HOSTS.NNTP(5)HOSTS.NNTP(5)NAME
hosts.nntp, hosts.nntp.nolimit - list of hosts that feed NNTP news
DESCRIPTION
The file /var/spool/news/data/hosts.nntp is read by innd(8) to get the
list of hosts that feed the local site Usenet news using the NNTP pro‐
tocol. The server reads this file at start-up or when directed to by
ctlinnd(8). When a hosts connects to the NNTP port of the system on
which innd is running, the server will do a check to see if their
Internet address is the same as one of the hosts named in this file.
If the host is not mentioned, then innd will spawn an nnrpd(8) to
process the connection, with the accepted connection on standard input
and standard output.
Comments begin with a number sign (``#'') and continue through the end
of the line. Blank lines and comments also ignored. All other lines
should consist of two or three fields separated by a colon.
The first field should be either an Internet address in dotted-quad
format or an address that can be parsed by gethostbyname(3). If a
host's entry has multiple addresses, all of them will be added to the
access list. The second field, which may be blank, is the password the
foreign host is required to use when first connecting. The third
field, which may be omitted, is a list of newsgroups to which the host
may post articles. This list is parsed as a newsfeeds(5) subscription
list; groups not in the list are ignored.
Since innd is usually started at system boot time, the local nameserver
may not be fully operational when innd parses this file. As a work-
around, a ctlinnd ``reload'' command can be performed after a delay of
an hour or so. It is also possible to provide both a host's name and
its dotted-quad address in the file.
For example:
## FOO has a password, UUNET doesn't.
## UUNET cannot post to local group.s
## These are comment lines.
news.foo.com:magic
uunet.uu.net::!foo.*
If the file contains passwords, it should not be world-readable. The
file /var/spool/news/data/hosts.nntp.nolimit, if it exists is read
whenever the ``hosts.nntp'' file is read. It has the same format,
although only the first field is used. Any host mentioned in this file
is not subject to the incoming connections limit specified by innd's
``-c'' flag. This can be used to allow local hosts or time-sensitive
peers, to connect regardless of the local conditions.
HISTORY
Written by Rich $alz <rsalz@uunet.uu.net> for InterNetNews. This is
revision 1.17, dated 1993/03/18.
SEE ALSOctlinnd(8), innd(8), nnrpd(8).
HOSTS.NNTP(5)
