Chapter 16. Network Interfaces
Under Red Hat Enterprise Linux, all network communications occur between configured software interfaces and physical networking devices connected to the system.
The configuration files for network interfaces are located in the
/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ directory. The scripts used to activate and deactivate these network interfaces are also located here. Although the number and type of interface files can differ from system to system, there are three categories of files that exist in this directory:
- Interface configuration files
- Interface control scripts
- Network function files
The files in each of these categories work together to enable various network devices.
This chapter explores the relationship between these files and how they are used.
16.1. Network Configuration Files
Before delving into the interface configuration files, let us first itemize the primary configuration files used in network configuration. Understanding the role these files play in setting up the network stack can be helpful when customizing a Red Hat Enterprise Linux system.
The primary network configuration files are as follows:
-
/etc/hosts - The main purpose of this file is to resolve host names that cannot be resolved any other way. It can also be used to resolve host names on small networks with no
DNSserver. Regardless of the type of network the computer is on, this file should contain a line specifying theIPaddress of the loopback device (127.0.0.1) aslocalhost.localdomain. For more information, refer to thehosts(5)man page. -
/etc/resolv.conf - This file specifies the
IPaddresses ofDNSservers and the search domain. Unless configured to do otherwise, the network initialization scripts populate this file. For more information about this file, refer to theresolv.conf(5)man page. -
/etc/sysconfig/network - This file specifies routing and host information for all network interfaces. It is used to contain directives which are to have global effect and not to be interface specific. For more information about this file and the directives it accepts, refer to Section 32.1.22, “
/etc/sysconfig/network”. -
/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-<interface-name> - For each network interface, there is a corresponding interface configuration script. Each of these files provide information specific to a particular network interface. Refer to Section 16.2, “Interface Configuration Files” for more information on this type of file and the directives it accepts.
Warning
The
/etc/sysconfig/networking/ directory is used by the Network Administration Tool (system-config-network) and its contents should not be edited manually. Using only one method for network configuration is strongly encouraged, due to the risk of configuration deletion.
For more information about configuring network interfaces using the Network Administration Tool, refer to Chapter 17, Network Configuration
