Commit | Line | Data |
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a0d0e21e LW |
1 | package Net::Ping; |
2 | ||
3226bbec JH |
3 | # $Id: Ping.pm,v 1.5 2001/11/19 09:44:18 rob Exp $ |
4 | ||
5 | require 5.002; | |
a0d0e21e LW |
6 | require Exporter; |
7 | ||
a3b93737 | 8 | use strict; |
3226bbec JH |
9 | use vars qw(@ISA @EXPORT $VERSION |
10 | $def_timeout $def_proto $max_datasize); | |
a3b93737 RM |
11 | use FileHandle; |
12 | use Socket qw( SOCK_DGRAM SOCK_STREAM SOCK_RAW PF_INET | |
3226bbec | 13 | inet_aton sockaddr_in ); |
a3b93737 | 14 | use Carp; |
a79c1648 | 15 | |
a0d0e21e | 16 | @ISA = qw(Exporter); |
a3b93737 | 17 | @EXPORT = qw(pingecho); |
3226bbec | 18 | $VERSION = 2.06; |
a0d0e21e | 19 | |
a3b93737 | 20 | # Constants |
a0d0e21e | 21 | |
a3b93737 RM |
22 | $def_timeout = 5; # Default timeout to wait for a reply |
23 | $def_proto = "udp"; # Default protocol to use for pinging | |
24 | $max_datasize = 1024; # Maximum data bytes in a packet | |
a0d0e21e | 25 | |
a3b93737 RM |
26 | # Description: The pingecho() subroutine is provided for backward |
27 | # compatibility with the original Net::Ping. It accepts a host | |
28 | # name/IP and an optional timeout in seconds. Create a tcp ping | |
29 | # object and try pinging the host. The result of the ping is returned. | |
a0d0e21e | 30 | |
a3b93737 RM |
31 | sub pingecho |
32 | { | |
33 | my ($host, # Name or IP number of host to ping | |
34 | $timeout # Optional timeout in seconds | |
35 | ) = @_; | |
36 | my ($p); # A ping object | |
a0d0e21e | 37 | |
a3b93737 RM |
38 | $p = Net::Ping->new("tcp", $timeout); |
39 | $p->ping($host); # Going out of scope closes the connection | |
40 | } | |
a0d0e21e | 41 | |
a3b93737 RM |
42 | # Description: The new() method creates a new ping object. Optional |
43 | # parameters may be specified for the protocol to use, the timeout in | |
44 | # seconds and the size in bytes of additional data which should be | |
45 | # included in the packet. | |
46 | # After the optional parameters are checked, the data is constructed | |
47 | # and a socket is opened if appropriate. The object is returned. | |
48 | ||
49 | sub new | |
50 | { | |
51 | my ($this, | |
52 | $proto, # Optional protocol to use for pinging | |
53 | $timeout, # Optional timeout in seconds | |
54 | $data_size # Optional additional bytes of data | |
55 | ) = @_; | |
56 | my $class = ref($this) || $this; | |
57 | my $self = {}; | |
58 | my ($cnt, # Count through data bytes | |
59 | $min_datasize # Minimum data bytes required | |
60 | ); | |
61 | ||
62 | bless($self, $class); | |
63 | ||
64 | $proto = $def_proto unless $proto; # Determine the protocol | |
3226bbec JH |
65 | croak("Protocol for ping must be \"tcp\", \"udp\" or \"icmp\"") |
66 | unless $proto =~ m/^(tcp|udp|icmp)$/; | |
a3b93737 RM |
67 | $self->{"proto"} = $proto; |
68 | ||
69 | $timeout = $def_timeout unless $timeout; # Determine the timeout | |
70 | croak("Default timeout for ping must be greater than 0 seconds") | |
71 | if $timeout <= 0; | |
72 | $self->{"timeout"} = $timeout; | |
73 | ||
74 | $min_datasize = ($proto eq "udp") ? 1 : 0; # Determine data size | |
75 | $data_size = $min_datasize unless defined($data_size) && $proto ne "tcp"; | |
76 | croak("Data for ping must be from $min_datasize to $max_datasize bytes") | |
77 | if ($data_size < $min_datasize) || ($data_size > $max_datasize); | |
78 | $data_size-- if $self->{"proto"} eq "udp"; # We provide the first byte | |
