Socket
[Core Netlink API]

Handle representing a netlink socket. More...

Allocation



struct nl_handle * nl_handle_alloc (void)
 Allocate new netlink socket handle.
struct nl_handle * nl_handle_alloc_cb (struct nl_cb *cb)
 Allocate new socket handle with custom callbacks.
void nl_handle_destroy (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Destroy netlink handle.

Sequence Numbers



void nl_disable_sequence_check (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Disable sequence number checking.
unsigned int nl_socket_use_seq (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Use next sequence number.

Source Idenficiation



uint32_t nl_socket_get_local_port (struct nl_handle *handle)
void nl_socket_set_local_port (struct nl_handle *handle, uint32_t port)
 Set local port of socket.

Group Subscriptions



int nl_socket_add_membership (struct nl_handle *handle, int group)
 Join a group.
int nl_socket_drop_membership (struct nl_handle *handle, int group)
 Leave a group.
void nl_join_groups (struct nl_handle *handle, int groups)
 Join multicast groups (deprecated).

Peer Identfication



uint32_t nl_socket_get_peer_port (struct nl_handle *handle)
void nl_socket_set_peer_port (struct nl_handle *handle, uint32_t port)

File Descriptor



int nl_socket_get_fd (struct nl_handle *handle)
int nl_socket_set_nonblocking (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Set file descriptor of socket handle to non-blocking state.
void nl_socket_enable_msg_peek (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Enable use of MSG_PEEK when reading from socket.
void nl_socket_disable_msg_peek (struct nl_handle *handle)
 Disable use of MSG_PEEK when reading from socket.

Callback Handler



struct nl_cb * nl_socket_get_cb (struct nl_handle *handle)
void nl_socket_set_cb (struct nl_handle *handle, struct nl_cb *cb)
int nl_socket_modify_cb (struct nl_handle *handle, enum nl_cb_type type, enum nl_cb_kind kind, nl_recvmsg_msg_cb_t func, void *arg)
 Modify the callback handler associated to the socket.

Utilities



int nl_set_buffer_size (struct nl_handle *handle, int rxbuf, int txbuf)
 Set socket buffer size of netlink handle.
int nl_set_passcred (struct nl_handle *handle, int state)
 Enable/disable credential passing on netlink handle.
int nl_socket_recv_pktinfo (struct nl_handle *handle, int state)
 Enable/disable receival of additional packet information.

Detailed Description

The socket is represented in a structure called the netlink handle, besides the socket, it stores various settings and values related to the socket. Every socket handle has a mandatory association with a set of callbacks which can be used to modify the behaviour when sending/receiving data from the socket.

Socket Attributes
  • Local Port: The local port is a netlink port identifying the local endpoint. It is used as source address for outgoing messages and will be addressed in replies. It must therefore be unique among all userspace applications. When the socket handle is allocated, a unique port number is generated automatically in the form of 22 bits Process Identifier + 10 bits Arbitary Number. Therefore the library is capable of generating 1024 unique local port numbers for every process. If more sockets are required, the application has to manage port numbers itself using nl_socket_set_local_port().
  • Group Subscriptions: A socket can subscribe to any number of multicast groups. It will then receive a copy of all messages sent to one of the groups. This method is mainly used for event notification. Prior to kernel 2.6.14, the group subscription was done via bitmask which limited to a total number of groups of 32. With 2.6.14 a new method was added based on continous identifiers which supports an arbitary number of groups. Both methods are supported, see nl_join_groups() respectively nl_socket_add_membership() and nl_socket_drop_membership().
  • Peer Port: The peer port is a netlink port identifying the peer's endpoint. If no peer port is specified, the kernel will try to autobind to a socket of the specified netlink family automatically. This is very common as typically only one listening socket exists on the kernel side. The peer port can be modified using nl_socket_set_peer_port().
  • Peer Groups:
  • File Descriptor: The file descriptor of the socket, it can be accessed via nl_socket_get_fd() to change socket options or monitor activity using poll()/select().
  • Protocol: Once connected, the socket is bound to stick to one netlink family. This field is invisible, it is maintained automatically. (See nl_connect())
  • Next Sequence Number: Next available sequence number to be used for the next message being sent out. (Initial value: UNIX time when the socket was allocated.) Sequence numbers can be used via nl_socket_use_seq().
  • Expected Sequence Number: Expected sequence number in the next message received from the socket. (Initial value: Equal to next sequence number.)
  • Callbacks Configuration:
1) Creating the netlink handle
 struct nl_handle *handle;

 // Allocate and initialize a new netlink handle
 handle = nl_handle_alloc();

 // Use nl_socket_get_fd() to fetch the file description, for example to
 // put a socket into non-blocking i/o mode.
 fcntl(nl_socket_get_fd(handle), F_SETFL, O_NONBLOCK);
2) Group Subscriptions
 // Event notifications are typically sent to multicast addresses which
 // represented by groups. Join a group to f.e. receive link notifications.
 nl_socket_add_membership(handle, RTNLGRP_LINK);
6) Cleaning up
 // Finally destroy the netlink handle
 nl_handle_destroy(handle);

Function Documentation

struct nl_handle* nl_handle_alloc ( void   )  [read]
Returns:
Newly allocated netlink socket handle or NULL.

