7 .TH ovs\-ofctl 8 "January 2011" "Open vSwitch" "Open vSwitch Manual"
11 ovs\-ofctl \- administer OpenFlow switches
15 [\fIoptions\fR] \fIcommand \fR[\fIswitch\fR] [\fIargs\fR\&...]
20 program is a command line tool for monitoring and administering
21 OpenFlow switches. It can also show the current state of an OpenFlow
22 switch, including features, configuration, and table entries.
24 .SS "OpenFlow Switch Management Commands"
26 These commands allow \fBovs\-ofctl\fR to monitor and administer an OpenFlow
27 switch. It is able to show the current state of a switch, including
28 features, configuration, and table entries.
30 Most of these commands take an argument that specifies the method for
31 connecting to an OpenFlow switch. The following connection methods
35 .so lib/vconn-active.man
38 This is short for \fBunix:\fIfile\fR, as long as \fIfile\fR does not
42 This is short for \fBunix:@RUNDIR@/\fIbridge\fB.mgmt\fR, as long as
43 \fIbridge\fR does not contain a colon.
45 .IP [\fItype\fB@\fR]\fIdp\fR
46 Attempts to look up the bridge associated with \fIdp\fR and open as
47 above. If \fItype\fR is given, it specifies the datapath provider of
48 \fIdp\fR, otherwise the default provider \fBsystem\fR is assumed.
53 Prints to the console information on \fIswitch\fR, including
54 information on its flow tables and ports.
57 \fBstatus \fIswitch\fR [\fIkey\fR]
58 Prints to the console a series of key-value pairs that report the
59 status of \fIswitch\fR. If \fIkey\fR is specified, only the key-value
60 pairs whose key names begin with \fIkey\fR are printed. If \fIkey\fR is
61 omitted, all key-value pairs are printed.
64 \fBdump\-tables \fIswitch\fR
65 Prints to the console statistics for each of the flow tables used by
69 \fBdump\-ports \fIswitch\fR [\fInetdev\fR]
70 Prints to the console statistics for network devices associated with
71 \fIswitch\fR. If \fInetdev\fR is specified, only the statistics
72 associated with that device will be printed. \fInetdev\fR can be an
73 OpenFlow assigned port number or device name, e.g. \fBeth0\fR.
76 \fBmod\-port \fIswitch\fR \fInetdev\fR \fIaction\fR
77 Modify characteristics of an interface monitored by \fIswitch\fR.
78 \fInetdev\fR can be referred to by its OpenFlow assigned port number or
79 the device name, e.g. \fBeth0\fR. The \fIaction\fR may be any one of the
84 Enables the interface. This is equivalent to ``ifconfig up'' on a Unix
88 Disables the interface. This is equivalent to ``ifconfig down'' on a Unix
92 When a \fIflood\fR action is specified, traffic will be sent out this
93 interface. This is the default posture for monitored ports.
96 When a \fIflood\fR action is specified, traffic will not be sent out
97 this interface. This is primarily useful to prevent loops when a
98 spanning tree protocol is not in use.
103 \fBdump\-flows \fIswitch \fR[\fIflows\fR]
104 Prints to the console all flow entries in \fIswitch\fR's
105 tables that match \fIflows\fR. If \fIflows\fR is omitted, all flows
106 in the switch are retrieved. See \fBFlow Syntax\fR, below, for the
107 syntax of \fIflows\fR. The output format is described in
108 \fBTable Entry Output\fR.
111 \fBdump\-aggregate \fIswitch \fR[\fIflows\fR]
112 Prints to the console aggregate statistics for flows in
113 \fIswitch\fR's tables that match \fIflows\fR. If \fIflows\fR is omitted,
114 the statistics are aggregated across all flows in the switch's flow
115 tables. See \fBFlow Syntax\fR, below, for the syntax of \fIflows\fR.
116 The output format is descrbed in \fBTable Entry Output\fR.
118 .IP "\fBqueue\-stats \fIswitch \fR[\fIport \fR[\fIqueue\fR]]"
119 Prints to the console statistics for the specified \fIqueue\fR on
120 \fIport\fR within \fIswitch\fR. Either of \fIport\fR or \fIqueue\fR
121 or both may be omitted (or equivalently specified as \fBALL\fR). If
122 both are omitted, statistics are printed for all queues on all ports.