79 | $self->{"data_size"} = $data_size; | |
80 | ||
81 | $self->{"data"} = ""; # Construct data bytes | |
82 | for ($cnt = 0; $cnt < $self->{"data_size"}; $cnt++) | |
83 | { | |
84 | $self->{"data"} .= chr($cnt % 256); | |
85 | } | |
86 | ||
87 | $self->{"seq"} = 0; # For counting packets | |
88 | if ($self->{"proto"} eq "udp") # Open a socket | |
89 | { | |
90 | $self->{"proto_num"} = (getprotobyname('udp'))[2] || | |
91 | croak("Can't udp protocol by name"); | |
92 | $self->{"port_num"} = (getservbyname('echo', 'udp'))[2] || | |
93 | croak("Can't get udp echo port by name"); | |
94 | $self->{"fh"} = FileHandle->new(); | |
95 | socket($self->{"fh"}, &PF_INET(), &SOCK_DGRAM(), | |
96 | $self->{"proto_num"}) || | |
97 | croak("udp socket error - $!"); | |
98 | } | |
99 | elsif ($self->{"proto"} eq "icmp") | |
100 | { | |
3226bbec | 101 | croak("icmp ping requires root privilege") if $>; |
a3b93737 RM |
102 | $self->{"proto_num"} = (getprotobyname('icmp'))[2] || |
103 | croak("Can't get icmp protocol by name"); | |
104 | $self->{"pid"} = $$ & 0xffff; # Save lower 16 bits of pid | |
105 | $self->{"fh"} = FileHandle->new(); | |
106 | socket($self->{"fh"}, &PF_INET(), &SOCK_RAW(), $self->{"proto_num"}) || | |
107 | croak("icmp socket error - $!"); | |
108 | } | |
3226bbec | 109 | elsif ($self->{"proto"} eq "tcp") # Just a file handle for now |
a3b93737 RM |
110 | { |
111 | $self->{"proto_num"} = (getprotobyname('tcp'))[2] || | |
112 | croak("Can't get tcp protocol by name"); | |
113 | $self->{"port_num"} = (getservbyname('echo', 'tcp'))[2] || | |
114 | croak("Can't get tcp echo port by name"); | |
115 | $self->{"fh"} = FileHandle->new(); | |
116 | } | |
117 | ||
118 | ||
119 | return($self); | |
120 | } | |
a0d0e21e | 121 | |
a3b93737 RM |
122 | # Description: Ping a host name or IP number with an optional timeout. |
123 | # First lookup the host, and return undef if it is not found. Otherwise | |
3226bbec | 124 | # perform the specific ping method based on the protocol. Return the |
a3b93737 RM |
125 | # result of the ping. |
126 | ||
127 | sub ping | |
128 | { | |
129 | my ($self, | |
130 | $host, # Name or IP number of host to ping | |
131 | $timeout # Seconds after which ping times out | |
132 | ) = @_; | |
133 | my ($ip, # Packed IP number of $host | |
134 | $ret # The return value | |
135 | ); | |
136 | ||
137 | croak("Usage: \$p->ping(\$host [, \$timeout])") unless @_ == 2 || @_ == 3; | |
138 | $timeout = $self->{"timeout"} unless $timeout; | |
139 | croak("Timeout must be greater than 0 seconds") if $timeout <= 0; | |
140 | ||
141 | $ip = inet_aton($host); | |
142 | return(undef) unless defined($ip); # Does host exist? | |
143 | ||
3226bbec JH |
144 | if ($self->{"proto"} eq "udp") |
145 | { | |
146 | $ret = $self->ping_udp($ip, $timeout); | |
147 | } | |
148 | elsif ($self->{"proto"} eq "icmp") | |
149 | { | |
150 | $ret = $self->ping_icmp($ip, $timeout); | |
151 | } | |
152 | elsif ($self->{"proto"} eq "tcp") | |
153 | { | |
154 | $ret = $self->ping_tcp($ip, $timeout); | |
155 | } | |
156 | else | |
157 | { | |
158 | croak("Unknown protocol \"$self->{proto}\" in ping()"); | |
159 | } | |
160 | return($ret); | |
a3b93737 | 161 | } |
a0d0e21e | 162 | |
a3b93737 RM |
163 | sub ping_icmp |
164 | { | |
165 | my ($self, | |
166 | $ip, # Packed IP number of the host | |
167 | $timeout # Seconds after which ping times out | |
168 | ) = @_; | |
169 | ||
170 | my $ICMP_ECHOREPLY = 0; # ICMP packet types | |
171 | my $ICMP_ECHO = 8; | |
