[sliver-openvswitch.git] / vtep / vtep-ctl.8.in

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.TH vtep\-ctl 8 "March 2013" "Open vSwitch" "Open vSwitch Manual"
.\" This program's name:
.ds PN vtep\-ctl
.\" SSL peer program's name:
.ds SN ovsdb\-server
.
.SH NAME
vtep\-ctl \- utility for querying and configuring a VTEP database
.
.SH SYNOPSIS
\fBvtep\-ctl\fR [\fIoptions\fR] \fB\-\-\fR [\fIoptions\fR] \fIcommand
\fR[\fIargs\fR] [\fB\-\-\fR [\fIoptions\fR] \fIcommand \fR[\fIargs\fR]]...
.
.SH DESCRIPTION
The \fBvtep\-ctl\fR program configures a VTEP database.
See \fBvtep\fR(5) for comprehensive documentation of
the database schema.
.PP
\fBvtep\-ctl\fR connects to an \fBovsdb\-server\fR process that
maintains a VTEP configuration database.  Using this connection, it
queries and possibly applies changes to the database, depending on the
supplied commands.
.PP
\fBvtep\-ctl\fR can perform any number of commands in a single run,
implemented as a single atomic transaction against the database.
.PP
The \fBvtep\-ctl\fR command line begins with global options (see
\fBOPTIONS\fR below for details).  The global options are followed by
one or more commands.  Each command should begin with \fB\-\-\fR by
itself as a command-line argument, to separate it from the following
commands.  (The \fB\-\-\fR before the first command is optional.)  The
command itself starts with command-specific options, if any, followed by
the command name and any arguments.  See \fBEXAMPLES\fR below for syntax
examples.
.
.SH OPTIONS
.
The following options affect the behavior \fBvtep\-ctl\fR as a whole.
Some individual commands also accept their own options, which are
given just before the command name.  If the first command on the
command line has options, then those options must be separated from
the global options by \fB\-\-\fR.
.
.IP "\fB\-\-db=\fIserver\fR"
Sets \fIserver\fR as the database server that \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
contacts to query or modify configuration.  The default is
\fBunix:@RUNDIR@/db.sock\fR.  \fIserver\fR must take one of the
following forms:
.RS
.so ovsdb/remote-active.man
.so ovsdb/remote-passive.man
.RE
.
.IP "\fB\-\-no\-syslog\fR"
By default, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR logs its arguments and the details of any
changes that it makes to the system log.  This option disables this
logging.
.IP
This option is equivalent to \fB\-\-verbose=vtep_ctl:syslog:warn\fR.
.
.IP "\fB\-\-oneline\fR"
Modifies the output format so that the output for each command is printed
on a single line.  New-line characters that would otherwise separate
lines are printed as \fB\\n\fR, and any instances of \fB\\\fR that
would otherwise appear in the output are doubled.
Prints a blank line for each command that has no output.
This option does not affect the formatting of output from the
\fBlist\fR or \fBfind\fR commands; see \fBTable Formatting Options\fR
below.
.
.IP "\fB\-\-dry\-run\fR"
Prevents \fBvtep\-ctl\fR from actually modifying the database.
.
.IP "\fB\-t \fIsecs\fR"
.IQ "\fB\-\-timeout=\fIsecs\fR"
By default, or with a \fIsecs\fR of \fB0\fR, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR waits
forever for a response from the database.  This option limits runtime
to approximately \fIsecs\fR seconds.  If the timeout expires,
\fBvtep\-ctl\fR will exit with a \fBSIGALRM\fR signal.  (A timeout
would normally happen only if the database cannot be contacted, or if
the system is overloaded.)
.
.SS "Table Formatting Options"
These options control the format of output from the \fBlist\fR and
\fBfind\fR commands.
.so lib/table.man
.
.SS "Public Key Infrastructure Options"
.so lib/ssl.man
.so lib/ssl-bootstrap.man
.so lib/ssl-peer-ca-cert.man
.so lib/vlog.man
.
.SH COMMANDS
The commands implemented by \fBvtep\-ctl\fR are described in the
sections below.
.
