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BABELD(8)		    System Manager's Manual		     BABELD(8)

NAME
       babeld -	ad-hoc network routing daemon

SYNOPSIS
       babeld option...	 [ -- ]	interface...

DESCRIPTION
       Babel is	a loop-avoiding	distance-vector	routing	protocol roughly based
       on  DSDV	and AODV, but with provisions for link cost estimation and re-
       distribution of routes from other routing protocols.

       While it	is optimised for wireless mesh networks, Babel will also  work
       efficiently on wired networks.

OPTIONS
       -V     Display babeld's version and quit.

       -m multicast-address
	      Specify  the link-local multicast	address	to be used by the pro-
	      tocol.  The default is ff02:0:0:0:0:0:1:6.

       -p port
	      Specify the UDP port number to be	used by	the protocol.  The de-
	      fault is 6696.

       -S state-file
	      Set the name of the file used for	preserving long-term  informa-
	      tion  between invocations	of the babeld daemon.  If this file is
	      deleted, the daemon will run in passive mode for 3 minutes  when
	      it  is  next started, and	other hosts might initially ignore it.
	      The default is /var/lib/babel-state.

       -h hello-interval
	      Specify the interval in seconds at which scheduled hello packets
	      are sent on wireless interfaces.	The default is 4 seconds.

       -H wired-hello-interval
	      Specify the interval in seconds at which scheduled hello packets
	      are sent on wired	interfaces.  The default is 4 seconds.

       -M half-time
	      Specify the half-time in seconds of the exponential  decay  used
	      for  smoothing metrics for performing route selection; the value
	      0	disables smoothing.  The default is 4s.

       -k priority
	      Specify the priority value used when installing routes into  the
	      kernel.  The default is 0.

       -A priority
	      Allow  duplicating external routes when their kernel priority is
	      at least priority.  Do not use this option unless	you know  what
	      you are doing, as	it can cause persistent	route flapping.

       -l     Use  IFF_RUNNING	(carrier  sense)  when	determining  interface
	      availability.

       -w     Don't optimise wired links, assume all interfaces	 are  wireless
	      unless explicitly	overridden in the configuration	file.

       -s     Do  not  perform	split-horizon  processing on wired interfaces.
	      Split-horizon is not performed on	wireless interfaces.

       -r     Use a random  router-id.	 The  default  is  to  use  persistent
	      router-ids  derived from the MAC address of the first interface,
	      which is easier to debug	and  more  reliably  prevents  routing
	      loops  but  may sometimes	cause a	node to	be unreachable for 120
	      seconds just after boot.

       -d level
	      Debug level.  A value of 1 requests  a  routing  table  dump  at
	      every  iteration	through	 the daemon's main loop.  A value of 2
	      additionally requests tracing every message sent or received.  A
	      value of 3 additionally dumps all	interactions with the OS  ker-
	      nel.  The	default	is 0.

       -g port,	-g path
	      Set  up  a local configuration server on port port or at path in
	      read-only	mode.  The protocol is described in the	section	 Local
	      Configuration Protocol below.

       -G port,	-G path
	      Set  up  a local configuration server on port port or at path in
	      read-write mode.	This allows any	local user to change  babeld's
	      configuration, and may therefore be a security issue.

       -t table
	      Use  the	given  kernel routing table for	routes inserted	by ba-
	      beld.

       -T table
	      Export routes from the given kernel routing table. This  can  be
	      specified	 multiple  times  in  order to export routes from more
	      than one table.

       -c filename
	      Specify the name of the configuration file.  This	 flag  can  be
	      repeated multiple	times.	The default is /etc/babeld.conf.

       -C statement
	      Specify a	configuration statement	directly on the	command	line.

       -D     Daemonise	at startup.

       -L logfile
	      Specify  a  file	to  log	random ``how do	you do?'' messages to.
	      This defaults to standard	 error	if  not	 daemonising,  and  to
	      /var/log/babeld.log otherwise.