123 If only \fIqueue\fR is omitted, then statistics are printed for all
124 queues on \fIport\fR; if only \fIport\fR is omitted, then statistics
125 are printed for \fIqueue\fR on every port where it exists.
128 \fBadd\-flow \fIswitch flow\fR
129 Add the flow entry as described by \fIflow\fR to the \fIswitch\fR's
130 tables. The flow entry is in the format described in \fBFlow Syntax\fR,
134 \fBadd\-flows \fIswitch file\fR
135 Add flow entries as described in \fIfile\fR to \fIswitch\fR's
136 tables. Each line in \fIfile\fR is a flow entry in the format
137 described in \fBFlow Syntax\fR, below.
140 \fBmod\-flows \fIswitch flow\fR
141 Modify the actions in entries from the \fIswitch\fR's tables
142 that match \fIflow\fR. When invoked with the \fB\-\-strict\fR option,
143 wildcards are not treated as active for matching purposes. See
144 \fBFlow Syntax\fR, below, for the syntax of \fIflows\fR.
147 \fBdel\-flows \fIswitch \fR[\fIflow\fR]
148 Deletes entries from the \fIswitch\fR's tables that match
149 \fIflow\fR. When invoked with the \fB\-\-strict\fR option, wildcards are
150 not treated as active for matching purposes. If \fIflow\fR is
151 omitted and the \fB\-\-strict\fR option is not used, all flows in the
152 switch's tables are removed. See \fBFlow Syntax\fR, below, for the
153 syntax of \fIflows\fR.
155 .IP "\fBsnoop \fIswitch\fR"
156 Connects to \fIswitch\fR and prints to the console all OpenFlow
157 messages received. Unlike other \fBovs\-ofctl\fR commands, if
158 \fIswitch\fR is the name of a bridge, then the \fBsnoop\fR command
159 connects to a Unix domain socket named
160 \fB@RUNDIR@/\fIbridge\fB.snoop\fR. \fBovs\-vswitchd\fR listens on
161 such a socket for each bridge and sends to it all of the OpenFlow
162 messages sent to or received from its configured OpenFlow controller.
163 Thus, this command can be used to view OpenFlow protocol activity
164 between a switch and its controller.
166 When a switch has more than one controller configured, only the
167 traffic to and from a single controller is output. If none of the
168 controllers is configured as a master or a slave (using a Nicira
169 extension to OpenFlow), then a controller is chosen arbitrarily among
170 them. If there is a master controller, it is chosen; otherwise, if
171 there are any controllers that are not masters or slaves, one is
172 chosen arbitrarily; otherwise, a slave controller is chosen
173 arbitrarily. This choice is made once at connection time and does not
174 change as controllers reconfigure their roles.
176 If a switch has no controller configured, or if
177 the configured controller is disconnected, no traffic is sent, so
178 monitoring will not show any traffic.
180 .IQ "\fBmonitor \fIswitch\fR [\fImiss-len\fR]"
181 Connects to \fIswitch\fR and prints to the console all OpenFlow
182 messages received. Usually, \fIswitch\fR should specify a connection
183 named on \fBovs\-openflowd\fR(8)'s \fB\-l\fR or \fB\-\-listen\fR command line
186 If \fImiss-len\fR is provided, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR sends an OpenFlow ``set
187 configuration'' message at connection setup time that requests
188 \fImiss-len\fR bytes of each packet that misses the flow table. Open vSwitch
189 does not send these and other asynchronous messages to an
190 \fBovs\-ofctl monitor\fR client connection unless a nonzero value is
191 specified on this argument. (Thus, if \fImiss\-len\fR is not
192 specified, very little traffic will ordinarily be printed.)
194 This command may be useful for debugging switch or controller
197 .SS "OpenFlow Switch and Controller Commands"
199 The following commands, like those in the previous section, may be
200 applied to OpenFlow switches, using any of the connection methods
201 described in that section. Unlike those commands, these may also be
202 applied to OpenFlow controllers.
205 \fBprobe \fItarget\fR
206 Sends a single OpenFlow echo-request message to \fItarget\fR and waits
207 for the response. With the \fB\-t\fR or \fB\-\-timeout\fR option, this
208 command can test whether an OpenFlow switch or controller is up and
212 \fBping \fItarget \fR[\fIn\fR]
213 Sends a series of 10 echo request packets to \fItarget\fR and times
214 each reply. The echo request packets consist of an OpenFlow header
215 plus \fIn\fR bytes (default: 64) of randomly generated payload. This
216 measures the latency of individual requests.