172 | my $icmp_struct = "C2 S3 A"; # Structure of a minimal ICMP packet | |
173 | my $subcode = 0; # No ICMP subcode for ECHO and ECHOREPLY | |
174 | my $flags = 0; # No special flags when opening a socket | |
175 | my $port = 0; # No port with ICMP | |
176 | ||
177 | my ($saddr, # sockaddr_in with port and ip | |
178 | $checksum, # Checksum of ICMP packet | |
179 | $msg, # ICMP packet to send | |
180 | $len_msg, # Length of $msg | |
181 | $rbits, # Read bits, filehandles for reading | |
182 | $nfound, # Number of ready filehandles found | |
183 | $finish_time, # Time ping should be finished | |
184 | $done, # set to 1 when we are done | |
185 | $ret, # Return value | |
186 | $recv_msg, # Received message including IP header | |
187 | $from_saddr, # sockaddr_in of sender | |
188 | $from_port, # Port packet was sent from | |
189 | $from_ip, # Packed IP of sender | |
190 | $from_type, # ICMP type | |
191 | $from_subcode, # ICMP subcode | |
192 | $from_chk, # ICMP packet checksum | |
193 | $from_pid, # ICMP packet id | |
194 | $from_seq, # ICMP packet sequence | |
195 | $from_msg # ICMP message | |
196 | ); | |
197 | ||
198 | $self->{"seq"} = ($self->{"seq"} + 1) % 65536; # Increment sequence | |
199 | $checksum = 0; # No checksum for starters | |
200 | $msg = pack($icmp_struct . $self->{"data_size"}, $ICMP_ECHO, $subcode, | |
201 | $checksum, $self->{"pid"}, $self->{"seq"}, $self->{"data"}); | |
202 | $checksum = Net::Ping->checksum($msg); | |
203 | $msg = pack($icmp_struct . $self->{"data_size"}, $ICMP_ECHO, $subcode, | |
204 | $checksum, $self->{"pid"}, $self->{"seq"}, $self->{"data"}); | |
205 | $len_msg = length($msg); | |
206 | $saddr = sockaddr_in($port, $ip); | |
207 | send($self->{"fh"}, $msg, $flags, $saddr); # Send the message | |
208 | ||
209 | $rbits = ""; | |
210 | vec($rbits, $self->{"fh"}->fileno(), 1) = 1; | |
8e07c86e | 211 | $ret = 0; |
a3b93737 RM |
212 | $done = 0; |
213 | $finish_time = time() + $timeout; # Must be done by this time | |
214 | while (!$done && $timeout > 0) # Keep trying if we have time | |
215 | { | |
216 | $nfound = select($rbits, undef, undef, $timeout); # Wait for packet | |
217 | $timeout = $finish_time - time(); # Get remaining time | |
218 | if (!defined($nfound)) # Hmm, a strange error | |
219 | { | |
220 | $ret = undef; | |
221 | $done = 1; | |
222 | } | |
223 | elsif ($nfound) # Got a packet from somewhere | |
224 | { | |
225 | $recv_msg = ""; | |
226 | $from_saddr = recv($self->{"fh"}, $recv_msg, 1500, $flags); | |
227 | ($from_port, $from_ip) = sockaddr_in($from_saddr); | |
228 | ($from_type, $from_subcode, $from_chk, | |
229 | $from_pid, $from_seq, $from_msg) = | |
230 | unpack($icmp_struct . $self->{"data_size"}, | |
231 | substr($recv_msg, length($recv_msg) - $len_msg, | |
232 | $len_msg)); | |
233 | if (($from_type == $ICMP_ECHOREPLY) && | |
234 | ($from_ip eq $ip) && | |
235 | ($from_pid == $self->{"pid"}) && # Does the packet check out? | |
236 | ($from_seq == $self->{"seq"})) | |
237 | { | |
238 | $ret = 1; # It's a winner | |
239 | $done = 1; | |
240 | } | |
241 | } | |
242 | else # Oops, timed out | |
243 | { | |
244 | $done = 1; | |
245 | } | |
246 | } | |
247 | return($ret) | |
248 | } | |
249 | ||
250 | # Description: Do a checksum on the message. Basically sum all of | |
251 | # the short words and fold the high order bits into the low order bits. | |
252 | ||
253 | sub checksum | |
254 | { | |
255 | my ($class, | |
256 | $msg # The message to checksum | |