       -I pidfile
	      Specify a	file to	write our process id to, use no	pidfile	if set
	      to the empty string.  The	default	is /var/run/babeld.pid.

       interface...
	      The list of interfaces on	which the protocol should operate.

CONFIGURATION FILE FORMAT
       The configuration file is a sequence of lines each of which specifies a
       global  option,	an  interface specification or a filtering rule.  Com-
       ments are introduced by an octothorp ``#'' and terminate	at the end  of
       the line.

   Global options
       protocol-group group
	      This  specifies  the  link-local multicast address to be used by
	      the protocol, and	is equivalent to the command-line option -m.

       protocol-port port
	      This specifies the UDP port number to be used by	the  protocol,
	      and is equivalent	to the command-line option -p.

       kernel-priority priority
	      This  specifies  the  priority value used	when installing	routes
	      into the kernel, and is equivalent to  the  command-line	option
	      -k.

       reflect-kernel-metric {true|false}
	      Reflect route metrics as kernel priorities.  The priority	effec-
	      tively used is kernel-priority + metric.

       allow-duplicates	priority
	      This allows duplicating external routes when their kernel	prior-
	      ity  is  at  least  priority.  Do	not use	this option unless you
	      know what	you are	doing, as it can cause persistent route	 flap-
	      ping.

       random-id {true|false}
	      This specifies whether to	use a random router-id,	and is equiva-
	      lent to the command-line option -r.

       ipv6-subtrees {true|false}
	      This  specifies  whether to use native source-specific IPv6 for-
	      warding rather than multiple routing  tables.   The  default  is
	      chosen automatically depending on	the kernel version.

       debug level
	      This  specifies  the  debugging  level, and is equivalent	to the
	      command-line option -d.

       local-port port
	      This specifies the TCP port on which babeld will listen for con-
	      nections from a configuration client in read-only	mode,  and  is
	      equivalent to the	command-line option -g.

       local-port-readwrite port
	      This specifies the TCP port on which babeld will listen for con-
	      nections	from a configuration client in read-write mode,	and is
	      equivalent to the	command-line option -G.	 This allows any local
	      user to change babeld's configuration, and may  therefore	 be  a
	      security issue.

       local-path path
	      This  specifies  the filesystem path to a	socket on which	babeld
	      will listen for connections from a configuration client in read-
	      only mode, and is	equivalent to the command-line option -g.

       local-path-readwrite path
	      This specifies the filesystem path to a socket on	 which	babeld
	      will listen for connections from a configuration client in read-
	      write  mode,  and	 is  equivalent	to the command-line option -G.
	      Any user with write access to that socket	will be	able to	change
	      babeld's configuration.

       export-table table
	      This specifies the kernel	routing	table to use  for  routes  in-
	      serted  by  babeld, and is equivalent to the command-line	option
	      -t.

       import-table table
	      This specifies a kernel routing table from which routes are  re-
	      distributed  by babeld, and can be specified multiple times with
	      a	cumulative effect.  This is equivalent to the command-line op-
	      tion -T.

       kernel-check-interval seconds
	      This specifies the interval between  two	kernel	routing	 table
	      dumps.   The  default is 300s (5 minutes).  This may be set to 0
	      in order to never	perform	periodic kernel	dumps.

       shutdown-delay-ms milliseconds
	      During shutdown we first notify neighbours of our	imminent shut-
	      down by sending route retractions, wait for the specified	number
	      of milliseconds and then flush kernel routes. This  ensures  any
	      inflight	traffic	 is  still properly forwarded. You may want to
	      ensure the delay is appropriate for the maximum  delay  path  in
	      your network. Setting this to zero is permissible.

       link-detect {true|false}
	      This  specifies whether to use carrier sense for determining in-
	      terface availability, and	is equivalent to the command-line  op-
	      tion -l.

       smoothing-half-life seconds
	      This specifies the half-life in seconds of the exponential decay
	      used  for	 smoothing metrics for performing route	selection, and
	      is equivalent to the command-line	option -M.