219 \fBbenchmark \fItarget n count\fR
220 Sends \fIcount\fR echo request packets that each consist of an
221 OpenFlow header plus \fIn\fR bytes of payload and waits for each
222 response. Reports the total time required. This is a measure of the
223 maximum bandwidth to \fItarget\fR for round-trips of \fIn\fR-byte
228 Some \fBovs\-ofctl\fR commands accept an argument that describes a flow or
229 flows. Such flow descriptions comprise a series
230 \fIfield\fB=\fIvalue\fR assignments, separated by commas or white
231 space. (Embedding spaces into a flow description normally requires
232 quoting to prevent the shell from breaking the description into
235 Flow descriptions should be in \fBnormal form\fR. This means that a
236 flow may only specify a value for an L3 field if it also specifies a
237 particular L2 protocol, and that a flow may only specify an L4 field
238 if it also specifies particular L2 and L3 protocol types. For
239 example, if the L2 protocol type \fBdl_type\fR is wildcarded, then L3
240 fields \fBnw_src\fR, \fBnw_dst\fR, and \fBnw_proto\fR must also be
241 wildcarded. Similarly, if \fBdl_type\fR or \fBnw_proto\fR (the L3
242 protocol type) is wildcarded, so must be \fBtp_dst\fR and
243 \fBtp_src\fR, which are L4 fields. \fBovs\-ofctl\fR will warn about
244 flows not in normal form.
246 The following field assignments describe how a flow matches a packet.
247 If any of these assignments is omitted from the flow syntax, the field
248 is treated as a wildcard; thus, if all of them are omitted, the
249 resulting flow matches all packets. The string \fB*\fR or \fBANY\fR
250 may be specified to explicitly mark any of these fields as a wildcard.
251 (\fB*\fR should be quoted to protect it from shell expansion.)
253 .IP \fBin_port=\fIport_no\fR
254 Matches physical port \fIport_no\fR. Switch ports are numbered as
255 displayed by \fBovs\-ofctl show\fR.
257 .IP \fBdl_vlan=\fIvlan\fR
258 Matches IEEE 802.1q Virtual LAN tag \fIvlan\fR. Specify \fB0xffff\fR
259 as \fIvlan\fR to match packets that are not tagged with a Virtual LAN;
260 otherwise, specify a number between 0 and 4095, inclusive, as the
261 12-bit VLAN ID to match.
263 .IP \fBdl_vlan_pcp=\fIpriority\fR
264 Matches IEEE 802.1q Priority Code Point (PCP) \fIpriority\fR, which is
265 specified as a value between 0 and 7, inclusive. A higher value
266 indicates a higher frame priority level.
268 .IP \fBdl_src=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
269 .IQ \fBdl_dst=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
270 Matches an Ethernet source (or destination) address specified as 6
271 pairs of hexadecimal digits delimited by colons
272 (e.g. \fB00:0A:E4:25:6B:B0\fR).
274 .IP \fBdl_type=\fIethertype\fR
275 Matches Ethernet protocol type \fIethertype\fR, which is specified as an
276 integer between 0 and 65535, inclusive, either in decimal or as a
277 hexadecimal number prefixed by \fB0x\fR (e.g. \fB0x0806\fR to match ARP
280 .IP \fBnw_src=\fIip\fR[\fB/\fInetmask\fR]
281 .IQ \fBnw_dst=\fIip\fR[\fB/\fInetmask\fR]
282 When \fBdl_type\fR is 0x0800 (possibly via shorthand, e.g. \fBip\fR
283 or \fBtcp\fR), matches IPv4 source (or destination) address \fIip\fR,
284 which may be specified as an IP address or host name
285 (e.g. \fB192.168.1.1\fR or \fBwww.example.com\fR). The optional
286 \fInetmask\fR allows restricting a match to an IPv4 address prefix.
287 The netmask may be specified as a dotted quad
288 (e.g. \fB192.168.1.0/255.255.255.0\fR) or as a CIDR block
289 (e.g. \fB192.168.1.0/24\fR).
291 When \fBdl_type=0x0806\fR or \fBarp\fR is specified, matches the
292 \fBar_spa\fR or \fBar_tpa\fR field, respectively, in ARP packets for
295 When \fBdl_type\fR is wildcarded or set to a value other than 0x0800
296 or 0x0806, the values of \fBnw_src\fR and \fBnw_dst\fR are ignored
297 (see \fBFlow Syntax\fR above).