.SS "Physical Switch Commands"
These commands examine and manipulate physical switches.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-may\-exist\fR] \fBadd\-ps \fIpswitch\fR"
Creates a new physical switch named \fIpswitch\fR.  Initially the switch
will have no ports.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, attempting to create a switch that
exists is an error.  With \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, this command does
nothing if \fIpswitch\fR already exists.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR] \fBdel\-ps \fIpswitch\fR"
Deletes \fIpswitch\fR and all of its ports.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to delete a switch that does
not exist is an error.  With \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to
delete a switch that does not exist has no effect.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-ps\fR"
Lists all existing physical switches on standard output, one per line.
.
.IP "\fBps\-exists \fIpswitch\fR"
Tests whether \fIpswitch\fR exists.  If so, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR exits
successfully with exit code 0.  If not, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR exits
unsuccessfully with exit code 2.
.
.SS "Port Commands"
.
These commands examine and manipulate VTEP physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-ports \fIpswitch\fR"
Lists all of the ports within \fIpswitch\fR on standard output, one per
line.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-may\-exist\fR] \fBadd\-port \fIpswitch port\fR"
Creates on \fIpswitch\fR a new port named \fIport\fR from the network
device of the same name.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, attempting to create a port that exists
is an error.  With \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, this command does nothing if
\fIport\fR already exists on \fIpswitch\fR.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR] \fBdel\-port \fR[\fIpswitch\fR] \fIport\fR"
Deletes \fIport\fR.  If \fIpswitch\fR is omitted, \fIport\fR is removed
from whatever switch contains it; if \fIpswitch\fR is specified, it
must be the switch that contains \fIport\fR.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to delete a port that does
not exist is an error.  With \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to
delete a port that does not exist has no effect.
.
.SS "Logical Switch Commands"
These commands examine and manipulate logical switches.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-may\-exist\fR] \fBadd\-ls \fIlswitch\fR"
Creates a new logical switch named \fIlswitch\fR.  Initially the switch
will have no locator bindings.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, attempting to create a switch that
exists is an error.  With \fB\-\-may\-exist\fR, this command does
nothing if \fIlswitch\fR already exists.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR] \fBdel\-ls \fIlswitch\fR"
Deletes \fIlswitch\fR.
.IP
Without \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to delete a switch that does
not exist is an error.  With \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR, attempting to
delete a switch that does not exist has no effect.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-ls\fR"
Lists all existing logical switches on standard output, one per line.
.
.IP "\fBls\-exists \fIlswitch\fR"
Tests whether \fIlswitch\fR exists.  If so, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR exits
successfully with exit code 0.  If not, \fBvtep\-ctl\fR exits
unsuccessfully with exit code 2.
.
.IP "\fBbind\-ls \fIpswitch port vlan lswitch\fR"
Bind logical switch \fIlswitch\fR to the \fIport\fR/\fIvlan\fR
combination on the physical switch \fIpswitch\fR.
.
.IP "\fBunbind\-ls \fIpswitch port vlan\fR"
Remove the logical switch binding from the \fIport\fR/\fIvlan\fR
combination on the physical switch \fIpswitch\fR.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-bindings \fIpswitch port\fR"
List the logical switch bindings for \fIport\fR on the physical switch
\fIpswitch\fR.
.
.SS "Local MAC Binding Commands"
These commands examine and manipulate local MAC bindings for the logical
switch.  The local maps are written by the VTEP to refer to MACs it has
learned on its physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBadd\-ucast\-local \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Map the unicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR to the physical location
\fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR on \fIlswitch\fR.  If
\fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is "vxlan_over_ipv4".  The
local mappings are used by the VTEP to refer to MACs learned on its
physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBdel\-ucast\-local \fIlswitch mac\fR"
Remove the local unicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR map from
\fIlswitch\fR.  The local mappings are used by the VTEP to refer to MACs
learned on its physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBadd\-mcast\-local \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Add physical location \fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR to the
local mac binding table for multicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR on
\fIlswitch\fR.  If \fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is
"vxlan_over_ipv4".  The local mappings are used by the VTEP to refer to
MACs learned on its physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBdel\-mcast\-local \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Remove physical location \fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR from
the local mac binding table for multicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR on
\fIlswitch\fR.  If \fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is
"vxlan_over_ipv4".  The local mappings are used by the VTEP to refer to
MACs learned on its physical ports.
.
.IP "\fBclear\-local\-macs \fIlswitch\fR"
Clear the local MAC bindings for \fIlswitch\fR.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-local\-macs \fIlswitch\fR"
List the local MAC bindings for \fIlswitch\fR, one per line.
.
