PONG(1) MISCELLANEOUS NETWORK SUPPORT COMMANDS PONG(1)
PENIX OPERATING SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION PENIX
NAME
pong - net-broadcast restart message
SYNOPSIS
pong [ - ] adnpv [ count ] [ delay ] [ path ]
DESCRIPTION
Pong broadcasts a general `Hey, I'm here!' message to any
other machines on the network. The exact contents of the
message packet depend on whether the machine in question is a
Dom_Master or a Sub_Server. Pong waits for acknowledgement
from, by default, one machine; it can be specified to wait for
responses from up to 255 machines before resuming. Which is a
pretty pointless feature when you think about it, but it was
piss-easy to implement, so we did.
FUNCTION LETTERS
a acknowledge-count. If not specified, this defaults to one.
It can be set to zero, in case the machine is not on a
network... but if the machine isn't on a network, then
there really isn't any point in PONGing in the first place,
is there? The upper limit is 255, which is also the limit
of Dom/Sub relationships allowed for any single Net_Clique
of machines.
d Delay. If specified, the machine will wait for this number
of ticks before returning a -1 errorcode and exiting. If
not specified, the machine will wait until it receives a
response from another machine, unto eternity (or the next
reset).
n Notify. This notifies the users that a Pong has just been
issued. If any of them are logged in as the rooted(c)
user, they may receive responses from other machines, such
as `Phwooaaaaar!', `Who did THAT?', `Jesus, that STINKS!'
and (most frequently) `Ahhhh, SHADDUP!'
p Specify alternate packet. Generally, the packet sent by
pong is determined by the machine's Net-status (either Dom
or Sub); mild variations are available, but on no account
should a Sub_Server attempt to issue a Dom_Master packet,
because it makes the actual Dom feel inadequate. This
option requires the specification of a file which contains
the alternate packet to use.
v Verbose mode. If this option is absent, you will see no
response to the command after execution. Otherwise, the
machine will echo its pong-text on the console and any
responses to it from other machines, along with their
net-addresses.
EXAMPLES
To send an alternate packet structure, display responses and
resume after four responses have been detected:
pong apv 4 /uselss/all_kindsa_stuff/pongpacket2
PONGing net:
[ sub:harry_as_a_boy>>Galoot_Cologne 03F21AC4E2D1 ]
[ ]
[ hi there, this is sub:harry_as_a_boy>>Galoot_Cologne,]
[ i was down for an hour there because my operators ]
[ wanted to try out the cfts command, but i'm back ]
[ up now! did anyone miss me? :-> ]
[ ]
waiting for reponses:
*** from sub:kanttner>>jefferson:
[ go away harry you smelly little nonentity ]
*** from dom:slick>>jefferson:
[ piss off. ]
*** from sub:Mammy_Nun>>galoot_cologne:
[ we heard you de FIRSE time, okay? ]
*** from dom:rhonda>>galoot_cologne:
[ HARRYYYY, you are nothing but a WORRRRRRRRRRRRM! ]
FILES
/uselss/all_kindsa_stuff Repository for alternate message
packets. The default is called
`default'.
/uselss/little_black_book
Current LBB network list, containing
binary addresses of the other members
of the Clique. Note: this file can
only be updated by the Clique's Dom.
This also contains the addresses of
any other Cliques on the network.
SEE ALSO
bollx(1), stuffio(2), doobrie(9), brap(12), yoohoo(2),
LBB_lookup(1), cftn(2) LBB_init(3), LBB_re_init(1), LBB_kick(1)
BUGS
If there are no entries in /uselss/little_black_book, or if the
machine is not part of a Dom/Sub network (i.e. stand-alone), the
command will enter a tight recursive loop, gradually consuming
more and more CPU time until the system either stops completely
or until one of the caenobite processes gets annoyed and
terminates it. This can be dangerous, as the caenobite
processes are none too discriminating and may take out one or
two other processes along the way. They seem to have a fondness
for anything running on the system console, like the rooted(c)
session.
The n option can be slow.
If there are Dom-ID packets in the /uselss/all_kindsa_stuff
directory of a Sub machine, there are no mechanisms in place to
ensure that the operator does not PONG the net with a Dom
packet. This will upset the carefully-orchestrated hierarchy of
the net, causing the Subs to have to choose between two Doms.
As soon as the Subs see a Dom-ID packet from a machine, they
assume that it IS a Dom, and a moebius-hoffstaedter loop arising
from a Sub trying to satisfy conflicting requests from two Doms
becomes a possibility. This can bring down the entire net, and
thus should be avoided, unless the net needs to be brought down
quickly, in which case refer to cftn(2).
There is still no way selectively to follow symbolic links.
And to be brutally honest, we don't think there will be in the
immediate future.
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Sunburne Computer, Inc. 9 October 1991
© nikolai@ariel.ucs.unimelb.edu.au. Last update: Sunday, June 16, 1996
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