299 .IP \fBnw_proto=\fIproto\fR
300 When \fBip\fR or \fBdl_type=0x0800\fR is specified, matches IP
301 protocol type \fIproto\fR, which is specified as a decimal number
302 between 0 and 255, inclusive (e.g. 1 to match ICMP packets or 6 to match
305 When \fBipv6\fR or \fBdl_type=0x86dd\fR is specified, matches IPv6
306 header type \fIproto\fR, which is specified as a decimal number between
307 0 and 255, inclusive (e.g. 58 to match ICMPv6 packets or 6 to match
308 TCP). The header type is the terminal header as described in the
309 \fBDESIGN\fR document.
311 When \fBarp\fR or \fBdl_type=0x0806\fR is specified, matches the lower
312 8 bits of the ARP opcode. ARP opcodes greater than 255 are treated as
315 When \fBdl_type\fR is wildcarded or set to a value other than 0x0800,
316 0x0806, or 0x86dd, the value of \fBnw_proto\fR is ignored (see \fBFlow
319 .IP \fBnw_tos=\fItos\fR
320 Matches IP ToS/DSCP or IPv6 traffic class field \fItos\fR, which is
321 specified as a decimal number between 0 and 255, inclusive. Note that
322 the two lower reserved bits are ignored for matching purposes.
324 When \fBdl_type\fR is wildcarded or set to a value other than 0x0800,
325 0x0806, or 0x86dd, the value of \fBnw_tos\fR is ignored (see \fBFlow
328 .IP \fBtp_src=\fIport\fR
329 .IQ \fBtp_dst=\fIport\fR
330 When \fBdl_type\fR and \fBnw_proto\fR specify TCP or UDP, \fBtp_src\fR
331 and \fBtp_dst\fR match the UDP or TCP source or destination port
332 \fIport\fR, respectively. which is specified as a decimal number
333 between 0 and 65535, inclusive (e.g. 80 to match packets originating
336 When \fBdl_type\fR and \fBnw_proto\fR take other values, the values of
337 these settings are ignored (see \fBFlow Syntax\fR above).
339 .IP \fBicmp_type=\fItype\fR
340 .IQ \fBicmp_code=\fIcode\fR
341 When \fBdl_type\fR and \fBnw_proto\fR specify ICMP or ICMPv6, \fItype\fR
342 matches the ICMP type and \fIcode\fR matches the ICMP code. Each is
343 specified as a decimal number between 0 and 255, inclusive.
345 When \fBdl_type\fR and \fBnw_proto\fR take other values, the values of
346 these settings are ignored (see \fBFlow Syntax\fR above).
349 The following shorthand notations are also available:
352 Same as \fBdl_type=0x0800\fR.
355 Same as \fBdl_type=0x0800,nw_proto=1\fR.
358 Same as \fBdl_type=0x0800,nw_proto=6\fR.
361 Same as \fBdl_type=0x0800,nw_proto=17\fR.
364 Same as \fBdl_type=0x0806\fR.
367 The following field assignments require support for the NXM (Nicira
368 Extended Match) extension to OpenFlow. When one of these is specified,
369 \fBovs\-ofctl\fR will automatically attempt to negotiate use of this
370 extension. If the switch does not support NXM, then \fBovs\-ofctl\fR
371 will report a fatal error.
373 .IP \fBarp_sha=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
374 .IQ \fBarp_tha=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
375 When \fBdl_type\fR specifies ARP, \fBarp_sha\fR and \fBarp_tha\fR match
376 the source and target hardware address, respectively. An address is
377 specified as 6 pairs of hexadecimal digits delimited by colons.
379 .IP \fBipv6_src=\fIipv6\fR[\fB/\fInetmask\fR]
380 .IQ \fBipv6_dst=\fIipv6\fR[\fB/\fInetmask\fR]
381 When \fBdl_type\fR is 0x86dd (possibly via shorthand, e.g., \fBipv6\fR
382 or \fBtcp6\fR), matches IPv6 source (or destination) address \fIipv6\fR,
383 which may be specified as defined in RFC 2373. The preferred format is
384 \fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fB:\fIx\fR, where
385 \fIx\fR are the hexadecimal values of the eight 16-bit pieces of the
386 address. A single instance of \fB::\fR may be used to indicate multiple
387 groups of 16-bits of zeros. The optional \fInetmask\fR allows
388 restricting a match to an IPv6 address prefix. A netmask is specified
389 as a CIDR block (e.g. \fB2001:db8:3c4d:1::/64\fR).
