Inetd

Daemons & inetd
Refs: Chapter 13
Netprog: daemons and inetd 1

Daemons
A daemon is a process that:
– runs in the background
– not associated with any terminal
• output doesn't end up in another
session.
• terminal generated signals (^C)
aren't received.
Unix and Daemons
• Unix systems typically have many
daemon processes.
• Most servers run as a daemon

process.

Common Daemons
• Web server (httpd)
• Mail server (sendmail)
• SuperServer (inetd)
• System logging (syslogd)
• Print server (lpd)
• router process (routed, gated)

Daemon Output
• No terminal - must use something else:
– file system
– central logging facility
• Syslog is often used - provides central

repository for system logging.

Initialize a daemons
• How to force a process to run in the
background?
– just fork() and have the parent exit.
• There are a number of ways to
disassociate a process from any
controlling terminal.
– Call setsid() and then fork() again.

Daemon initialization
• Daemons should close all unnecessary
descriptors
– often including stdin, stdout,
stderr.
• Get set up for using syslog
– Call openlog()
• Often change working directory.

Syslog service
• syslogd daemon provides system
logging services to "clients".
• Simple API for "clients"

– A library provided by O.S.

Centralized Administration
• A system administrator can control
logging functions by specifying:
– where messages should go
– what kinds of messages are important
– what can be ignored

syslogd
Filesystem
Unix domain socket
/var/log/messages
/dev/log
UDP socket
port 514 syslogd Console
/dev/klog
Remote syslogd
/etc/syslog.conf
Sending a message to
syslogd
• Standard programming interface provided by
syslog() function:
#include <syslog.h>
void syslog( int priority,
const char *message,
. . . );
• Works like printf()

Syslog client/server
• Clients send messages to local syslogd
through a unix domain (datagram)
socket.
• All the details are handled by
syslog()
• syslogd sends/receives messages
to/from other hosts using UDP.

Syslog messages
• Think of syslog as a server that accepts
messages.
• Each message includes a number of fields,
including:
– a level indicating the importance (8 levels)
• LOG_EMERG highest priority
• LOG_ALERT
• LOG_CRIT
• LOG_ERR
• LOG_WARNING
• LOG_NOTICS
• LOG_INFO
• LOG_DEBUG lowest priority

Syslog message fields (cont.)
• a facility that indicates the type of process
that sent the message:
– LOG_MAIL, LOG_AUTH, LOG_USER,
LOG_KERN, LOG_LPR, LOG_LOCAL0. . .
• A text string.
Message: (level,facility,string)

/etc/syslog.conf
• Syslogd reads a configuration file that
specifies how various messages should
be handled (where they should go).
• The sysadmin controls all logged

messages by editing this file.

Examples
• Sysadmin could set LOG_EMERG
messages to be sent to the console
• low priority messages from lpr could be

thrown away.
• Medium priority message from the mail

server could be saved in a file.
Example: Daytime Server
• inetd/daytimetcpsrv2.c
• Run your program as background process
– daemon_init()
• Output log msg
– syslog(LOG_ERR|LOG_USER, "connection from
%s", Sock_ntop(cliaddr, len));
• Find out where do the log msgs go
– /etc/syslog.conf
• Log file
– /var/adm/message

Too many daemons?
• There can be many servers running as
daemons - and idle most of the time.
• Much of the startup code is the same for
these servers.
• Most of the servers are asleep most of
the time, but use up space in the
process table.

• Most Unix systems provide a
“SuperServer” that solves the problem:
– executes the startup code required by a
bunch of servers.
– Waits for incoming requests destined for
the same bunch of servers.
– When a request arrives - starts up the right
server and gives it the request.

inetd
• The SuperServer is named inetd. This
single daemon creates multiple sockets
and waits for (multiple) incoming
requests.
• inetd typically uses select to watch
multiple sockets for input.
• When a request arrives, inetd will fork
and the child process handles the client.

inetd children
• The child process closes all
unnecessary sockets.
• The child dup’s the client socket to

descriptors 0,1 and 2 (stdin, stdout,
stderr).
• The child exec’s the real server

program, which handles the request and
exits.
inetd based servers
• Servers that are started by inetd
assume that the socket holding the
request is already established
(descriptors 0,1 or 2).
• TCP servers started by inetd don’t call

accept, so they must call getpeername
if they need to know the address of the
client.
/etc/inetd.conf
• inetd reads a configuration file that
lists all the services it should handle.
• inetd creates a socket for each listed

service, and adds the socket to a
fd_set given to select().

inetd service specification
• For each service, inetd needs to know:
– the port number and transport protocol
– wait/nowait flag.
– login name the process should run as.
– pathname of real server program.
– command line arguments to server
program.

example /etc/inetd.conf
service-name socket-type protocol wait-flag login-name server-program server-program-argument
# comments start with #
echo stream tcp nowait root internal
echo dgram udp wait root internal
chargen stream tcp nowait root internal
chargen dgram udp wait root internal
ftp stream tcp nowait root /usr/sbin/ftpd ftpd -l
telnet stream tcp nowait root /usr/sbin/telnetd telnetd
finger stream tcp nowait root /usr/sbin/fingerd fingerd
# Authentication
auth stream tcp nowait nobody /usr/sbin/in.identd
in.identd -l -e -o
# TFTP
tftp dgram udp wait root /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -s
/tftpboot

wait/nowait
• Specifying WAIT means that inetd
should not look for new clients for the
service until the child (the real server)
has terminated.
• TCP servers usually specify nowait -
this means inetd can start multiple
copies of the TCP server program -
providing concurrency!
TCP and wait/nowait
TCP servers usually specify nowait.
This means inetd can start multiple copies

of the TCP server program - providing
concurrency!

UDP & wait/nowait
• Most UDP services run with inetd told to
wait until the child server has died.

UDP Servers that wait/nowait
• Some UDP servers hang out for a while,
handling multiple clients before exiting.
• inetd was told to wait – so it ignores

the socket until the UDP server exits.

Super inetd
• Some versions of inetd have server
code to handle simple services such as
echo server,
daytime server,
chargen,
…

Servers
• Servers that are expected to deal with
frequent requests are typically not run
from inetd: mail, web, NFS.
• Many servers are written so that a

command line option can be used to run
the server from inetd.

xinetd
• Some versions of Unix provide a service
very similar to inetd called xinetd.
– configuration scheme is different
– basic idea (functionality) is the same…

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Daemons & inetd

Netprog: daemons and inetd 1

• Most servers run as a daemon

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Netprog: daemons and inetd 4

• Syslog is often used - provides central

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• Often change working directory.

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• Simple API for "clients"

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Netprog: daemons and inetd 9

• Works like printf()

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• The sysadmin controls all logged

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• low priority messages from lpr could be

• Medium priority message from the mail

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• The child dup’s the client socket to

• The child exec’s the real server

• TCP servers started by inetd don’t call

• inetd creates a socket for each listed

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This means inetd can start multiple copies

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• inetd was told to wait – so it ignores

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• Many servers are written so that a

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