.SS "Remote MAC Binding Commands"
These commands examine and manipulate local and remote MAC bindings for
the logical switch.  The remote maps are written by the network
virtualization controller to refer to MACs that it has learned.
.
.IP "\fBadd\-ucast\-remote \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Map the unicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR to the physical location
\fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR on \fIlswitch\fR.  If
\fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is "vxlan_over_ipv4".  The
remote mappings are used by the network virtualization platform to refer
to MACs that it has learned.
.
.IP "\fBdel\-ucast\-remote \fIlswitch mac\fR"
Remove the remote unicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR map from
\fIlswitch\fR.  The remote mappings are used by the network
virtualization platform to refer to MACs that it has learned.
.
.IP "\fBadd\-mcast\-remote \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Add physical location \fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR to the
remote mac binding table for multicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR on
\fIlswitch\fR.  If \fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is
"vxlan_over_ipv4".  The remote mappings are used by the network
virtualization platform to refer to MACs that it has learned.
.
.IP "\fBdel\-mcast\-remote \fIlswitch mac\fR [\fIencap\fR] \fIip\fR"
Remove physical location \fIip\fR using encapsulation \fIencap\fR from
the remote mac binding table for multicast Ethernet address \fImac\fR on
\fIlswitch\fR.  If \fIencap\fR is not specified, the default is
"vxlan_over_ipv4".  The remote mappings are used by the network
virtualization platform to refer to MACs that it has learned.
.
.IP "\fBclear\-remote\-macs \fIlswitch\fR"
Clear the remote MAC bindings for \fIlswitch\fR.
.
.IP "\fBlist\-remote\-macs \fIlswitch\fR"
List the remote MAC bindings for \fIlswitch\fR, one per line.
.
.SS "Manager Connectivity"
.
These commands manipulate the \fBmanagers\fR column in the \fBGlobal\fR
table and rows in the \fBManagers\fR table.  When \fBovsdb\-server\fR is
configured to use the \fBmanagers\fR column for OVSDB connections (as
described in \fBINSTALL.Linux\fR and in the startup scripts provided
with Open vSwitch), this allows the administrator to use \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
to configure database connections.
.
.IP "\fBget\-manager\fR"
Prints the configured manager(s).
.
.IP "\fBdel\-manager\fR"
Deletes the configured manager(s).
.
.IP "\fBset\-manager\fR \fItarget\fR\&..."
Sets the configured manager target or targets.  Each \fItarget\fR may
use any of the following forms:
.
.RS
.so ovsdb/remote-active.man
.so ovsdb/remote-passive.man
.RE
.
.SS "Database Commands"
.
These commands query and modify the contents of \fBovsdb\fR tables.
They are a slight abstraction of the \fBovsdb\fR interface and as such
they operate at a lower level than other \fBvtep\-ctl\fR commands.
.PP
.ST "Identifying Tables, Records, and Columns"
.PP
Each of these commands has a \fItable\fR parameter to identify a table
within the database.  Many of them also take a \fIrecord\fR parameter
that identifies a particular record within a table.  The \fIrecord\fR
parameter may be the UUID for a record, and many tables offer
additional ways to identify records.  Some commands also take
\fIcolumn\fR parameters that identify a particular field within the
records in a table.
.PP
The following tables are currently defined:
.IP "\fBGlobal\fR"
Top-level configuration for a hardware VTEP.  This table contains
exactly one record, identified by specifying \fB.\fR as the record name.
.IP "\fBManager\fR"
Configuration for an OVSDB connection.  Records may be identified
by target (e.g. \fBtcp:1.2.3.4\fR).
.IP "\fBPhysical_Switch\fR"
A physical switch that implements a VTEP.  Records may be identified by
physical switch name.
.IP "\fBPhysical_Port\fR"
A port within a physical switch.
.IP "\fBLogical_Binding_Stats\fR"
Reports statistics for the logical switch with which a VLAN on a
physical port is associated.
.IP "\fBLogical_Switch\fR"
A logical Ethernet switch.  Records may be identified by logical switch
name.
.IP "\fBUcast_Macs_Local\fR"
Mapping of locally discovered unicast MAC addresses to tunnels.
.IP "\fBUcast_Macs_Remote\fR"
Mapping of remotely programmed unicast MAC addresses to tunnels.
.IP "\fBMcast_Macs_Local\fR"
Mapping of locally discovered multicast MAC addresses to tunnels.