391 .IP \fBnd_target=\fIipv6\fR
392 When \fBdl_type\fR, \fBnw_proto\fR, and \fBicmp_type\fR specify
393 IPv6 Neighbor Discovery (ICMPv6 type 135 or 136), matches the target address
394 \fIipv6\fR. \fIipv6\fR is in the same format described earlier for the
395 \fBipv6_src\fR and \fBipv6_dst\fR fields.
397 .IP \fBnd_sll=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
398 When \fBdl_type\fR, \fBnw_proto\fR, and \fBicmp_type\fR specify IPv6
399 Neighbor Solicitation (ICMPv6 type 135), matches the source link\-layer
400 address option. An address is specified as 6 pairs of hexadecimal
401 digits delimited by colons.
403 .IP \fBnd_tll=\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fB:\fIxx\fR
404 When \fBdl_type\fR, \fBnw_proto\fR, and \fBicmp_type\fR specify IPv6
405 Neighbor Advertisement (ICMPv6 type 136), matches the target link\-layer
406 address option. An address is specified as 6 pairs of hexadecimal
407 digits delimited by colons.
409 .IP \fBtun_id=\fItunnel-id\fR[\fB/\fImask\fR]
410 Matches tunnel identifier \fItunnel-id\fR. Only packets that arrive
411 over a tunnel that carries a key (e.g. GRE with the RFC 2890 key
412 extension) will have a nonzero tunnel ID. If \fImask\fR is omitted,
413 \fItunnel-id\fR is the exact tunnel ID to match; if \fImask\fR is
414 specified, then a 1-bit in \fImask\fR indicates that the corresponding
415 bit in \fItunnel-id\fR must match exactly, and a 0-bit wildcards that
418 In an attempt to be compatible with more switches, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR will
419 prefer to use the ``tunnel ID from cookie'' Nicira extension to NXM.
420 The use of this extension comes with three caveats: the top 32 bits of
421 the \fBcookie\fR (see below) are used for \fItunnel-id\fR and thus
422 unavailable for other use, specifying \fBtun_id\fR on \fBdump\-flows\fR
423 or \fBdump\-aggregate\fR has no effect, and \fImask\fR is not supported.
424 If any of these caveats apply, \fBovs-ofctl\fR will use NXM.
426 .IP "\fBreg\fIidx\fB=\fIvalue\fR[\fB/\fImask\fR]"
427 Matches \fIvalue\fR either exactly or with optional \fImask\fR in
428 register number \fIidx\fR. The valid range of \fIidx\fR depends on
429 the switch. \fIvalue\fR and \fImask\fR are 32-bit integers, by
430 default in decimal (use a \fB0x\fR prefix to specify hexadecimal).
431 Arbitrary \fImask\fR values are allowed: a 1-bit in \fImask\fR
432 indicates that the corresponding bit in \fIvalue\fR must match
433 exactly, and a 0-bit wildcards that bit.
435 When a packet enters an OpenFlow switch, all of the registers are set
436 to 0. Only explicit Nicira extension actions change register values.
439 Defining IPv6 flows (those with \fBdl_type\fR equal to 0x86dd) requires
440 support for NXM. The following shorthand notations are available for
444 Same as \fBdl_type=0x86dd\fR.
447 Same as \fBdl_type=0x86dd,nw_proto=6\fR.
450 Same as \fBdl_type=0x86dd,nw_proto=17\fR.
453 Same as \fBdl_type=0x86dd,nw_proto=58\fR.
456 The \fBadd\-flow\fR and \fBadd\-flows\fR commands require an additional
457 field, which must be the final field specified:
459 .IP \fBactions=\fR[\fItarget\fR][\fB,\fItarget\fR...]\fR
460 Specifies a comma-separated list of actions to take on a packet when the
461 flow entry matches. If no \fItarget\fR is specified, then packets
462 matching the flow are dropped. The \fItarget\fR may be a decimal port
463 number designating the physical port on which to output the packet, or one
464 of the following keywords:
467 .IP \fBoutput\fR:\fIport\fR
468 Outputs the packet on the port specified by \fIport\fR.
470 .IP \fBenqueue\fR:\fIport\fB:\fIqueue\fR
471 Enqueues the packet on the specified \fIqueue\fR within port
472 \fIport\fR. The number of supported queues depends on the switch;
473 some OpenFlow implementations do not support queuing at all.
