)NIC for the (R)DMA traffic — like, it literally cannot function without one, no cap. use smc_rnics to handle your (R)NICs and also to identify ones that got hotplugged. main character tool for a main character protocol 💖

🎀 OPTIONS 🎀

by default, smc_rnics shows all the enabled (R)NICs in the system. that's the vibe check it runs automatically ✨

  • FID — limit output to the specified function ID (FID). just the one, bestie.
  • -a, --all — include disabled and unknown devices in output. the full roster, no filter 🔥
  • -d, --disable FID — set (R)NIC FID offline. bye bye 👋
  • -e, --enable FID — set (R)NIC FID online. ⚠️ careful though: devices other than (R)NICs are not displayed by default, so once you enable one it will not show up in further output unless you also pass -a or -r. it's giving "why is my device invisible" and honestly it's just doing what it said it would 💀
  • -h, --help — display a brief smc_rnics usage information. the tutorial level 🧚
  • -I, --IB-dev — display IB device information.
  • -r, --rawids — display raw PCI vendor/device, PFT, and VFN codes in columns. note that this will also include unknown devices. raw data, no makeup, still slaying 🌈
  • -v, --version — display version information.

⭐ OUTPUT ⭐

ok bestie, here's what every column is actually telling you — do not skip this, it's the whole plot 📖

💜 FID

Function ID.

💜 Power

tells you whether the PCI slot is on (1) or off (0). and yeah, if it's off, go look at option -e for how to enable a device that's offline. we discussed this 💅

💜 PCI_ID

PCI ID in BDF (Bus:Device.Function) notation.

💜 PCHID

physical channel identifier — or, when it's an ISM device, the virtual channel identifier (VCHID). same column, two moods 🦋

💜 Type

device type in human readable form. currently there's just a single device type supported that actually is not an RDMA capable network adapter: ISM. yep. one (1) imposter in the list 🙈

the following RDMA capable network adapters are supported though 👇

  • Integrated_Network — IBM Integrated Network Adapter 100G
  • Network_Express — Network Express
  • RoCE_Express3 — RoCE Express 3
  • RoCE_Express2 — RoCE Express 2
  • RoCE_Express — RoCE Express

and psst — see option -r to switch to display of PCI vendor and device instead ✨

💜 PFT

PCI Function Type. it shows you a hexadecimal value with option -r, or the mapped name with option -a. pick your fighter 🥊

💜 VF

Virtual Function. indicates if the FID is a virtual function within the adapter.

💜 VFN

Virtual Function number. indicates the virtual function within the adapter.

💜 PPrt

corresponding physical port of an RNIC, if applicable. starts counting at 0 (yes, zero. programmer brain 🧠)

💜 IPrt

corresponding Infiniband port of an RNIC, if applicable. starts counting at 1 (yes, one this time. don't ask, just vibe)

💜 PNET_ID

physical network ID. it gets an asterisk * appended if it was defined via smc_pnet. little star, big meaning ⭐

💜 Net-Dev

network interface in Linux, if applicable.

💜 IB-Dev

Infiniband interface in Linux, if applicable.

🔥 RETURN CODES 🔥

on success, smc_rnics returns 0. if an error occurs, a return code other than 0 is returned. classic. no notes. periodt 💀

💖 SEE ALSO 💖

go read them, they're all part of the friend group 🫶

💡 friendly reminder: -d and -e literally take an (R)NIC offline and online. that's real networking, bestie. be sure before you type ✨

and that's the whole page!! brought to you by smc-tools, dated October 2018 — yes she's vintage but she's still That Girl 👑🎀💜

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