[comp.sys.sun] syslog.conf and `LOGHOST'

schoch@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Steve Schoch) (08/13/90)

In the default syslog.conf file, there are several m4 ifdef statements
that say "ifdef(`LOGHOST', file, @loghost)".  Apparently, `LOGHOST' is an
m4 variable that is supposed to get defined if syslogd is running on the
loghost (server) and not defined if syslogd is running on a client.

Looking through /usr/etc/syslogd with strings(1), I find the following
string: "define(LOGHOST, 1)".  I assume syslogd will pass this string
along with syslog.conf to m4 if the current host is the file server.

My question is:  "How does syslogd find out whether the current host is
the loghost or not?"  It doesn't seem to work on our system.  Does it use
gethostbyname()?  I have modified libc.so to use the nameserver instead of
the host table.

	Steve

glenn@csri.toronto.edu (Glenn Mackintosh) (09/02/90)

schoch@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Steve Schoch) writes:

>My question is:  "How does syslogd find out whether the current host is
>the loghost or not?"  It doesn't seem to work on our system.  Does it use
>gethostbyname()?  I have modified libc.so to use the nameserver instead of
>the host table.

Since you are using the nameserver you are going to need an A record for
"loghost" in the nameserver data. I.e. something of the form:

loghost			IN	A	???.???.???.???

                    Glenn Mackintosh
                    Univ. of Toronto

CSNET/ARPA:   glenn@utcs.{toronto.edu,utoronto.ca}
CDNNET:       glenn@utcs.toronto.cdn
BITNET:       glenn@utcs.utoronto.bitnet (may not work from all sites)
UUCP:         uunet!utcs!glenn

mrapple@quack.sac.ca.us (Nick Sayer) (10/08/90)

glenn@csri.toronto.edu (Glenn Mackintosh) writes:

>schoch@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Steve Schoch) writes:

>>My question is:  "How does syslogd find out whether the current host is
>>the loghost or not?"  It doesn't seem to work on our system.  Does it use
>>gethostbyname()?  I have modified libc.so to use the nameserver instead of
>>the host table.

>Since you are using the nameserver you are going to need an A record for
>"loghost" in the nameserver data. I.e. something of the form:

>loghost			IN	A	???.???.???.???

Perhaps a better idea would be to add loghost as an alternate name to your
host name in /etc/hosts -- and therefore in the yellow pages. Having it in
the name server means everyone knows about it, and they don't need to. You
should also probably have a mailhost entry, depending on your setup.

Our /etc/hosts:

localhost	127.0.0.1
uop		138.9.200.1	loghost mailhost
zeus		138.9.200.2

So the yellow pages can tell you who is the mailhost and loghost, but
nobody else really needs to know.

Also, there is a bug in older syslogs that keep them from working in this
regard. The fix is to simply define LOGHOST near the begining of the file
on your loghost machine. Kinda defeats the purpose. SunOS 4.1 does not
have this bug. SunOS 4.0 does. I don't know where in between it got fixed.

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