476 Subjects the packet to the device's normal L2/L3 processing. (This
477 action is not implemented by all OpenFlow switches.)
480 Outputs the packet on all switch physical ports other than the port on
481 which it was received and any ports on which flooding is disabled
482 (typically, these would be ports disabled by the IEEE 802.1D spanning
486 Outputs the packet on all switch physical ports other than the port on
487 which it was received.
489 .IP \fBcontroller\fR:\fImax_len\fR
490 Sends the packet to the OpenFlow controller as a ``packet in''
491 message. If \fImax_len\fR is a number, then it specifies the maximum
492 number of bytes that should be sent. If \fImax_len\fR is \fBALL\fR or
493 omitted, then the entire packet is sent.
496 Outputs the packet on the ``local port,'' which corresponds to the
497 \fBof\fIn\fR network device (see \fBCONTACTING THE CONTROLLER\fR in
498 \fBovs\-openflowd\fR(8) for information on the \fBof\fIn\fR network device).
501 Discards the packet, so no further processing or forwarding takes place.
502 If a drop action is used, no other actions may be specified.
504 .IP \fBmod_vlan_vid\fR:\fIvlan_vid\fR
505 Modifies the VLAN id on a packet. The VLAN tag is added or modified
506 as necessary to match the value specified. If the VLAN tag is added,
507 a priority of zero is used (see the \fBmod_vlan_pcp\fR action to set
510 .IP \fBmod_vlan_pcp\fR:\fIvlan_pcp\fR
511 Modifies the VLAN priority on a packet. The VLAN tag is added or modified
512 as necessary to match the value specified. Valid values are between 0
513 (lowest) and 7 (highest). If the VLAN tag is added, a vid of zero is used
514 (see the \fBmod_vlan_vid\fR action to set this).
517 Strips the VLAN tag from a packet if it is present.
519 .IP \fBmod_dl_src\fB:\fImac\fR
520 Sets the source Ethernet address to \fImac\fR.
522 .IP \fBmod_dl_dst\fB:\fImac\fR
523 Sets the destination Ethernet address to \fImac\fR.
525 .IP \fBmod_nw_src\fB:\fIip\fR
526 Sets the IPv4 source address to \fIip\fR.
528 .IP \fBmod_nw_dst\fB:\fIip\fR
529 Sets the IPv4 destination address to \fIip\fR.
531 .IP \fBmod_tp_src\fB:\fIport\fR
532 Sets the TCP or UDP source port to \fIport\fR.
534 .IP \fBmod_tp_dst\fB:\fIport\fR
535 Sets the TCP or UDP destination port to \fIport\fR.
537 .IP \fBmod_nw_tos\fB:\fItos\fR
538 Sets the IP ToS/DSCP field to \fItos\fR. Valid values are between 0 and
539 255, inclusive. Note that the two lower reserved bits are never
544 The following actions are Nicira vendor extensions that, as of this writing, are
545 only known to be implemented by Open vSwitch:
549 .IP \fBresubmit\fB:\fIport\fR
550 Re-searches the OpenFlow flow table with the \fBin_port\fR field
551 replaced by \fIport\fR and executes the actions found, if any, in
552 addition to any other actions in this flow entry. Recursive
553 \fBresubmit\fR actions are ignored.
555 .IP \fBset_tunnel\fB:\fIid\fR
556 .IQ \fBset_tunnel64\fB:\fIid\fR
557 If outputting to a port that encapsulates the packet in a tunnel and
558 supports an identifier (such as GRE), sets the identifier to \fBid\fR.
559 If the \fBset_tunnel\fR form is used and \fIid\fR fits in 32 bits,
560 then this uses an action extension that is supported by Open vSwitch
561 1.0 and later. Otherwise, if \fIid\fR is a 64-bit value, it requires
562 Open vSwitch 1.1 or later.
564 .IP \fBdrop_spoofed_arp\fR
565 Stops processing further actions, if the packet being processed is an
566 Ethernet+IPv4 ARP packet for which the source Ethernet address inside
567 the ARP packet differs from the source Ethernet address in the
570 This action is deprecated in favor of defining flows using the
571 \fBarp_sha\fR match field described earlier and will likely be removed
572 in a future version of Open vSwitch.