       daemonise {true|false}
	      This specifies whether to	daemonize at startup, and  is  equiva-
	      lent to the command-line option -D.

       skip-kernel-setup {true|false}
	      If  this	flag  is set, no kernel	(sysctl) setup is performed on
	      startup, and it is assumed that enabling	forwarding,  disabling
	      redirects	 and disabling the reverse-path	filter is performed by
	      other means.  This can be	useful when  running  in  environments
	      where  system permissions	prevent	setting	kernel parameters, for
	      instance without root permissions	or inside a Linux container.

       router-id id
	      Specify the router-id explicitly,	as  a  modified	 EUI-64	 or  a
	      MAC-48  address.	 If  two  nodes	 have  the same	router-id, bad
	      things will happen.  Don't use this option unless	you know  what
	      you are doing.

       state-file filename
	      This  specifies  the  name of the	file used for preserving long-
	      term information between invocations of the babeld  daemon,  and
	      is equivalent to the command-line	option -S.

       log-file	filename
	      This  specifies the name of the file used	to log random messages
	      to, and is equivalent to the command-line	option -L.

       pid-file	filename
	      This specifies the name of the file to which babeld  writes  out
	      its process id, and is equivalent	to the command-line option -I.

       first-rule-priority priority
	      This  specifies  smallest	 (highest)  rule  priority  used  with
	      source-specific routes.  The default is 100.

       key id id type {hmac-sha256|blake2s128} value value
	      Configure	a key for use with the key interface option.  The type
	      is one of	hmac-sha256 or blake2s128.  The	value is a hexadecimal
	      string (up to 64 bytes for  hmac-sha256,	up  to	32  bytes  for
	      blake2s128).

   Interface configuration
       An interface is configured by a line with the following format:

	      interface	name [parameter...]

       where name is the name of the interface (something like eth0).  The de-
       fault  value  of	 an  interface parameter can be	specified changed by a
       line of the form

	      default [parameter...]

       Each parameter can be one of:

       type {auto|wired|wireless|tunnel}

	      The default is auto unless the -w	command-line flag  was	speci-
	      fied.

       link-quality {true|false|auto}
	      This  specifies  whether	link quality estimation	should be per-
	      formed on	this interface.	 The default is	to perform link	 qual-
	      ity estimation on	wireless interfaces only.

       split-horizon {true|false|auto}
	      This  specifies  whether	to perform split-horizon processing on
	      this interface.  The default is to  perform  split-horizon  pro-
	      cessing on on wired interfaces, unless the -s flag was set.

       rxcost cost
	      This defines the cost of receiving frames	on the given interface
	      under ideal conditions (no packet	loss); how this	relates	to the
	      actual  cost  used for computing metrics of routes going through
	      this interface depends on	whether	link quality estimation	is be-
	      ing done.	 The default is	256 if the interface is	wireless,  and
	      96 otherwise.

       hello-interval interval
	      This defines the interval	between	hello packets sent on this in-
	      terface.	 The  default is specified with	the -h and -H command-
	      line flags.

       update-interval interval
	      This defines the interval	between	full routing table dumps  sent
	      on  this	interface;  since  Babel  uses	triggered  updates and
	      doesn't count to infinity, this can be set  to  a	 fairly	 large
	      value,  unless significant packet	loss is	expected.  The default
	      is four times the	hello interval.

       enable-timestamps {true|false}
	      Enable sending timestamps	with each Hello	and IHU	message	in or-
	      der to compute RTT values.  The default is true for  tunnel  in-
	      terfaces,	and false otherwise.

       unicast {true|false}
	      Send multiple copies of TLVs other than Hellos to	all neighbours
	      rather  than  sending a single multicast packet.	The default is
	      false.

       rfc6126-compatible {true|false}
	      Disable some features that are incompatible with RFC  6126  (the
	      older  version  of  the Babel protocol), such as source-specific
	      routing and RTT estimation over unicast.	The default is false.

