# $Id: README,v 1.5 2007/08/16 14:55:10 ksb Exp $

What is netlint?

Netlint is designed to report subtle errors in the configuration of
many networked hosts.  These might relate to:
	interface duplex/speed
	IP address errors
	route errors
	resolver errors (dead nameservers)
	ntp errors (poor network time protocol picks)
	documentation errors (resolved with peg's interface.cl)

The netlint data flow

The account on the "netlint" host alias accpets e-mail messages from
client hosts as they arrive.  Each host should send a "netlint report"
at least once a week (we pick monday morning).  We stagger the report
times over an hour (to avoid a surge).

The mail is caught at netlint's .forward
	"|/home/sac1/netlint/bin/update"
The source to that script is in the master source under:
	/usr/msrc/local/libexec/netlint

After all the reports are in for a week a report can be sent to
an e-mail list/new group, and a web page can (should) be updated to
reflect the present open issues.  See the makefile in netlint's
home directory, and netlint's crontab.


After reading the report an Admin should close-the-loop on any issue
netlint has found.  Part of that might be to:
	configure a switch port for the correct duplex/speed/name
	configure a host's interface for the correct duplex/speed
	re-IP an interface
	update routes
	push a new resolver list (msrc:/usr/msrc/etc/resolv.conf)
	push a new ntp peer list
	update peg's links and interface index
	update netlint itself
	fix the report generator

The run to compare the netlint loop to the peg loopo run
	make compare

The goal is to have netlint report nothing for each host, next week.


Other features:

In netlint's bin you'll find several other scripts:

compareinterface:
	called my "make compare" to compare peg's interface.cl to
	the list of hosts reporting netlint.

mkinterface:
	Called by compareinterface for each host in the list.

pull-lint:
	Used when sendmail is not available (yet) to get the first
	netlint base-line for a host.

spiff:
	A version of diff from the Dark Ages that shows were in a
	line the difference is (for the visually challenged).

--
ksb, petef