.IP "\fBMcast_Macs_Remote\fR"
Mapping of remotely programmed multicast MAC addresses to tunnels.
.IP "\fBPhysical_Locator_Set\fR"
A set of one or more physical locators.
.IP "\fBPhysical_Locator\fR"
Identifies an endpoint to which logical switch traffic may be
encapsulated and forwarded.  Records may be identified by physical
locator name.
.PP
Record names must be specified in full and with correct
capitalization.  Names of tables and columns are not case-sensitive,
and \fB\-\-\fR and \fB_\fR are treated interchangeably.  Unique
abbreviations are acceptable, e.g. \fBman\fR or \fBm\fR is sufficient
to identify the \fBManager\fR table.
.
.ST "Database Values"
.PP
Each column in the database accepts a fixed type of data.  The
currently defined basic types, and their representations, are:
.IP "integer"
A decimal integer in the range \-2**63 to 2**63\-1, inclusive.
.IP "real"
A floating-point number.
.IP "Boolean"
True or false, written \fBtrue\fR or \fBfalse\fR, respectively.
.IP "string"
An arbitrary Unicode string, except that null bytes are not allowed.
Quotes are optional for most strings that begin with an English letter
or underscore and consist only of letters, underscores, hyphens, and
periods.  However, \fBtrue\fR and \fBfalse\fR and strings that match
the syntax of UUIDs (see below) must be enclosed in double quotes to
distinguish them from other basic types.  When double quotes are used,
the syntax is that of strings in JSON, e.g. backslashes may be used to
escape special characters.  The empty string must be represented as a
pair of double quotes (\fB""\fR).
.IP "UUID"
Either a universally unique identifier in the style of RFC 4122,
e.g. \fBf81d4fae\-7dec\-11d0\-a765\-00a0c91e6bf6\fR, or an \fB@\fIname\fR
defined by a \fBget\fR or \fBcreate\fR command within the same \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
invocation.
.PP
Multiple values in a single column may be separated by spaces or a
single comma.  When multiple values are present, duplicates are not
allowed, and order is not important.  Conversely, some database
columns can have an empty set of values, represented as \fB[]\fR, and
square brackets may optionally enclose other non-empty sets or single
values as well.
.PP
A few database columns are ``maps'' of key-value pairs, where the key
and the value are each some fixed database type.  These are specified
in the form \fIkey\fB=\fIvalue\fR, where \fIkey\fR and \fIvalue\fR
follow the syntax for the column's key type and value type,
respectively.  When multiple pairs are present (separated by spaces or
a comma), duplicate keys are not allowed, and again the order is not
important.  Duplicate values are allowed.  An empty map is represented
as \fB{}\fR.  Curly braces may optionally enclose non-empty maps as
well (but use quotes to prevent the shell from expanding
\fBother-config={0=x,1=y}\fR into \fBother-config=0=x
other-config=1=y\fR, which may not have the desired effect).
.
.ST "Database Command Syntax"
.IP "[\fB\-\-columns=\fIcolumn\fR[\fB,\fIcolumn\fR]...] \fBlist \fItable \fR[\fIrecord\fR]..."
Lists the data in each specified \fIrecord\fR.  If no
records are specified, lists all the records in \fItable\fR.
.IP
If \fB\-\-columns\fR is specified, only the requested columns are
listed, in the specified order.  Otherwise, all columns are listed, in
alphabetical order by column name.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-columns=\fIcolumn\fR[\fB,\fIcolumn\fR]...] \fBfind \fItable \fR[\fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]\fB=\fIvalue\fR]..."
Lists the data in each record in \fItable\fR whose \fIcolumn\fR equals
\fIvalue\fR or, if \fIkey\fR is specified, whose \fIcolumn\fR contains
a \fIkey\fR with the specified \fIvalue\fR.  The following operators
may be used where \fB=\fR is written in the syntax summary:
.RS
.IP "\fB= != < > <= >=\fR"
Selects records in which \fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR] equals, does not
equal, is less than, is greater than, is less than or equal to, or is
greater than or equal to \fIvalue\fR, respectively.
.IP
Consider \fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR] and \fIvalue\fR as sets of
elements.  Identical sets are considered equal.  Otherwise, if the
sets have different numbers of elements, then the set with more
elements is considered to be larger.  Otherwise, consider a element
from each set pairwise, in increasing order within each set.  The
first pair that differs determines the result.  (For a column that
contains key-value pairs, first all the keys are compared, and values
are considered only if the two sets contain identical keys.)
