Inspect and configure a TIPC cluster with tipc

You will use tipc(8) to see the local TIPC node, its bearers and links, inspect published services, and understand the commands used to create a UDP bearer. The examples target Ubuntu's iproute2 package version 6.1.0-1ubuntu6.4. They are useful for a planned change, but do not silently turn a host into a cluster member.

Allow about 15 minutes for inspection. Configuration takes longer because the peer addresses, network identity and firewall policy must come from your TIPC design. Run read-only commands as an ordinary user first. Commands that change node or bearer state normally need root privileges.

1. Check the command and kernel support

Start with the command's own help. The general syntax is tipc [options] command arguments. The top-level commands are bearer, link, media, nametable, node and socket.

tipc --help
tipc node --help
tipc bearer --help

Help is attached to the last valid command, so tipc bearer --help is more useful than adding the option at the beginning. The option may appear elsewhere in the command chain. On a host without the TIPC netlink family, commands can fail with a message such as Unable to get TIPC nl family id. That means the installed client cannot reach the running kernel's TIPC support; it is not evidence that a bearer is configured.

2. Record the node and media state

Capture the node identity, network identity, available media and configured bearers. These commands do not change state.

tipc node get address
tipc node get netid
tipc node list
tipc media list
tipc bearer list

A TIPC logical address has the form x.y.z. The network identity separates TIPC clusters sharing the same underlying media. Media properties provide defaults for bearers subsequently enabled on that media. Bearer properties then provide defaults inherited by links created afterwards, so a value shown in a later link is not necessarily the value you intended to set directly on that link.

An empty list is meaningful. It can indicate a new or inactive node, while a command failure indicates a support or privilege problem. Keep this output with the change record so that a later comparison has a baseline.

3. Inspect links and services

Use links to distinguish a functioning path from a merely configured bearer.

tipc link list
tipc link statistics show
tipc link monitor summary
tipc nametable show
tipc socket list

Link statistics show traffic and states such as ACTIVE and STANDBY. An active link serves traffic. A standby link keeps control traffic flowing and can take over when the active link fails. The nametable shows published TIPC names: type, instance bounds, port identity, publication and scope. The socket list shows the local port view, including bound and connected sockets.

For scripts, request JSON where the subcommand supports it:

tipc -j link list
tipc -j -p nametable show

-j selects JSON and -p makes it readable. Compact JSON is the default. Treat field names as version-specific when writing automation, and check the command exit status as well as its output.

4. Plan a UDP bearer before enabling it

TIPC can use Ethernet, InfiniBand or UDP media. For a routed or otherwise IP-connected design, the bearer syntax uses a logical name and a local IPv4 or IPv6 address:

sudo tipc bearer enable media udp name TIPC_SITE_A localip 192.0.2.10 localport 6118

Replace the example address and name with values from your design. The local and remote UDP ports default to 6118 when omitted. With no remoteip, the bearer uses multicast discovery. Supplying a remoteip selects point-to-point operation. Multiple unicast peers create replicast behaviour, which is not the same as IP multicast.

After a planned change, verify the bearer and links:

tipc bearer list
tipc link list
tipc link monitor summary

Seeing a bearer is not enough. A healthy result should also show the expected peer or link state. If the peer is absent, check addressing, network identity, UDP reachability and the selected discovery mode before retrying.

5. Change node and link defaults deliberately

Node settings are cluster-wide identity choices from the local node's perspective. Set them only during a maintenance window:

sudo tipc node set netid 12345
tipc node get netid

The command accepts either netid or a logical address. Changing identity can isolate the node from existing peers, so the recovery is to restore the previously recorded value, not to guess a new one.

Link properties include priority, tolerance and window. Priority ranges from 0 to 31; tolerance is the maximum communication-problem time in milliseconds before the link is taken down, and the documented default tolerance is 1500 milliseconds. Inspect a link before changing it:

tipc link get priority link LINK_NAME
tipc link get tolerance link LINK_NAME
sudo tipc link set tolerance 1500 link LINK_NAME

Replace LINK_NAME with the link identifier returned by your local listing. The last command is an example of restoring the documented tolerance value, not a universal repair. A lower tolerance can make transient network faults look like peer failures.

6. Disable or remove only what you can identify

Disabling a bearer interrupts the links that depend on it. Record the current list first, then use the exact media and identifier:

tipc bearer list
sudo tipc bearer disable media udp name TIPC_SITE_A
tipc bearer list
tipc link list

The undo action is to enable the same bearer with the same local address, ports and peer settings. If a peer is known to be offline and remains in local data structures, tipc peer remove address X.Y.Z removes that offline peer. Use it only after confirming the address and its offline status; it is not a way to disconnect a live node.