574 .IP \fBset_queue\fB:\fIqueue\fR
575 Sets the queue that should be used to \fIqueue\fR when packets are
576 output. The number of supported queues depends on the switch; some
577 OpenFlow implementations do not support queuing at all.
580 Restores the queue to the value it was before any \fBset_queue\fR
581 actions were applied.
583 .IP \fBnote:\fR[\fIhh\fR]...
584 Does nothing at all. Any number of bytes represented as hex digits
585 \fIhh\fR may be included. Pairs of hex digits may be separated by
586 periods for readability.
588 .IP "\fBmove:\fIsrc\fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB]->\fIdst\fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB]\fR"
589 Copies the named bits from field \fIsrc\fR to field \fIdst\fR.
590 \fIsrc\fR and \fIdst\fR must be NXM field names as defined in
591 \fBnicira\-ext.h\fR, e.g. \fBNXM_OF_UDP_SRC\fR or \fBNXM_NX_REG0\fR.
592 Each \fIstart\fR and \fIend\fR pair, which are inclusive, must specify
593 the same number of bits and must fit within its respective field.
594 Shorthands for \fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB]\fR exist: use
595 \fB[\fIbit\fB]\fR to specify a single bit or \fB[]\fR to specify an
598 Examples: \fBmove:NXM_NX_REG0[0..5]\->NXM_NX_REG1[26..31]\fR copies the
599 six bits numbered 0 through 5, inclusive, in register 0 into bits 26
600 through 31, inclusive;
601 \fBmove:NXM_NX_REG0[0..15]->NXM_OF_VLAN_TCI[]\fR copies the least
602 significant 16 bits of register 0 into the VLAN TCI field.
604 .IP "\fBload:\fIvalue\fB\->\fIdst\fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB]"
605 Writes \fIvalue\fR to bits \fIstart\fR through \fIend\fR, inclusive,
608 Example: \fBload:55\->NXM_NX_REG2[0..5]\fR loads value 55 (bit pattern
609 \fB110111\fR) into bits 0 through 5, inclusive, in register 2.
611 .IP "\fBmultipath(\fIfields\fB, \fIbasis\fB, \fIalgorithm\fB, \fIn_links\fB, \fIarg\fB, \fIdst\fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB])\fR"
612 Hashes \fIfields\fR using \fIbasis\fR as a universal hash parameter,
613 then the applies multipath link selection \fIalgorithm\fR (with
614 parameter \fIarg\fR) to choose one of \fIn_links\fR output links
615 numbered 0 through \fIn_links\fR minus 1, and stores the link into
616 \fIdst\fB[\fIstart\fB..\fIend\fB]\fR, which must be an NXM register as
619 Currently, \fIfields\fR must be either \fBeth_src\fR or
620 \fBsymmetric_l4\fR and \fIalgorithm\fR must be one of \fBmodulo_n\fR,
621 \fBhash_threshold\fR, \fBhrw\fR, and \fBiter_hash\fR. Only
622 the \fBiter_hash\fR algorithm uses \fIarg\fR.
624 Refer to \fBnicira\-ext.h\fR for more details.
628 (The OpenFlow protocol supports other actions that \fBovs\-ofctl\fR does
629 not yet expose to the user.)
632 The \fBadd\-flow\fR, \fBadd\-flows\fR, and \fBmod\-flows\fR commands
633 support an additional optional field:
635 .IP \fBcookie=\fIvalue\fR
637 A cookie is an opaque identifier that can be associated with the flow.
638 \fIvalue\fR can be any 64-bit number and need not be unique among
642 The following additional field sets the priority for flows added by
643 the \fBadd\-flow\fR and \fBadd\-flows\fR commands. For
644 \fBmod\-flows\fR and \fBdel\-flows\fR when \fB\-\-strict\fR is
645 specified, priority must match along with the rest of the flow
646 specification. Other commands ignore the priority value.
648 .IP \fBpriority=\fIvalue\fR
649 The priority at which a wildcarded entry will match in comparison to
650 others. \fIvalue\fR is a number between 0 and 65535, inclusive. A higher
651 \fIvalue\fR will match before a lower one. An exact-match entry will always
652 have priority over an entry containing wildcards, so it has an implicit
653 priority value of 65535. When adding a flow, if the field is not specified,
654 the flow's priority will default to 32768.