257 | ) = @_; | |
258 | my ($len_msg, # Length of the message | |
259 | $num_short, # The number of short words in the message | |
260 | $short, # One short word | |
261 | $chk # The checksum | |
262 | ); | |
263 | ||
264 | $len_msg = length($msg); | |
3226bbec | 265 | $num_short = $len_msg / 2; |
a3b93737 RM |
266 | $chk = 0; |
267 | foreach $short (unpack("S$num_short", $msg)) | |
268 | { | |
269 | $chk += $short; | |
270 | } # Add the odd byte in | |
3226bbec | 271 | $chk += unpack("C", substr($msg, $len_msg - 1, 1)) if $len_msg % 2; |
a3b93737 RM |
272 | $chk = ($chk >> 16) + ($chk & 0xffff); # Fold high into low |
273 | return(~(($chk >> 16) + $chk) & 0xffff); # Again and complement | |
274 | } | |
275 | ||
072620d9 SB |
276 | # Description: Perform a tcp echo ping. Since a tcp connection is |
277 | # host specific, we have to open and close each connection here. We | |
278 | # can't just leave a socket open. Because of the robust nature of | |
279 | # tcp, it will take a while before it gives up trying to establish a | |
3226bbec JH |
280 | # connection. Therefore, we have to set the alarm to break out of the |
281 | # connection sooner if the timeout expires. No data bytes are actually | |
072620d9 SB |
282 | # sent since the successful establishment of a connection is proof |
283 | # enough of the reachability of the remote host. Also, tcp is | |
284 | # expensive and doesn't need our help to add to the overhead. | |
285 | ||
286 | sub ping_tcp | |
287 | { | |
288 | my ($self, | |
289 | $ip, # Packed IP number of the host | |
290 | $timeout # Seconds after which ping times out | |
072620d9 | 291 | ) = @_; |
3226bbec JH |
292 | my ($saddr, # sockaddr_in with port and ip |
293 | $ret # The return value | |
294 | ); | |
072620d9 | 295 | |
3226bbec JH |
296 | socket($self->{"fh"}, &PF_INET(), &SOCK_STREAM(), $self->{"proto_num"}) || |
297 | croak("tcp socket error - $!"); | |
298 | $saddr = sockaddr_in($self->{"port_num"}, $ip); | |
072620d9 | 299 | |
3226bbec JH |
300 | $SIG{'ALRM'} = sub { die }; |
301 | alarm($timeout); # Interrupt connect() if we have to | |
072620d9 | 302 | |
3226bbec JH |
303 | $ret = 0; # Default to unreachable |
304 | eval { | |
305 | die $! unless connect($self->{"fh"}, $saddr); | |
306 | $ret = 1; | |
307 | }; | |
308 | alarm(0); | |
309 | $ret = 1 if $@ =~ /connection refused/i; | |
310 | $self->{"fh"}->close(); | |
311 | return($ret); | |
072620d9 SB |
312 | } |
313 | ||
a3b93737 RM |
314 | # Description: Perform a udp echo ping. Construct a message of |
315 | # at least the one-byte sequence number and any additional data bytes. | |
316 | # Send the message out and wait for a message to come back. If we | |
317 | # get a message, make sure all of its parts match. If they do, we are | |
318 | # done. Otherwise go back and wait for the message until we run out | |
319 | # of time. Return the result of our efforts. | |
320 | ||
321 | sub ping_udp | |
322 | { | |
323 | my ($self, | |
324 | $ip, # Packed IP number of the host | |
325 | $timeout # Seconds after which ping times out | |
326 | ) = @_; | |
327 | ||
328 | my $flags = 0; # Nothing special on open | |
329 | ||
330 | my ($saddr, # sockaddr_in with port and ip | |
331 | $ret, # The return value | |
332 | $msg, # Message to be echoed | |
333 | $finish_time, # Time ping should be finished | |
334 | $done, # Set to 1 when we are done pinging | |
335 | $rbits, # Read bits, filehandles for reading | |
