Network Auto-Magic

About Network Auto-Magic, aka NWAM

Network Auto-Magic is a project to simplify and automate network configuration on Solaris. Network Auto-Magic generally refers to Network Profiles, which allow users to specify various network configurations to be created depending on the current network conditions. The Service Discovery project, which incorporates Multicast DNS into Solaris, also fell under the Network Auto-Magic umbrella.

Solaris 11 Status

There has been minimal change to NWAM since Solaris 11 Express.  In a first step toward better alignment of network configuration features in Solaris, the separate service instance for NWAM, svc:/network/physical:nwam, was made obsolete.  svc:/network/physical:default should always be enabled; the style of configuration management (automatic, managed by the NWAM components, or manual, managed by ipadm) is determined by the active NCP.  Refer to the Solaris 11 Documentation for more details:

• Transitioning From S10 to S11: Managing Network Configuration
• Oracle Solaris Administration: Network Auto-Magic

Solaris 11 Express Status

NWAM Phase 1, which adds greater flexibility and configurability as well as a more complete User Interface integrated into nevada build 135.  Available phase 1 materials include:

• NWAM Guide
• NWAM GUI Manual
• Specification
• Source repository
• GUI Design
• PSARC Materials
• Troubleshooting Hints

Service Discovery integrated into nevada build 72. Refer to the Service Discovery section for more information about this component, including future directions.

Earlier Projects

NWAM Phase 0.5, or "picea," integrated into nevada build 100. This project included some much-needed improvements to phase 0, focusing primarily on improved observability by and interaction with the user. Available information about Phase 0.5 includes:

• Custom Link Configuration info
• Troubleshooting hints
• Uncommitted Tuning Variables
• Development details

NWAM Phase 0 integrated into nevada build 62. Additional information about phase 0, including how to enable it and some debugging tips, can be found here.

Archived Project Overviews

Renee Danson Sommerfeld and Anurag Maskey gave a presentation (PDF, 562KB) at the Solaris Network Forum on December 8, 2009.  The talk included an overview of Phase 1, and a demonstration of how NWAM Phase 1 manages configuration in various user scenarios.

Project lead Renee Danson gave a presentation (PDF, 248KB) at the Solaris Network Forum on December 11, 2007. The talk covered motivations for and goals of the NWAM project, as well as an overview of how we plan to address those in the various phases of the project.

Project lead emeritus John Beck gave a presentation (PDF, 210KB) to the Bay Area OpenSolaris user group meeting on March 22, 2007. The talk included a project overview as well as Phase 0 implementation details and future plans.

Background Information

Read the story boards to learn what we think the user experience ought to be like, and the Requirements which those stories imply for this project, then our Architecture for what we think our high-level design will look like.