ifconfig alias: File Exists

[JohnsoBS at vicksburg.navy.mil]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: TM4525 at aol.com [mailto:TM4525 at aol.com]
> Sent: Sunday, October 24, 2004 5:13 PM
> To: scrappy at hub.org
> Cc: questions at freebsd.org
> Subject: Re: ifconfig alias: File Exists
> 
> 
> In a message dated 10/19/04 3:51:33 PM Eastern Daylight Time, 
> scrappy at hub.org 
> writes:
> >> # ifconfig fxp0 alias 200.46.204.9
> >> ifconfig: ioctl (SIOCAIFADDR): File exists
> >> 
> >> when I know for a fact that it hasn't been configured?
> >
> > you should use a netmask of 255.255.255.255 for ipv4 aliases.
> >
> >     ifconfig fxp0 alias 200.46.204.9 netmask 255.255.255.255
> 
> >Is that new?  You are right, that fixed it, but didn't think 
> I had to do 
> >that before :(
> You get it because the guy who maintains ifconfig didn't have 
> the foresight
> to realize the "alias" should imply a host mask, and also 
> that the guy who
> coded the kernel code didn't think that assuming a host mask was 
> reasonable.
> 
> Welcome to open source. Love it and live with it.
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> 

To assume makes an ass out of u and me. Ok, that out of the way, the config
you assume should be coded into ifconfig and kernel is not 100% going to be
used all the time. In fact I have multiple nets and have multiple netmask
assigned on the one machine. If you actually READ "man ifconfig" it states
that this should be set to what you assume it should be. It helps when
people don't attack things they don't fully understand cause for many it
might be a person's first view at what you are bashing. Unfortunately also,
many people aren't smart enough to get a second opinion or to try beyond
there first try or someone person's like yourselfs comments.