336 | $nfound, # Number of ready filehandles found | |
337 | $from_saddr, # sockaddr_in of sender | |
338 | $from_msg, # Characters echoed by $host | |
339 | $from_port, # Port message was echoed from | |
340 | $from_ip # Packed IP number of sender | |
341 | ); | |
342 | ||
343 | $saddr = sockaddr_in($self->{"port_num"}, $ip); | |
344 | $self->{"seq"} = ($self->{"seq"} + 1) % 256; # Increment sequence | |
345 | $msg = chr($self->{"seq"}) . $self->{"data"}; # Add data if any | |
346 | send($self->{"fh"}, $msg, $flags, $saddr); # Send it | |
347 | ||
348 | $rbits = ""; | |
349 | vec($rbits, $self->{"fh"}->fileno(), 1) = 1; | |
350 | $ret = 0; # Default to unreachable | |
351 | $done = 0; | |
352 | $finish_time = time() + $timeout; # Ping needs to be done by then | |
353 | while (!$done && $timeout > 0) | |
354 | { | |
355 | $nfound = select($rbits, undef, undef, $timeout); # Wait for response | |
356 | $timeout = $finish_time - time(); # Get remaining time | |
357 | ||
358 | if (!defined($nfound)) # Hmm, a strange error | |
359 | { | |
360 | $ret = undef; | |
361 | $done = 1; | |
362 | } | |
363 | elsif ($nfound) # A packet is waiting | |
364 | { | |
365 | $from_msg = ""; | |
3226bbec JH |
366 | $from_saddr = recv($self->{"fh"}, $from_msg, 1500, $flags); |
367 | ($from_port, $from_ip) = sockaddr_in($from_saddr); | |
368 | if (($from_ip eq $ip) && # Does the packet check out? | |
369 | ($from_port == $self->{"port_num"}) && | |
370 | ($from_msg eq $msg)) | |
371 | { | |
372 | $ret = 1; # It's a winner | |
373 | $done = 1; | |
374 | } | |
375 | } | |
a3b93737 RM |
376 | else # Oops, timed out |
377 | { | |
378 | $done = 1; | |
379 | } | |
380 | } | |
381 | return($ret); | |
3226bbec | 382 | } |
a0d0e21e | 383 | |
a3b93737 RM |
384 | # Description: Close the connection unless we are using the tcp |
385 | # protocol, since it will already be closed. | |
386 | ||
387 | sub close | |
388 | { | |
389 | my ($self) = @_; | |
390 | ||
391 | $self->{"fh"}->close() unless $self->{"proto"} eq "tcp"; | |
392 | } | |
393 | ||
394 | ||
a0d0e21e | 395 | 1; |
8e07c86e AD |
396 | __END__ |
397 | ||
8e07c86e AD |
398 | =head1 NAME |
399 | ||
a3b93737 | 400 | Net::Ping - check a remote host for reachability |
8e07c86e | 401 | |
3226bbec JH |
402 | $Id: Ping.pm,v 1.5 2001/11/19 09:44:18 rob Exp $ |
403 | ||
8e07c86e AD |
404 | =head1 SYNOPSIS |
405 | ||
406 | use Net::Ping; | |
8e07c86e | 407 | |
a3b93737 RM |
408 | $p = Net::Ping->new(); |
409 | print "$host is alive.\n" if $p->ping($host); | |
410 | $p->close(); | |
411 | ||
412 | $p = Net::Ping->new("icmp"); | |
413 | foreach $host (@host_array) | |
414 | { | |
415 | print "$host is "; | |
416 | print "NOT " unless $p->ping($host, 2); | |
417 | print "reachable.\n"; | |
418 | sleep(1); | |
419 | } | |
420 | $p->close(); | |
3226bbec | 421 | |
a3b93737 | 422 | $p = Net::Ping->new("tcp", 2); |
3226bbec JH |
423 | # Try connecting to the www port instead of the echo port |
424 | $p->{port_num} = getservbyname("http", "tcp"); | |
a3b93737 RM |
425 | while ($stop_time > time()) |
426 | { | |
427 | print "$host not reachable ", scalar(localtime()), "\n" | |
428 | unless $p->ping($host); | |
429 | sleep(300); | |
430 | } | |
431 | undef($p); | |
3226bbec | 432 | |
a3b93737 RM |
433 | # For backward compatibility |
434 | print "$host is alive.\n" if pingecho($host); | |
8e07c86e | 435 | |
a3b93737 | 436 | =head1 DESCRIPTION |
8e07c86e | 437 | |
a3b93737 RM |
438 | This module contains methods to test the reachability of remote |