657 The \fBadd\-flow\fR and \fBadd\-flows\fR commands support additional
661 \fBidle_timeout=\fIseconds\fR
662 Causes the flow to expire after the given number of seconds of
663 inactivity. A value of 0 (the default) prevents a flow from expiring due to
666 .IP \fBhard_timeout=\fIseconds\fR
667 Causes the flow to expire after the given number of seconds,
668 regardless of activity. A value of 0 (the default) gives the flow no
669 hard expiration deadline.
672 The \fBdump\-flows\fR, \fBdump\-aggregate\fR, \fBdel\-flow\fR
673 and \fBdel\-flows\fR commands support one additional optional field:
676 \fBout_port=\fIport\fR
677 If set, a matching flow must include an output action to \fIport\fR.
680 The \fBdump\-flows\fR and \fBdump\-aggregate\fR commands support an
681 additional optional field:
683 .IP \fBtable=\fInumber\fR
684 If specified, limits the flows about which statistics are gathered to
685 those in the table with the given \fInumber\fR. Tables are numbered
686 as shown by the \fBdump\-tables\fR command.
688 If this field is not specified, or if \fInumber\fR is given as
689 \fB255\fR, statistics are gathered about flows from all tables.
691 .SS "Table Entry Output"
693 The \fBdump\-tables\fR and \fBdump\-aggregate\fR commands print information
694 about the entries in a datapath's tables. Each line of output is a
695 unique flow entry, which begins with some common information:
698 The number of seconds the entry has been in the table.
701 The table that contains the flow. When a packet arrives, the switch
702 begins searching for an entry at the lowest numbered table. Tables are
703 numbered as shown by the \fBdump\-tables\fR command.
706 The priority of the entry in relation to other entries within the same
707 table. A higher value will match before a lower one.
710 The number of packets that have matched the entry.
713 The total number of bytes from packets that have matched the entry.
716 The rest of the line consists of a description of the flow entry as
717 described in \fBFlow Syntax\fR, above.
723 Uses strict matching when running flow modification commands.
725 .IP "\fB\-F \fIformat\fR"
726 .IQ "\fB\-\-flow\-format=\fIformat\fR"
727 \fBovs\-ofctl\fR supports the following flow formats, in order of
728 increasing capability:
730 .IP "\fBopenflow10\fR"
731 This is the standard OpenFlow 1.0 flow format. It should be supported
732 by all OpenFlow switches.
734 .IP "\fBtun_id_from_cookie\fR"
735 This Nicira extension to OpenFlow adds minimal and limited support for
736 \fBtun_id\fR, but it does not support any other Nicira flow
737 extensions. (This flow format is deprecated.)
739 .IP "\fBnxm\fR (Nicira Extended Match)"
740 This Nicira extension to OpenFlow is flexible and extensible. It
741 supports all of the Nicira flow extensions, such as \fBtun_id\fR and
745 Usually, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR picks the correct format automatically. For
746 commands that modify the flow table, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR by default uses
747 the most widely supported flow format that supports the flows being
748 added. For commands that query the flow table, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR by
749 default queries and uses the most advanced format supported by the
752 This option, where \fIformat\fR is one of the formats listed in the
753 above table, overrides \fBovs\-ofctl\fR's default choice of flow
754 format. If a command cannot work as requested using the requested
755 flow format, \fBovs\-ofctl\fR will report a fatal error.
759 Increases the verbosity of OpenFlow messages printed and logged by
760 \fBovs\-ofctl\fR commands. Specify this option more than once to
761 increase verbosity further.
762 .SS "Public Key Infrastructure Options"
769 The following examples assume that an OpenFlow switch on the local
770 host has been configured to listen for management connections on a
771 Unix domain socket named \fB@RUNDIR@/openflow.sock\fR, e.g. by
772 specifying \fB\-\-listen=punix:@RUNDIR@/openflow.sock\fR on the
773 \fBovs\-openflowd\fR(8) command line.
776 \fBovs\-ofctl dump\-tables unix:@RUNDIR@/openflow.sock\fR
777 Prints out the switch's table stats. (This is more interesting after
778 some traffic has passed through.)
781 \fBovs\-ofctl dump\-flows unix:@RUNDIR@/openflow.sock\fR
782 Prints the flow entries in the switch.
787 .BR ovs\-controller (8),
788 .BR ovs\-vswitchd (8)