NAME

       vlserver - Initializes the Volume Location Server

SYNOPSIS

       vlserver [-noauth] [-smallmem]
           [-p <number of threads>] [-nojumbo]
           [-jumbo] [-rxbind]
           [-d <debug level>]
           [-rxmaxmtu <bytes>]
           [-trace <trace file>]
           [-allow-dotted-principals]
           [-database | -db <database path>]
           [-logfile <log file>]
           [-transarc-logs]
           [-config <configuration path>]
           [-syslog[=<facility>]>]
           [-enable_peer_stats] [-enable_process_stats]
           [-auditlog <log path>]
           [-audit-interface (file | sysvmq)]
           [-restricted_query (anyuser | admin)]
           [-help]

DESCRIPTION

       The vlserver command initializes the Volume Location (VL) Server, which runs on every
       database server machine. In the conventional configuration, its binary file is located in
       the /usr/lib/openafs directory on a file server machine.

       The vlserver command is not normally issued at the command shell prompt but rather placed
       into a file server machine's /etc/openafs/BosConfig file with the bos create command. If
       it is ever issued at the command shell prompt, the issuer must be logged onto a database
       server machine as the local superuser "root".

       As it initializes, the VL Server process creates the two files that constitute the Volume
       Location Database (VLDB), vldb.DB0 and vldb.DBSYS1, in the /var/lib/openafs/db directory
       if they do not already exist. Use the commands in the vos suite to administer the
       database.

       The VL Server maintains the record of volume locations in the Volume Location Database
       (VLDB). When the Cache Manager fills a file request from an application program, it first
       contacts the VL Server to learn which file server machine currently houses the volume that
       contains the file.  The Cache Manager then requests the file from the File Server process
       running on that file server machine.

       The VL Server records a trace of its activity in the /var/log/openafs/VLLog file. Use the
       bos getlog command to display the contents of the file. By default, it records on a
       minimal number of messages. For instructions on increasing the amount of logging, see
       VLLog(5).

       By default, the VL Server runs nine lightweight processes (LWPs). To change the number,
       use the -p argument.

       This command does not use the syntax conventions of the AFS command suites. Provide the
       command name and all option names in full.

OPTIONS

       -d <debug level>
           Sets the detail level for the debugging trace written to the /var/log/openafs/VLLog
           file. Provide one of the following values, each of which produces an increasingly
           detailed trace: 0, 1, 5, 25, and 125.

       -p <number of threads>
           Sets the number of server lightweight processes (LWPs or pthreads) to run.  Provide an
           integer between 3 and 64. The default is 9.

       -jumbo
           Allows the server to send and receive jumbograms. A jumbogram is a large-size packet
           composed of 2 to 4 normal Rx data packets that share the same header. The VL Server
           does not use jumbograms by default, as some routers are not capable of properly
           breaking the jumbogram into smaller packets and reassembling them.

       -nojumbo
           Deprecated; Jumbograms are disabled by default.

       -enable_peer_stats
           Activates the collection of Rx statistics and allocates memory for their storage. For
           each connection with a specific UDP port on another machine, a separate record is kept
           for each type of RPC (FetchFile, GetStatus, and so on) sent or received. To display or
           otherwise access the records, use the Rx Monitoring API.

       -enable_process_stats
           Activates the collection of Rx statistics and allocates memory for their storage. A
           separate record is kept for each type of RPC (FetchFile, GetStatus, and so on) sent or
           received, aggregated over all connections to other machines. To display or otherwise
           access the records, use the Rx Monitoring API.

       -allow-dotted-principals
           By default, the RXKAD security layer will disallow access by Kerberos principals with
           a dot in the first component of their name. This is to avoid the confusion where
           principals user/admin and user.admin are both mapped to the user.admin PTS entry.
           Sites whose Kerberos realms don't have these collisions between principal names may
           disable this check by starting the server with this option.