       rtt-decay decay
	      This specifies the decay factor for the exponential moving aver-
	      age of RTT samples, in units of 1/256.  Must be  between	1  and
	      256,  inclusive.	Higher values discard old samples faster.  The
	      default is 42.

       rtt-min rtt
	      This specifies the minimum RTT, in milliseconds,	starting  from
	      which  we	 increase the cost to a	neighbour. The additional cost
	      is linear	in (rtt	- rtt-min).  The default is 10 ms.

       rtt-max rtt
	      This specifies the maximum RTT, in milliseconds, above which  we
	      don't increase the cost to a neighbour. The default is 120 ms.

       max-rtt-penalty cost
	      This  specifies the maximum cost added to	a neighbour because of
	      RTT, i.e.	when the RTT is	higher or equal	than rtt-max.  The de-
	      fault is 96 if the interface is of type tunnel, and 0 otherwise.

       v4-via-v6 {true|false}
	      Whether to announce IPv4 routes through this interface even when
	      there is no IPv4 address.	 The default  depends  on  the	kernel
	      version.

       probe-mtu {true|false}
	      Pad  all	packets	 containing a Hello TLV	to the MTU and disable
	      fragmentation.  This will	avoid establishing adjacencies	across
	      links  with a mis-configured MTU,	at the cost of slightly	higher
	      network usage.

       key id Enable HMAC security on this interface, and use the key id.

       accept-bad-signatures {true|false}
	      Accept packets with no  signature	 or  an	 incorrect  signature.
	      This only	has an effect if a key was configured on an interface.
	      The default is false.

   Filtering rules
       A filtering rule	is defined by a	single line with the following format:

	      filter selector...  action

       Filter  specifies the filter to which this entry	will be	added, and can
       be one of in (applied to	routes learned	from  Babel  neighbours),  out
       (applied	 to  routes  announced to Babel	neighbours), redistribute (ap-
       plied to	routes redistributed from the kernel), or install (applied  to
       routes installed	into the kernel).

       Each  selector specifies	the conditions under which the given statement
       matches.	 It can	be one of

       ip prefix
	      This entry only applies to routes	in the given prefix.

       eq plen
	      This entry only applies to routes	with a prefix length equal  to
	      plen.

       le plen
	      This  entry  only	applies	to routes with a prefix	length less or
	      equal to plen.

       ge plen
	      This entry only applies to routes	with a prefix  length  greater
	      or equal to plen.

       src-ip prefix
	      This  entry  only	 applies to routes with	a source prefix	in the
	      given prefix.

       src-eq plen
	      This entry only applies to routes	with a	source	prefix	length
	      equal to plen.

       src-le plen
	      This  entry  only	 applies to routes with	a source prefix	length
	      less or equal to plen.

       src-ge plen
	      This entry only applies to routes	with a	source	prefix	length
	      greater or equal to plen.

       neigh address
	      This  entry only applies to routes learned from a	neighbour with
	      link-local address address.

       id id  This entry only applies to routes	originated by  a  router  with
	      router-id	id.

       proto p
	      This  entry  only	 applies to kernel routes with kernel protocol
	      number p.	 If neither proto nor local is specified,  this	 entry
	      applies to all non-local kernel routes with a protocol different
	      from "boot".

       local  This entry only applies to local addresses.

       if interface
	      For an input filter, this	specifies the interface	over which the
	      route  is	learned.  For an output	filter,	this specifies the in-
	      terface over which this route is advertised.  For	a redistribute
	      statement, this specifies	the interface  over  which  the	 route
	      forwards packets.

       Action  specifies  the  action to be taken when this entry matches.  It
       can have	one of the following values:

       allow  Allow this route,	without	changing its metric  (or  setting  its
	      metric to	0 in case of a redistribute filter).

       deny   Ignore this route.

       metric value
	      For an input or output filter, allow this	route after increasing
	      its  metric  by  value.  For a redistribute filter, redistribute
	      this route with metric value.

       src-prefix prefix
	      For a redistribute filter, set the source	prefix of  this	 route
	      to prefix.

       table table
	      In  an  install filter, specify the kernel routing table to use.
	      For source-specific routes, this only works reliably  for	 IPv6,
	      and only when ipv6-subtrees is true.

       pref-src	ip
	      Specify  the  preferred  source  address to use with this	route.
	      Only useful in an	install	filter.