.IP "\fB{=} {!=}\fR"
Test for set equality or inequality, respectively.
.IP "\fB{<=}\fR"
Selects records in which \fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR] is a subset of
\fIvalue\fR.  For example, \fBflood-vlans{<=}1,2\fR selects records in
which the \fBflood-vlans\fR column is the empty set or contains 1 or 2
or both.
.IP "\fB{<}\fR"
Selects records in which \fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR] is a proper
subset of \fIvalue\fR.  For example, \fBflood-vlans{<}1,2\fR selects
records in which the \fBflood-vlans\fR column is the empty set or
contains 1 or 2 but not both.
.IP "\fB{>=} {>}\fR"
Same as \fB{<=}\fR and \fB{<}\fR, respectively, except that the
relationship is reversed.  For example, \fBflood-vlans{>=}1,2\fR
selects records in which the \fBflood-vlans\fR column contains both 1
and 2.
.RE
.IP
For arithmetic operators (\fB= != < > <= >=\fR), when \fIkey\fR is
specified but a particular record's \fIcolumn\fR does not contain
\fIkey\fR, the record is always omitted from the results.  Thus, the
condition \fBother-config:mtu!=1500\fR matches records that have a
\fBmtu\fR key whose value is not 1500, but not those that lack an
\fBmtu\fR key.
.IP
For the set operators, when \fIkey\fR is specified but a particular
record's \fIcolumn\fR does not contain \fIkey\fR, the comparison is
done against an empty set.  Thus, the condition
\fBother-config:mtu{!=}1500\fR matches records that have a \fBmtu\fR
key whose value is not 1500 and those that lack an \fBmtu\fR key.
.IP
Don't forget to escape \fB<\fR or \fB>\fR from interpretation by the
shell.
.IP
If \fB\-\-columns\fR is specified, only the requested columns are
listed, in the specified order.  Otherwise all columns are listed, in
alphabetical order by column name.
.IP
The UUIDs shown for rows created in the same \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
invocation will be wrong.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-id=@\fIname\fR] [\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR] \fBget \fItable record \fR[\fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]]..."
Prints the value of each specified \fIcolumn\fR in the given
\fIrecord\fR in \fItable\fR.  For map columns, a \fIkey\fR may
optionally be specified, in which case the value associated with
\fIkey\fR in the column is printed, instead of the entire map.
.IP
For a map column, without \fB\-\-if\-exists\fR it is an error if
\fIkey\fR does not exist; with it, a blank line is printed.  If
\fIcolumn\fR is not a map column or if \fIkey\fR is not specified,
\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR has no effect.
.IP
If \fB@\fIname\fR is specified, then the UUID for \fIrecord\fR may be
referred to by that name later in the same \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
invocation in contexts where a UUID is expected.
.IP
Both \fB\-\-id\fR and the \fIcolumn\fR arguments are optional, but
usually at least one or the other should be specified.  If both are
omitted, then \fBget\fR has no effect except to verify that
\fIrecord\fR exists in \fItable\fR.
.
.IP "\fBset \fItable record column\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]\fB=\fIvalue\fR..."
Sets the value of each specified \fIcolumn\fR in the given
\fIrecord\fR in \fItable\fR to \fIvalue\fR.  For map columns, a
\fIkey\fR may optionally be specified, in which case the value
associated with \fIkey\fR in that column is changed (or added, if none
exists), instead of the entire map.
.
.IP "\fBadd \fItable record column \fR[\fIkey\fB=\fR]\fIvalue\fR..."
Adds the specified value or key-value pair to \fIcolumn\fR in
\fIrecord\fR in \fItable\fR.  If \fIcolumn\fR is a map, then \fIkey\fR
is required, otherwise it is prohibited.  If \fIkey\fR already exists
in a map column, then the current \fIvalue\fR is not replaced (use the
\fBset\fR command to replace an existing value).
.
.IP "\fBremove \fItable record column \fR\fIvalue\fR..."
.IQ "\fBremove \fItable record column \fR\fIkey\fR..."
.IQ "\fBremove \fItable record column \fR\fIkey\fB=\fR\fIvalue\fR..."