439 | hosts on a network. A ping object is first created with optional | |
440 | parameters, a variable number of hosts may be pinged multiple | |
441 | times and then the connection is closed. | |
442 | ||
3226bbec JH |
443 | You may choose one of three different protocols to use for the ping. |
444 | With the "tcp" protocol the ping() method attempts to establish a | |
445 | connection to the remote host's echo port. If the connection is | |
446 | successfully established, the remote host is considered reachable. No | |
447 | data is actually echoed. This protocol does not require any special | |
448 | privileges but has higher overhead than the other two protocols. | |
072620d9 | 449 | |
3226bbec | 450 | Specifying the "udp" protocol causes the ping() method to send a udp |
a3b93737 RM |
451 | packet to the remote host's echo port. If the echoed packet is |
452 | received from the remote host and the received packet contains the | |
453 | same data as the packet that was sent, the remote host is considered | |
454 | reachable. This protocol does not require any special privileges. | |
455 | ||
3226bbec JH |
456 | If the "icmp" protocol is specified, the ping() method sends an icmp |
457 | echo message to the remote host, which is what the UNIX ping program | |
458 | does. If the echoed message is received from the remote host and | |
459 | the echoed information is correct, the remote host is considered | |
460 | reachable. Specifying the "icmp" protocol requires that the program | |
461 | be run as root or that the program be setuid to root. | |
edc5bd88 | 462 | |
a3b93737 RM |
463 | =head2 Functions |
464 | ||
465 | =over 4 | |
466 | ||
467 | =item Net::Ping->new([$proto [, $def_timeout [, $bytes]]]); | |
468 | ||
469 | Create a new ping object. All of the parameters are optional. $proto | |
470 | specifies the protocol to use when doing a ping. The current choices | |
471 | are "tcp", "udp" or "icmp". The default is "udp". | |
472 | ||
473 | If a default timeout ($def_timeout) in seconds is provided, it is used | |
474 | when a timeout is not given to the ping() method (below). The timeout | |
475 | must be greater than 0 and the default, if not specified, is 5 seconds. | |
476 | ||
477 | If the number of data bytes ($bytes) is given, that many data bytes | |
478 | are included in the ping packet sent to the remote host. The number of | |
479 | data bytes is ignored if the protocol is "tcp". The minimum (and | |
480 | default) number of data bytes is 1 if the protocol is "udp" and 0 | |
481 | otherwise. The maximum number of data bytes that can be specified is | |
482 | 1024. | |
483 | ||
484 | =item $p->ping($host [, $timeout]); | |
485 | ||
486 | Ping the remote host and wait for a response. $host can be either the | |
487 | hostname or the IP number of the remote host. The optional timeout | |
488 | must be greater than 0 seconds and defaults to whatever was specified | |
489 | when the ping object was created. If the hostname cannot be found or | |
490 | there is a problem with the IP number, undef is returned. Otherwise, | |
491 | 1 is returned if the host is reachable and 0 if it is not. For all | |
492 | practical purposes, undef and 0 and can be treated as the same case. | |
493 | ||
494 | =item $p->close(); | |
495 | ||
496 | Close the network connection for this ping object. The network | |
497 | connection is also closed by "undef $p". The network connection is | |