       If action is not	specified, it defaults to allow.

       By default, babeld redistributes	all  local  addresses,	and  no	 other
       routes.	In order to make sure that only	the routes you specify are re-
       distributed, you	should include the line

	      redistribute local deny

       as the last line	in your	configuration file.

LOCAL CONFIGURATION INTERFACE
       If  babeld is invoked with the flag -g, it accepts TCP connections from
       local clients on	the given port and address ::1 (the IPv6 localhost ad-
       dress), or on the given UNIX-domain socket path if the argument	starts
       with  `/'.   When a client connects, babeld replies with	BABEL followed
       with the	supported version of the local	configuration  protocol	 (cur-
       rently  1.0).   This  is	 followed with a number	of informational lines
       (version	etc.), terminated by ok.  The client can then  send  requests,
       one  per	 line.	To each	request, babeld	replies	with one or more lines
       of data terminated by one of ok,	no, or bad.

       The following requests are currently defined:

        any configuration file	directive, including interface;

        flush interface;

        dump;

        monitor and unmonitor;

        quit.

EXAMPLES
       You can participate in a	Babel network by simply	running

	      #	babeld wlan0

       where wlan0 is the name of your wireless	interface.

       In order	to gateway between multiple interfaces,	just list them all  on
       the command line:

	      #	babeld wlan0 eth0 sit1

       On  an access point, you'll probably want to redistribute some external
       routes into Babel:

	      #	babeld \
		  -C 'redistribute metric 256' \
		  wlan0

       or, if you want to constrain the	routes that you	redistribute,

	      #	babeld \
		  -C 'redistribute proto 11 ip ::/0 le 64 metric 256' \
		  -C 'redistribute proto 11 ip 0.0.0.0/0 le 24 metric 256' \
		  wlan0

   Source-specific routing
       If your want to redistribute kernel routes as  source-specific  to  the
       network,	with the 2001:DB8:0:1::/64 prefix:

	      redistribute src-prefix 2001:DB8:0:1::/64

       For more	information about source-specific routing, please see

	      Matthieu Boutier and Juliusz Chroboczek.	Source-sensitive rout-
	      ing.  In Proc. IFIP Networking 2015.  2015.

       available online	at

	      http://arxiv.org/pdf/1403.0445v4.pdf

FILES
       /etc/babeld.conf
	      The default location of the configuration	file.

       /var/lib/babel-state
	      The default location of the file storing long-term state.

       /var/run/babeld.pid
	      The default location of the pid file.

       /var/log/babeld.log
	      The default location of the log file.

SIGNALS
       SIGUSR1
	      Dump  Babel's  routing  tables  to standard output or to the log
	      file.

       SIGUSR2
	      Check interfaces and kernel routes right now,  then  reopen  the
	      log file.

SECURITY
       Babel is	a completely insecure protocol:	any attacker able to inject IP
       packets with a link-local source	address	can disrupt the	protocol's op-
       eration.	  This	is  no different from unsecured	neighbour discovery or
       ARP.

       Usage of	the -G flag allows any user logged on the local	host to	change
       babeld's	configuration.

       Since Babel uses	link-local IPv6	packets	only, there is no need to  up-
       date firewalls to allow forwarding of Babel protocol packets.  If local
       filtering is being done,	UDP datagrams to the port used by the protocol
       should  be allowed.  As Babel uses unicast packets in some cases, it is
       not enough to just allow	packets	destined to Babel's multicast address.

SEE ALSO
       routed(8), route6d(8), zebra(8),	ahcpd(8).

AUTHOR
       Juliusz Chroboczek.

								     BABELD(8)

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