IPv6 Administration Guide

IPv6 Network Interface Configuration File

IPv6 uses the file /etc/hostname6.interface at start up to automatically define network interfaces in the same way IPv4 uses /etc/hostname.interface. A minimum of one /etc/hostname.* or /etc/hostname6.* file should exist on the local machine. The Solaris installation program creates these files for you. You can also add IPv6 interfaces manually, after Solaris installation.

In the file name, replace interface with the device name of the primary network interface.

The file name has the following syntax:


hostname.interface
hostname6.interface

Interface has the following syntax:


dev[.Module[.Module ...]]PPA

Dev

A network interface device. The device can be a physical network interface, such as le or qe, or a logical interface, such as a tunnel. See Solaris Tunneling Interfaces for IPv6 for more details.

Module

The list of one or more streams modules to be pushed onto the device when the device is plumbed. 

PPA

The physical point of attachment. 

The syntax [.[.]] is also accepted.

The following list shows examples of valid file names:


hostname6.le0
hostname.ip.tun0
hostname.ip6.tun0
hostname6.ip6to4tun0
hostname6.ip.tun0
hostname6.ip6.tun0

IPv6 Interface Configuration File Entry

The autoconfiguration of interfaces in IPv6 enables a node to compute its own link-local address. This address is based on the node's link-layer address, that is, its Ethernet (MAC) address. Consequently, the interface configuration file for IPv6 might not have an entry. In this instance, the startup scripts configure an interface. The node then “learns” of other addresses and other prefixes through the neighbor discovery daemon, in.ndpd.

If you require static addresses for an interface, use the ifconfig utility. Consequently, the address or host name is stored in /etc/hostname6.interface (or /etc/hostname.interface). The content is passed to ifconfig when the interface is configured.

In this instance, the file contains only one entry. The entry is the host name or IP address that is associated with the network interface. For example, suppose smc0 is the primary network interface for a machine that is called ahaggar. The /etc/hostname6.* file for the interface would have the name /etc/hostname6.smc0. The file would contain the entry ahaggar.

The networking startup script examines the number of interfaces and the existence of the /etc/inet/ndpd.conf file to start routing daemons and packet forwarding. See How to Configure a Solaris IPv6 Router.