Removes the specified values or key-value pairs from \fIcolumn\fR in
\fIrecord\fR in \fItable\fR.  The first form applies to columns that
are not maps: each specified \fIvalue\fR is removed from the column.
The second and third forms apply to map columns: if only a \fIkey\fR
is specified, then any key-value pair with the given \fIkey\fR is
removed, regardless of its value; if a \fIvalue\fR is given then a
pair is removed only if both key and value match.
.IP
It is not an error if the column does not contain the specified key or
value or pair.
.
.IP "\fBclear\fR \fItable record column\fR..."
Sets each \fIcolumn\fR in \fIrecord\fR in \fItable\fR to the empty set
or empty map, as appropriate.  This command applies only to columns
that are allowed to be empty.
.
.IP "[\fB\-\-id=@\fIname\fR] \fBcreate\fR \fItable column\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]\fB=\fIvalue\fR..."
Creates a new record in \fItable\fR and sets the initial values of
each \fIcolumn\fR.  Columns not explicitly set will receive their
default values.  Outputs the UUID of the new row.
.IP
If \fB@\fIname\fR is specified, then the UUID for the new row may be
referred to by that name elsewhere in the same \fBvtep\-ctl\fR
invocation in contexts where a UUID is expected.  Such references may
precede or follow the \fBcreate\fR command.
.IP
Records in the Open vSwitch database are significant only when they
can be reached directly or indirectly from the \fBOpen_vSwitch\fR
table.  Except for records in the \fBQoS\fR or \fBQueue\fR tables,
records that are not reachable from the \fBOpen_vSwitch\fR table are
automatically deleted from the database.  This deletion happens
immediately, without waiting for additional \fBvtep\-ctl\fR commands
or other database activity.  Thus, a \fBcreate\fR command must
generally be accompanied by additional commands \fIwithin the same
\fBvtep\-ctl\fI invocation\fR to add a chain of references to the
newly created record from the top-level \fBOpen_vSwitch\fR record.
The \fBEXAMPLES\fR section gives some examples that show how to do
this.
.
.IP "\fR[\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR] \fBdestroy \fItable record\fR..."
Deletes each specified \fIrecord\fR from \fItable\fR.  Unless
\fB\-\-if\-exists\fR is specified, each \fIrecord\fRs must exist.
.IP "\fB\-\-all destroy \fItable\fR"
Deletes all records from the \fItable\fR.
.IP
The \fBdestroy\fR command is only useful for records in the \fBQoS\fR
or \fBQueue\fR tables.  Records in other tables are automatically
deleted from the database when they become unreachable from the
\fBOpen_vSwitch\fR table.  This means that deleting the last reference
to a record is sufficient for deleting the record itself.  For records
in these tables, \fBdestroy\fR is silently ignored.  See the
\fBEXAMPLES\fR section below for more information.
.
.IP "\fBwait\-until \fItable record \fR[\fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]\fB=\fIvalue\fR]..."
Waits until \fItable\fR contains a record named \fIrecord\fR whose
\fIcolumn\fR equals \fIvalue\fR or, if \fIkey\fR is specified, whose
\fIcolumn\fR contains a \fIkey\fR with the specified \fIvalue\fR.  Any
of the operators \fB!=\fR, \fB<\fR, \fB>\fR, \fB<=\fR, or \fB>=\fR may
be substituted for \fB=\fR to test for inequality, less than, greater
than, less than or equal to, or greater than or equal to,
respectively.  (Don't forget to escape \fB<\fR or \fB>\fR from
interpretation by the shell.)
.IP
If no \fIcolumn\fR[\fB:\fIkey\fR]\fB=\fIvalue\fR arguments are given,
this command waits only until \fIrecord\fR exists.  If more than one
such argument is given, the command waits until all of them are
satisfied.
.IP
Consider specifying \fB\-\-timeout=0\fR along with
\fB\-\-wait\-until\fR, to prevent \fBvtep\-ctl\fR from terminating
after waiting only at most 5 seconds.
.IP "\fBcomment \fR[\fIarg\fR]..."
This command has no effect on behavior, but any database log record
created by the command will include the command and its arguments.
.PP
.SH "EXIT STATUS"
.IP "0"
Successful program execution.
.IP "1"
Usage, syntax, or configuration file error.
.IP "2"
The \fIswitch\fR argument to \fBps\-exists\fR specified the name of a
physical switch that does not exist.
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.
.BR ovsdb\-server (1),
.BR vtep (5).