498 | automatically closed if the ping object goes out of scope (e.g. $p is | |
499 | local to a subroutine and you leave the subroutine). | |
500 | ||
501 | =item pingecho($host [, $timeout]); | |
502 | ||
503 | To provide backward compatibility with the previous version of | |
504 | Net::Ping, a pingecho() subroutine is available with the same | |
505 | functionality as before. pingecho() uses the tcp protocol. The | |
506 | return values and parameters are the same as described for the ping() | |
507 | method. This subroutine is obsolete and may be removed in a future | |
508 | version of Net::Ping. | |
8e07c86e | 509 | |
a3b93737 | 510 | =back |
8e07c86e | 511 | |
3226bbec JH |
512 | =head1 WARNING |
513 | ||
514 | pingecho() or a ping object with the tcp protocol use alarm() to | |
515 | implement the timeout. So, don't use alarm() in your program while | |
516 | you are using pingecho() or a ping object with the tcp protocol. The | |
517 | udp and icmp protocols do not use alarm() to implement the timeout. | |
518 | ||
a3b93737 | 519 | =head1 NOTES |
8e07c86e | 520 | |
a3b93737 RM |
521 | There will be less network overhead (and some efficiency in your |
522 | program) if you specify either the udp or the icmp protocol. The tcp | |
523 | protocol will generate 2.5 times or more traffic for each ping than | |
524 | either udp or icmp. If many hosts are pinged frequently, you may wish | |
525 | to implement a small wait (e.g. 25ms or more) between each ping to | |
526 | avoid flooding your network with packets. | |
8e07c86e | 527 | |
a3b93737 | 528 | The icmp protocol requires that the program be run as root or that it |
3226bbec JH |
529 | be setuid to root. The tcp and udp protocols do not require special |
530 | privileges, but not all network devices implement the echo protocol | |
531 | for tcp or udp. | |
8e07c86e | 532 | |
a3b93737 RM |
533 | Local hosts should normally respond to pings within milliseconds. |
534 | However, on a very congested network it may take up to 3 seconds or | |
535 | longer to receive an echo packet from the remote host. If the timeout | |
536 | is set too low under these conditions, it will appear that the remote | |
537 | host is not reachable (which is almost the truth). | |
8e07c86e | 538 | |
a3b93737 | 539 | Reachability doesn't necessarily mean that the remote host is actually |
3226bbec | 540 | functioning beyond its ability to echo packets. |
8e07c86e | 541 | |
a3b93737 RM |
542 | Because of a lack of anything better, this module uses its own |
543 | routines to pack and unpack ICMP packets. It would be better for a | |
544 | separate module to be written which understands all of the different | |
545 | kinds of ICMP packets. | |
8e07c86e | 546 | |
3226bbec JH |
547 | =head1 AUTHOR(S) |
548 | ||
549 | Original pingecho(): | |
550 | Andreas Karrer (karrer@bernina.ethz.ch) | |
551 | Paul Marquess (pmarquess@bfsec.bt.co.uk) | |
552 | ||
553 | Net::Ping base code: | |
554 | Russell Mosemann (mose@ns.ccsn.edu) | |
555 | ||
556 | Compatibility porting so ping_tcp() | |
557 | can work with most remote systems: | |
558 | Rob Brown (rob@roobik.com) | |
559 | ||
560 | =head1 COPYRIGHT | |
561 | ||
562 | Copyright (c) 2001 Rob Brown. All rights reserved. | |
563 | ||
564 | Copyright (c) 1996 Russell Mosemann. All rights reserved. | |
565 | ||
566 | This program is free software; you may redistribute it and/or | |
567 | modify it under the same terms as Perl itself. | |
568 | ||
a3b93737 | 569 | =cut |