To view the information that bootpd places in the bootreply, enable a broadcast bootreply by adding the ba tag to the client’s /etc/bootptab entry. Use the bootpquery command to emulate the client’s bootrequest:
bootpquery client_link_address -s servername
bootpqueryprints the reply it receives from the server, which allows you to examine the information supplied to the client. Remove the ba tag from the configuration entry after you have verified that the bootreply is correct.
Following are the symptoms, causes, and actions for bootpd problems.
Symptom:
The server’s system log file /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log does not contain any log messages from /usr/lbin/bootpd indicating that the server has started.
A ps -ef listing does not show a running /usr/lbin/bootpd daemon.
Cause:
The server may not be started or it may not be receiving the client’s bootrequest.
Action:
□ Make sure that the /etc/inetd.conf file is configured correctly as specified in the earlier sections.
□ Ensure that you have reconfigured inetd with the command inetd -c.
□ Check inetd’s logging in the /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log file to ensure that inetd is configured to start bootpd.
□ Verify that the server starts using the bootpquery command.
□ Check whether the client is on the same network as the BOOTP server. If the client is not on the same network, ensure that intervening BOOTP servers are configured to relay bootrequest broadcasts.
Symptom:
The system log file /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log contains one of the following messages:
hardware address not found: hardware_address IP address not found: ip_address
Cause:
bootpddoes not have an entry in /etc/bootptab for this client’s hardware address or IP address.
Action:
□ Check the system log for any indication of syntax errors for the client’s configuration entry. Correct the entry in the /etc/bootptab file and reboot the BOOTP client.
□ Ensure that the hardware address that you specified for the ha tag matches the hardware address that /usr/lbin/bootpd is unable to find. Correct the tag and reboot the BOOTP client.
□ Ensure the hardware type tag ht has the correct value for the client. For example, if you have specified ether but the client is reporting ieee in its bootrequest, bootpd rejects the request. Correct the tag and reboot the BOOTP client.
Symptom:
The system log file /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log contains the following message:
Cause:
The client specified filename as the boot file in its bootrequest, but bootpd could not find the file in the tftp directory.
Action:
□ Make sure that you have configured tftpd with the entry in /etc/passwd for the user tftp.
□ Ensure that the requested file is present in the tftp directory, which is usually the
/home/tftpdirdirectory or in the directory specified with the tftpd command. If not, place the file in the /home/tftpdir directory and reboot the BOOTP client. If the requested file exists in the directory, be sure it is readable by the user tftp. (See“Common tftpd Problems” (page 115).)
Symptom:
The system log /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log contains the following message:
cannot route reply to client's_IP_address
Cause:
The server cannot directly reach the IP address specified for the client.
Action:
□ Ensure you have specified the correct IP address for the client in the /etc/bootptab file. Correct the entry and reboot the BOOTP client.
□ If the server must reply directly to the client, it must reside on the same network or subnet as the client. If the client resides on another network, ensure that intervening servers are configured to relay the bootrequests.
□ Ensure that the IP address you have chosen for the client is a valid IP address for the server’s network.
Symptom:
The system log contains one or more of the following error messages:
duplicate hardware address: link_address bad host name: hostname
syntax error in entry for host hostname unknown symbol in entry for host hostname bad IP address for host hostname
bad subnet mask for host hostname bad time offset for host hostname
bad vendor magic cookie for host hostname bad reply broadcast address for host hostname
Cause:
Any of these error messages indicates errors in the configuration file entry for the client.
Action:
For details on the error message, see“Error Logging” (page 117). Correct the appropriate field for the entry in the /etc/bootptab file and reboot the BOOTP client. Then, use bootpquery to send a bootrequest to the client. Verify the system log file /var/adm/syslog/syslog.log to check if the server replies. At debug level 2 (see“Helpful Configuration Changes” (page 112)), bootpdlogs the following sequence of messages when it responds to a bootrequest:
request from hardware address link_address found ip_address hostname
vendor magic field is magic_cookie sending RFC1048-style reply
Symptom:
The client does not receive configuration information for the tags that pertain to RFC 1048 (BOOTP Vendor Information Extensions) vendor information:
bs = boot_file_size ds = domain_nameserver_addresses gw = gateway_addresses hn = hostname lg = log_server_addresses sm = subnet_mask to = time_offset Tnnn = generic_information
Cause:
Many RFC 1048 options are specified for the client’s configuration entry in the /etc/bootptab file. The BOOTP protocol allows only 64 bytes of vendor extension information. When such extended information is included in the bootreply, bootpd must also add a 4-byte vendor magic cookie to the bootreply, a 1-byte tag indicating the end of the vendor information, and a 1-byte or 2-byte tag for each field (depending on the format of the field) along with the value of the tag itself. The total size of the extended information for a client must not exceed 64 bytes.
Action:
Ensure that the configuration contains only the necessary information to boot the client. Verify that the BOOTP client contains only the necessary tags and that the tags are supported by the client.
For example, if the client supports only one name server address, you need not list three name server addresses with the ds tag. If the client does not support configuring its host name with the hn tag, you need not include the hn tag.