       -auditlog <log path>
           Turns on audit logging, and sets the path for the audit log.  The audit log records
           information about RPC calls, including the name of the RPC call, the host that
           submitted the call, the authenticated entity (user) that issued the call, the
           parameters for the call, and if the call succeeded or failed.

       -audit-interface (file | sysvmq)
           Specifies what audit interface to use. Defaults to "file". See fileserver(8) for an
           explanation of each interface.

       -rxbind
           Bind the Rx socket to the primary interface only.  (If not specified, the Rx socket
           will listen on all interfaces.)

       -syslog[=<syslog facility>]
           Specifies that logging output should go to syslog instead of the normal log file.
           -syslog=FACILITY can be used to specify to which facility the log message should be
           sent. Logging message sent to syslog are tagged with the string "vlserver".

       -noauth
           Turns off all authorization checks, and allows all connecting users to act as
           administrators, even unauthenticated users. The use of this option is inherently
           insecure, and should only be used in controlled environments for experimental or debug
           purposes. See NoAuth(5).

       -smallmem
           Specifies that the vlserver should limit its memory usage during certain operations,
           and return an error to the calling client instead of allocating more memory. This
           option is only useful on systems where memory is severely limited, and should not be
           needed on any remotely modern system.

       -rxmaxmtu <bytes>
           Sets the maximum transmission unit for the RX protocol.

       -trace <trace file>
           Turns on low-level Rx packet tracing, and logs the trace information to the specified
           file. The trace file can be later dumped into a human-readable form with a tool called
           dumptrace.

           It is not recommended to turn on this option during normal operation, since the
           detailed tracing may cause performance issues and use up a lot of disk space.

       -logfile <log file>
           Sets the file to use for server logging. If logfile is not specified, and no other
           logging options are supplied, this will be /var/log/openafs/VLLog.  Note that this
           option is intended for debugging and testing purposes.  Changing the location of the
           log file from the command line may result in undesirable interactions with tools such
           as bos.

       -transarc-logs
           Use Transarc style logging features. Rename the log file /var/log/openafs/VLLog to
           /var/log/openafs/VLLog.old when the VL Server is restarted.  This option is provided
           for compatibility with older versions.

       -database | -db <database path>
           Set the location of the database used by this program. This option is intended
           primarily for testing purposes.

       -config <configuration directory>
           Set the location of the configuration directory used to configure this service. In a
           typical configuration this will be /etc/openafs/server - this option allows the use of
           alternative configuration locations for testing purposes.

       -restricted_query (anyuser | admin)
           Restrict RPCs that query information about volumes to a specific group of users. Only
           the RPCs that are not used by cache managers will be restricted, since cache manager
           connections to the Volume Server are always unauthenticated. You can use "admin" to
           restrict to AFS administrators.  The "anyuser" option doesn't restrict the RPCs and
           leaves it open for all users including unauthenticated users, this is the default.

       -help
           Prints the online help for this command. All other valid options are ignored.

EXAMPLES

       The following bos create command creates a vlserver process on the machine
       "fs2.example.com" that uses six lightweight processes. Type the command on a single line:

          % bos create -server fs2.example.com -instance vlserver -type simple \
                       -cmd "/usr/lib/openafs/vlserver -p 6"

PRIVILEGE REQUIRED

       The issuer must be logged in as the superuser "root" on a file server machine to issue the
       command at a command shell prompt. It is conventional instead to create and start the
       process by issuing the bos create command.

SEE ALSO

       BosConfig(5), VLLog(5), vldb.DB0(5), bos_create(8), bos_getlog(8)

COPYRIGHT

       IBM Corporation 2000. <http://www.ibm.com/> All Rights Reserved.

       This documentation is covered by the IBM Public License Version 1.0.  It was converted
       from HTML to POD by software written by Chas Williams and Russ Allbery, based on work by
       Alf Wachsmann and Elizabeth Cassell.