NAME

       vde_plug - Virtual Distributed Ethernet plug (two plugs creates a vde cable)

SYNOPSIS

       vde_plug [ OPTIONS ] [ vde_plug_url ]
       vde_plug [ OPTIONS ] vde_plug_url vde_plug_url
       vde_plug [ OPTIONS ] = command [ args ]
       vde_plug [ OPTIONS ] vde_plug_url = command [ args ]

DESCRIPTION

       A vde_plug is a plug to be connected into a VDE network.

       VDE    network    sockets    are    named    using    the    vde_plug_url   syntax,   i.e.
       module://specific_address.   e.g.  vde:///home/user/myswitch  or  vxvde://239.0.0.1.   The
       default  module  is  libvdeplug_vde(1) (connection to a vde_switch(1)) and can be omitted.
       e.g. /home/user/myswitch means vde:///home/user/myswitch

       vde_plug can have zero, one or two  vde_plug_url  arguments.   In  case  of  zero  or  one
       argument  the  network  communication  is converted in a byte stream. Packets from the VDE
       network are sent to stdout and bytes from stdin are converted into packets and injected in
       the  VDE network.  When a vde_plug_url is omitted or it is an empty argument ('') vde_plug
       tries to connect to a default network (defined by the user  in  $HOME/.vde2/default.switch
       otherwise vde:///run/vde.ctl or vde:///tmp/vde.ctl).

       This  tool  has  been designed to be used together with dpipe (1) to interconnect a second
       vde_plug to another switch, working as a virtual ethernet crossed cable  between  the  two
       switches.

       The command
              dpipe vde_plug = vde_plug vde:///tmp/vde2.ctl
       connects  two local switches: the former is using the standard control socket /tmp/vde.ctl
       (or /var/run/vde.ctl) while the latter is using /tmp/vde2.ctl.

       vde_plug creates a virtual cable between to VDE networks when two  vde_plug_url  arguments
       are present in the command line.  The previous command is equivalent to:
              vde_plug /tmp/vde.ctl /tmp/vde2.ctl

       The following example connects a vxvde network to a tap interfave
              vde_plug vxvde://239.1.2.3 tap://mytap

       The command
              dpipe vde_plug = ssh remote.machine.org vde_plug
       connects  two remote switches.  If for example the two vde_switches run as daemon and they
       are connected to tap interfaces a level 2 encrypted tunnel is established.

       While dpipe supports more complex vitrual network structures (e.g. including wirefilter(1)
       to emulate network conditions) vde_plug has been designed to provide simple syntax options
       to implement the most common virtual network scenarios.  It is possible to  use  an  equal
       sign  (=)  followed  by  a  command  and  its  optional  arguments  in place of the second
       vde_plug_url.  In this  case  the  packets  from/to  the  network  are  converted  into  a
       bidirectional  byte  stream  provided  as  stdin  and stdout to the command.  The previous
       command have the same effect of:
              vde_plug = ssh remote.machine.org vde_plug
       (the first vde_plug_url is omitted).

       This example:
              vde_plug vxvde://239.1.2.3 = ssh vde_plug tap://remotetap
       connects a vxvde network to a tap interface of a remote host.

       vde_plug can also be established as a login shell for users.  The following command  works
       as in the previous example
              vde_plug = ssh vdeuser@remote.machine.org vde_plug
       where  vdeuser  is  the user with vde_plug as standard shell.  All the remote accesses are
       logged by syslog at the beginning and at the end of each session and the IP  address  used
       are  logged  if vdeuser belongs to the vdeplug_iplog group.  Attempts to login without the
       command vde_plug at the end or to run on the remote host other commands but  vde_plug  are
       blocked and the violation is logged by syslog.

OPTIONS

       -d
       --daemon
              run as a daemon.

       -p PIDFILE
       --pidfile PIDFILE
              write the process id to the file PIDFILE

       -l
       --log  log START/STOP of vde_plug on syslog

       -L
       --iplog
              log  START/STOP of vde_plug and the IP addresses of hosts seen on the stream (or on
              the second vde_plug_url) on syslog.

       --port "portnum"
              Obsolete option, use the syntax of the libvdeplug_vde module instead, add the  port
              number  in square brackets suffix (e.g. vde://tmp/myswitch[10]).  It is possible to
              decide which port of the switch to use.  When this  option  is  not  specified  the
              switch assigns the first available unused port (if any).  It is possible to connect
              several cables in  the  same  switch  port:  in  this  way  all  this  cables  work
              concurrently.   It means that packet can result as duplicate but no ARP table loops
              are generated.   Is  useful  when  vde  is  used  for  mobility.  Several  physical
              interfaces   can  be  used  at  a  time  during  handoffs  to  prevent  hichups  in
              connectivity.  log START/STOP of vde_plug on syslog

       -g group
       --group group
              group ownership of the communication socket. For security when more want to share a
              switch it is better to use a unix group to own the comm sockets so that the network
              traffic cannot be sniffed.

       -m octal-mode
       --mod octal-mode
              octal chmod like permissions for the comm sockets

       -G -M
       --port2 --group2 --mod2
              These options, valid in the syntax  with  two  vde_plug_urls,  have  the  the  same
              meaning  of  -p -g -m.  The uppercase options or the long options with a trailing 2
              refer to the second vde_plug_url.

       -D DESCR
       --descr DESCR
              set the description of this connection to  DESCR  (e.g.  port/print  command  on  a
              vde_switch shows this description).

NOTICE

       Virtual  Distributed  Ethernet  is  not  related in any way with www.vde.com ("Verband der
       Elektrotechnik, Elektronik und  Informationstechnik"  i.e.  the  German  "Association  for
       Electrical, Electronic & Information Technologies").

SEE ALSO

       vde_switch(1),  vdeq(1), dpipe(1), libvdeplug_p2p.1, libvdeplug_udp.1, libvdeplug_vxlan.1,
       libvdeplug_tap.1, libvdeplug_vde.1, libvdeplug_vxvde.1.

AUTHOR

       VDE is a project by Renzo Davoli <renzo@cs.unibo.it>