ROTARIES(5)

NAME
rotaries - Annex rotary database

DESCRIPTION
The rotaries database contains entries describing the port rotaries for any Annexes on the network. The file, config.annex is stored in the directory /usr/spool/erpcd/bfs contains all the rotary definition information. See the Annex Network Administrator's Guide for more information on the Annex port server and port rotaries.

Entries in the rotaries file follow these conventions:

    Lines beginning with ``#'' are comments.

    Blank lines are ignored.

    Lines in the file have a maximum of 132 characters.

    Entries can be continued on the next line by preceding the newline with ``\''.

    The following characters have special meanings: : + @ / , ; \ #

    Any special character except ``,'' can be included in a rotary name by quoting it with ``\''.

    Space and tab characters can be used anywhere except in a rotary name to improve readability. Keywords must be delimited by space or tab characters.

Entries have the following syntax:

    rotary_name: [ keyword ... ] ports@location [ /auxport ] [ +auxipaddr ] [ ; ports@location ] ...

Rotary_name is an ASCII string terminated by a colon (:). The maximum length is 32 characters. The string cannot contain space, tab, or comma (,) characters. It can contain other special characters if they are escaped with a backslash.

Ports is a list of the serial ports in the rotary. It can be a number, a comma-separated list of numbers, two numbers separated by a dash (indicated an inclusive range), or a combination of these three formats.

Location identifies the Annex that has the given ports as a rotary. It can be either a hostname or an Internet address in dot notation. The location can be supplemented with an auxiliary TCP port number separated from the Annex identifier by a slash (/). The Annex will respond to requests to connect at this port in addition to responding to the well-known TELNET port. The number must be in the range 6000 through 6999. Finally, the location can also be given an auxiliary Internet address (as a hostname or in dot notation) separated by a plus sign (+). The Annex will listen for requests to connect on this auxiliary Internet address at the well-known TELNET port and automatically connect to the given rotary.

Additional ports@location entries can be given separated by a semi-colon (;) to indicate a rotary on another Annex with the same name.

Keywords is a space separated list of optional features. Currently supported are:

ps=visible
ps=invisible
    Determines whether the rotary name is displayed by the port server when a user is connected to the TELNET port of the Annex's primary Internet address. Rotaries without auxiliary Internet addresses or auxiliary TCP ports are always visible. ps=visible is the default.

telnet
raw
binary
    Determines the protocol used with the rotary. raw provides a data stream with no character processing and is intended primarily for program access to the rotary. telnet is the default, ti configures telnet as the protocol between the port and the device. The setting protocol=binary configures a binary rotary. The Annex negotiates with the host to operate in telnet binary mode in both directions.

direct_camp_on=ask
direct_camp_on=always
direct_camp_on=never
    Determines how port camp-on is handled for rotaries with an auxiliary Internet address or auxiliary TCP port. Camp-on is the process of waiting for the next free port in the rotary, if all of its ports are busy when a connection is attempted. ask indicates that the user is asked to camp-on. When always is selected, the user will get the message indicating camp-on has occurred. If never is used, then the TELNET connection will be refused when the rotary is full. direct_camp_on=ask is the default except for raw rotaries, in which case never is the default.

select=first
select=next
    The keyword select= defines the order in which the rotary selects ports. If select=first, the rotary selects the first available port in the port_set; select=next directs the rotary to keep track of the last port that was selected, and to start its search from that point.

EXAMPLES
#
# sample rotary for 2400 bps modems on the network
#
modem_2400: 1,2,3@63.42; 16,1,4 @ annex01; \
	15@63.42;	12, 1, 4, 5, 6@ annex02
#
# "milking"-machine Annex: a non-networked host's serial ports are
# connected to Annex 63.38 on ports 1-8 and 16.  An auxiliary IP
# address 63.104 has been setup so that users can TELNET directly
# to the rotary.
#
milker: 1-8,16@63.38+63.104
HostC: ps=invisible 1,4,6-9@annex01+132.245.6.80
strip-record: protocol=raw direct_camp_on=always \
3,8@132.245.6.32/6300
modems: select=next 1-5@annex02

SEE ALSO
erpcd(8).
Annex Network Administrator's Guide.