Broadcast Mode

The broadcast mode binding process works as follows:

1. ypbind must be started with the broadcast option set (broadcast).

2. ypbind issues an RPC broadcast in search of an NIS server.

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   Note –

   In order to support such clients, it is necessary to have an NIS server on each subnet requiring NIS service.

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3. ypbind initiates binding to the first server that responds to the broadcast.

4. ypbind tells the client process which server to talk to. The client then sends the request directly to the server.

5. The ypserv daemon on the NIS server handles the request by consulting the appropriate map.

6. ypserv sends the requested information back to the client.

Normally, once a client is bound to a server it stays bound to that server until something causes it to change. For example, if a server goes out of service, the clients it served will then bind to new servers.

To find out which NIS server is currently providing service to a specific client, use the following command.

%ypwhich machinename

Where machinename is the name of the client. If no machine name is mentioned, ypwhich defaults to the local machine (that is, the machine on which the command is run).