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.TH "NBD-CLIENT" "8" "04 April 2004" "" ""
.SH NAME
nbd-client \- connect to a server running nbd-server(1), to use its    exported block device
.SH SYNOPSIS

\fBnbd-client\fR [ \fBbs=\fIblocksize\fB\fR ] \fB\fIhost\fB\fR \fB\fIport\fB\fR \fB\fInbd-device\fB\fR [ \fB-swap\fR ]


\fBnbd-client\fR \fB-d \fInbd-device\fB\fR

.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.PP
This manual page documents briefly the
\fBnbd-client\fR command.
.PP
This manual page was written for the Debian GNU/Linux distribution
because the original program does not have a manual page.
.PP
With \fBnbd-client\fR, you can connect to a
server running \fBnbd-server\fR, thus using raw
diskspace from that server as a blockdevice on the local
client.
.PP
To do this, support from the Linux Kernel is necessary, in
the form of the Network Block Device (NBD). When you have that,
either in the kernel, or as a module, you can connect to an NBD
server and use its exported file through a block special file with
major mode 43.
.SH "OPTIONS"
.PP
The following options are supported:
.TP
\fBbs=\fIblocksize\fB\fR
Use a blocksize of "blocksize". Default is 1024;
allowed values are either 512, 1024, 2048 or 4096
.TP
\fBhost\fR
The hostname of the machine running
\fBnbd-server\fR.
.TP
\fBport\fR
The TCP port on which \fBnbd-server\fR is
running at the server.
.TP
\fBnbd-device\fR
The block special file this nbd-client should connect
to.
.TP
\fB-swap\fR
Specifies that this NBD device will be used as
swapspace. If you intend to do that, please use this
option to prevent deadlocks. You'll need a special kernel
patch, available at NBD's homepage:
http://atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~pavel
.SH "EXAMPLES"
.PP
Some examples of nbd-client usage:
.TP 0.2i
\(bu
To connect to a server running on port 2000 at host
"server.domain.com", using the client's block special file
"/dev/nd0":

\fBnbd-client 2000 server.domain.com
/dev/nd0\fR
.TP 0.2i
\(bu
To connect to a server running on port 2001 at host
"swapserver.domain.com", using the client's block special
file "/dev/nd1", for swap purposes:

\fBnbd-client 2001 swapserver.domain.com /dev/nd1
-swap\fR
.TP 0.2i
\(bu
To disconnect the above connection again (after making
sure the block special file is not in use anymore):

\fBnbd-client -d /dev/nd1\fR
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.PP
nbd-server (1).
.SH "AUTHOR"
.PP
The NBD kernel module and the NBD tools have been written by
Pavel Macheck (pavel@ucw.cz).
.PP
This manual page was written by Wouter Verhelst (<wouter@debian.org>) for
the Debian GNU/Linux system (but may be used by others).  Permission is
granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the
terms of the GNU Free Documentation License,
Version 1.1 or any later version published by the Free Software
Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts and
no Back-Cover Texts.