Troubleshooting NWAM Network Configuration

The information in this section describes how to troubleshoot NWAM network configuration issues.

Monitoring the Current State of All Network Connections

The netadm command can be used with the show-events subcommand to listen for and display events that are being monitored by the NWAM daemon, nwamd. This subcommand provides useful information about events that are related to the configuration process for profiles and configuration objects, as they are configured by NWAM.

The syntax for the netadm show-events command is as follows:

netadm show-events [-v]

In the following example, the nwam show-events command is used with the -v option to display events in verbose mode:

$ netadm show-events -v
EVENT                    DESCRIPTION                                            
LINK_STATE               net0 -> state down                                     
OBJECT_STATE             ncu link:net0 -> state online*, interface/link is down 
OBJECT_STATE             ncu link:net0 -> state offline, interface/link is down 
OBJECT_STATE             ncu interface:net0 -> state online*, conditions for act 
OBJECT_STATE             ncu interface:net0 -> state offline, conditions for act
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 2004801                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 2004800                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004803                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state index 4 flags 0x0 address fe80::214:4fff: 
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004802                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state index 4 flags 0x0 address 129.156.235.229 
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004803                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004802                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004803                        
IF_STATE                 net0 -> state (0) flags 1004802         

Troubleshooting Network Interface Configuration Issues

The netadm list -x command is useful for determining why a network interface might not be configured correctly. This command displays the various entities that are configured by NWAM, their current state, and the reason why these entities are in that state.

For example, if a cable is unplugged, you can use the netadm list -x command to determine if the link state is offline and why, for example, “link is down.” Similarly, for duplicate address detection, the output of the netadm list -x command reveals that the physical link is online (up), but the IP interface is in a maintenance state. In this instance, the reason that is given is “Duplicate address detected.”

The following is an example of the output of the netadm list -x command:

$ netadm list -x
TYPE        PROFILE        STATE          AUXILIARY STATE
ncp         Automatic      online         active
ncu:phys    net0           offline        interface/link is down
ncu:ip      net0           offline        conditions for activation are unmet
ncu:phys    net1           offline*       need WiFi network selection
ncu:ip      net1           offline        conditions for activation are unmet
ncp         User           disabled       disabled by administrator
loc         Automatic      offline        conditions for activation are unmet
loc         NoNet          online         active
loc         office         offline        conditions for activation are unmet
$

After determining the reason that a link or interface is offline, you can proceed to correct the problem. In the case of a duplicate IP address, you must modify the static IP address that is assigned to the specified interface by using the netcfg command. For instructions, see Setting and Changing Property Values for a Profile. After you commit the changes, run the netadm list -x command again to check that the interface is now configured correctly, and that its state is displayed as online.

Another example of why an interface might not be configured correctly is if no known WLANs are available. In this case, the WiFi link's state would be displayed as offline, and the reason would be “need wifi selection". Or, if a WiFi selection was made, but a key is required, the reason would be “need wifi key".