Definition at line 206 of file socket.c.

References nl_cb_alloc().

00207 {
00208         struct nl_cb *cb;
00209         struct nl_handle *sk;
00210 
00211         cb = nl_cb_alloc(default_cb);
00212         if (!cb) {
00213                 nl_errno(ENOMEM);
00214                 return NULL;
00215         }
00216 
00217         /* will increment cb reference count on success */
00218         sk = __alloc_handle(cb);
00219 
00220         nl_cb_put(cb);
00221 
00222         return sk;
00223 }

struct nl_handle* nl_handle_alloc_cb ( struct nl_cb *  cb  )  [read]
Parameters:
cb Callback handler

The reference to the callback handler is taken into account automatically, it is released again upon calling nl_handle_destroy().

Returns:
Newly allocted socket handle or NULL.

Definition at line 234 of file socket.c.

00235 {
00236         if (cb == NULL)
00237                 BUG();
00238 
00239         return __alloc_handle(cb);
00240 }

void nl_handle_destroy ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle.

Definition at line 246 of file socket.c.

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_free().

00247 {
00248         if (!handle)
00249                 return;
00250 
00251         if (handle->h_fd >= 0)
00252                 close(handle->h_fd);
00253 
00254         if (!(handle->h_flags & NL_OWN_PORT))
00255                 release_local_port(handle->h_local.nl_pid);
00256 
00257         nl_cb_put(handle->h_cb);
00258         free(handle);
00259 }

void nl_disable_sequence_check ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle.

Disables checking of sequence numbers on the netlink handle. This is required to allow messages to be processed which were not requested by a preceding request message, e.g. netlink events.

Note:
This function modifies the NL_CB_SEQ_CHECK configuration in the callback handle associated with the socket.

Definition at line 285 of file socket.c.

References NL_CB_CUSTOM, NL_CB_SEQ_CHECK, and nl_cb_set().

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_alloc().

00286 {
00287         nl_cb_set(handle->h_cb, NL_CB_SEQ_CHECK,
00288                   NL_CB_CUSTOM, noop_seq_check, NULL);
00289 }

unsigned int nl_socket_use_seq ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle

Uses the next available sequence number and increases the counter by one for subsequent calls.

Returns:
Unique serial sequence number

Definition at line 300 of file socket.c.

00301 {
00302         return handle->h_seq_next++;
00303 }

void nl_socket_set_local_port ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
uint32_t  port 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle
port Local port identifier

Assigns a local port identifier to the socket. If port is 0 a unique port identifier will be generated automatically.

Definition at line 325 of file socket.c.

00326 {
00327         if (port == 0) {
00328                 port = generate_local_port(); 
00329                 handle->h_flags &= ~NL_OWN_PORT;
00330         } else  {
00331                 if (!(handle->h_flags & NL_OWN_PORT))
00332                         release_local_port(handle->h_local.nl_pid);
00333                 handle->h_flags |= NL_OWN_PORT;
00334         }
00335 
00336         handle->h_local.nl_pid = port;
00337 }

int nl_socket_add_membership ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  group 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle
group Group identifier

Joins the specified group using the modern socket option which is available since kernel version 2.6.14. It allows joining an almost arbitary number of groups without limitation.

Make sure to use the correct group definitions as the older bitmask definitions for nl_join_groups() are likely to still be present for backward compatibility reasons.

Returns:
0 on sucess or a negative error code.

Definition at line 361 of file socket.c.

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_add().

00362 {
00363         int err;
00364 
00365         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00366                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00367 
00368         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_NETLINK, NETLINK_ADD_MEMBERSHIP,
00369                          &group, sizeof(group));
00370         if (err < 0)
00371                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(NETLINK_ADD_MEMBERSHIP) "
00372                                        "failed");
00373 
00374         return 0;
00375 }

int nl_socket_drop_membership ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  group 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle
group Group identifier

Leaves the specified group using the modern socket option which is available since kernel version 2.6.14.

See also:
nl_socket_add_membership
Returns:
0 on success or a negative error code.

Definition at line 388 of file socket.c.

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_add().

