bootptab File Format

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Purpose

Default configuration database for the Internet Boot Protocol server (bootpd).

Description

The bootpd configuration file contains entries for clients that use the bootpd daemon to get boot information. This file may be modified using the System Management Interface Tool (SMIT) to configure a Diskless client or the file may be modified manually.

The client host information consists of case-sensitive tag symbols used to represent host parameters. These host parameter declarations are separated by : (colon). For example: 
HostName:Tg=Value:Tg=Value:Tg=Value
where:
HostName
Specifies the name of a BOOTP client. This must always be the first field in the entry.

The bootpd daemon attempts to send the entire host name as it is specified in this field. However, if the host name does not fit into the reply packet, the name is shortened to the host field (up to the first period, if present) and tried again. An arbitrarily truncated host name is never sent. If nothing reasonable fits, nothing is sent.

Guidelines and Restrictions

  • Blank lines and lines beginning with # are ignored when the file is read.
  • Host entries are separated from one another by new lines; a single host entry may be extended over multiple lines if the lines end with a backslash (\). However, individual host entries must not exceed 1024 characters.
  • Lines in the configuration file may be longer than 80 characters.
  • Tags can be displayed in any order, with the following exceptions:
    • The host name must be the first field in an entry, and
    • The hardware type must precede the hardware address.