00389 {
00390         int err;
00391 
00392         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00393                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00394 
00395         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_NETLINK, NETLINK_DROP_MEMBERSHIP,
00396                          &group, sizeof(group));
00397         if (err < 0)
00398                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(NETLINK_DROP_MEMBERSHIP) "
00399                                        "failed");
00400 
00401         return 0;
00402 }

void nl_join_groups ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  groups 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle.
groups Bitmask of groups to join.

This function defines the old way of joining multicast group which has to be done prior to calling nl_connect(). It works on any kernel version but is very limited as only 32 groups can be joined.

Definition at line 413 of file socket.c.

00414 {
00415         handle->h_local.nl_groups |= groups;
00416 }

int nl_socket_set_nonblocking ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink socket
Returns:
0 on success or a negative error code.

Definition at line 454 of file socket.c.

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_alloc().

00455 {
00456         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00457                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00458 
00459         if (fcntl(handle->h_fd, F_SETFL, O_NONBLOCK) < 0)
00460                 return nl_error(errno, "fcntl(F_SETFL, O_NONBLOCK) failed");
00461 
00462         return 0;
00463 }

void nl_socket_enable_msg_peek ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink socket

Definition at line 469 of file socket.c.

00470 {
00471         handle->h_flags |= NL_MSG_PEEK;
00472 }

void nl_socket_disable_msg_peek ( struct nl_handle *  handle  ) 
Parameters:
handle Netlink socket

Definition at line 478 of file socket.c.

00479 {
00480         handle->h_flags &= ~NL_MSG_PEEK;
00481 }

int nl_socket_modify_cb ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
enum nl_cb_type  type,
enum nl_cb_kind  kind,
nl_recvmsg_msg_cb_t  func,
void *  arg 
)
Parameters:
handle netlink handle
type which type callback to set
kind kind of callback
func callback function
arg argument to be passwd to callback function
See also:
nl_cb_set

Definition at line 514 of file socket.c.

References nl_cb_set().

Referenced by nl_cache_mngr_alloc().

00517 {
00518         return nl_cb_set(handle->h_cb, type, kind, func, arg);
00519 }

int nl_set_buffer_size ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  rxbuf,
int  txbuf 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle.
rxbuf New receive socket buffer size in bytes.
txbuf New transmit socket buffer size in bytes.

Sets the socket buffer size of a netlink handle to the specified values rxbuf and txbuf. Providing a value of 0 assumes a good default value.

Note:
It is not required to call this function prior to nl_connect().
Returns:
0 on sucess or a negative error code.

Definition at line 541 of file socket.c.

Referenced by nl_connect().

00542 {
00543         int err;
00544 
00545         if (rxbuf <= 0)
00546                 rxbuf = 32768;
00547 
00548         if (txbuf <= 0)
00549                 txbuf = 32768;
00550 
00551         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00552                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00553         
00554         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_SOCKET, SO_SNDBUF,
00555                          &txbuf, sizeof(txbuf));
00556         if (err < 0)
00557                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(SO_SNDBUF) failed");
00558 
00559         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_SOCKET, SO_RCVBUF,
00560                          &rxbuf, sizeof(rxbuf));
00561         if (err < 0)
00562                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(SO_RCVBUF) failed");
00563 
00564         handle->h_flags |= NL_SOCK_BUFSIZE_SET;
00565 
00566         return 0;
00567 }

int nl_set_passcred ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  state 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle
state New state (0 - disabled, 1 - enabled)
Returns:
0 on success or a negative error code

Definition at line 576 of file socket.c.

00577 {
00578         int err;
00579 
00580         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00581                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00582 
00583         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_SOCKET, SO_PASSCRED,
00584                          &state, sizeof(state));
00585         if (err < 0)
00586                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(SO_PASSCRED) failed");
00587 
00588         if (state)
00589                 handle->h_flags |= NL_SOCK_PASSCRED;
00590         else
00591                 handle->h_flags &= ~NL_SOCK_PASSCRED;
00592 
00593         return 0;
00594 }

int nl_socket_recv_pktinfo ( struct nl_handle *  handle,
int  state 
)
Parameters:
handle Netlink handle
state New state (0 - disabled, 1 - enabled)
Returns:
0 on success or a negative error code

Definition at line 603 of file socket.c.

00604 {
00605         int err;
00606 
00607         if (handle->h_fd == -1)
00608                 return nl_error(EBADFD, "Socket not connected");
00609 
00610         err = setsockopt(handle->h_fd, SOL_NETLINK, NETLINK_PKTINFO,
00611                          &state, sizeof(state));
00612         if (err < 0)
00613                 return nl_error(errno, "setsockopt(NETLINK_PKTINFO) failed");
00614 
00615         return 0;
00616 }


Generated on 14 Oct 2013 for libnl by  doxygen 1.6.1