ovsdb-tool(1)

NAME
ovsdb-tool - Open vSwitch database management utility

SYNOPSIS
ovsdb-tool [options] create [db [schema]]
ovsdb-tool [options] compact [db [target]]
ovsdb-tool [options] convert [db [schema [target]]]
ovsdb-tool [options] needs-conversion [db [schema]]
ovsdb-tool [options] db-version [db]
ovsdb-tool [options] schema-version [schema]
ovsdb-tool [options] db-cksum [db]
ovsdb-tool [options] schema-cksum [schema]
ovsdb-tool [options] query [db] transaction
ovsdb-tool [options] transact [db] transaction
ovsdb-tool [options] [-m | --more]... show-log [db]
ovsdb-tool help

Logging options:
    [-v[module[:destination[:level]]]]...
    [--verbose[=module[:destination[:level]]]]...
    [--log-file[=file]]

Common options:
    [-h | --help] [-V | --version]

DESCRIPTION
The ovsdb-tool program is a command-line tool for managing Open vSwitch database (OVSDB) files. It does not interact directly with running Open vSwitch database servers (instead, use ovsdb-client).

  Basic Commands

create db schema
    Reads an OVSDB schema from the file named schema and creates a new OVSDB database file named db using that schema. The new database is initially empty. This command will not overwrite an existing db.

    schema must contain an OVSDB schema in JSON format. Refer to the OVSDB specification for details.

compact db [target]
    Reads db and writes a compacted version. If target is specified, the compacted version is written as a new file named target, which must not already exist. If target is omitted, then the compacted version of the database replaces db in-place.

  Version Management Commands

An OVSDB schema has a schema version number, and an OVSDB database embeds a particular version of an OVSDB schema. These version numbers take the form x.y.z, e.g. 1.2.3. The OVSDB implementation does not enforce a particular version numbering scheme, but schemas managed within the Open vSwitch project use the following approach. Whenever the database schema is changed in a non-backward compatible way (e.g. deleting a column or a table), x is incremented (and y and z are reset to 0). When the database schema is changed in a backward compatible way (e.g. adding a new column), y is incremented (and z is reset to 0). When the database schema is changed cosmetically (e.g. reindenting its syntax), z is incremented.

Some OVSDB databases and schemas, especially very old ones, do not have a version number.

These commands work with different versions of OVSDB schemas and databases.

convert db schema [target]
    Reads db, translating it into to the schema specified in schema, and writes out the new interpretation. If target is specified, the translated version is written as a new file named target, which must not already exist. If target is omitted, then the translated version of the database replaces db in-place.

    This command can do simple ``upgrades'' and ``downgrades'' on a database's schema. The data in db must be valid when interpreted under schema, with only one exception: data in db for tables and columns that do not exist in schema are ignored. Columns that exist in schema but not in db are set to their default values. All of schema's constraints apply in full.

needs-conversion db schema
    Reads the schema embedded in db and the standalone schema in schema and compares them. If the schemas are the same, prints no on stdout; if they differ, print yes.

db-version db
    Prints the version number in the schema embedded within the database db or in the standalone schema schema on stdout. A schema version number has the form x.y.z. See ovs-vswitchd.conf.db(5) for details.

    Schema version numbers and Open vSwitch version numbers are independent.

    If schema or db was created before schema versioning was introduced, then it will not have a version number and this command will print a blank line.

db-cksum db
    Prints the checksum in the schema embedded within the database db or of the standalone schema schema on stdout.

    If schema or db was created before schema checksums were introduced, then it will not have a checksum and this command will print a blank line.

  Other Commands

query db transaction
    Opens db, executes transaction on it, and prints the results. The transaction must be a JSON array in the format of the params array for the JSON-RPC transact method, as described in the OVSDB specification.

    The db is opened for read-only access, so this command may safely run concurrently with other database activity, including ovsdb-server and other database writers. The transaction may specify database modifications, but these will have no effect on db.

transact db transaction
    Opens db, executes transaction on it, prints the results, and commits any changes to db. The transaction must be a JSON array in the format of the params array for the JSON-RPC transact method, as described in the OVSDB specification.

    The db is opened and locked for read/write access, so this command will fail if the database is opened for writing by any other process, including ovsdb-server(1). Use ovsdb-client(1), instead, to write to a database that is served by ovsdb-server(1).

show-log db
    Prints a summary of the records in db's log, including the time and date at which each database change occurred and any associated comment. This may be useful for debugging.

    To increase the verbosity of output, add -m (or --more) one or more times to the command line. With one -m, show-log prints a summary of the records added, deleted, or modified by each transaction. With two -ms, show-log also prints the values of the columns modified by each change to a record.

OPTIONS

  Logging Options

-v[spec]
    Sets logging levels. Without any spec, sets the log level for every module and destination to dbg. Otherwise, spec is a list of words separated by spaces or commas or colons, up to one from each category below:

    •   A valid module name, as displayed by the vlog/list command on ovs-appctl(8), limits the log level change to the specified module.

    •   syslog, console, or file, to limit the log level change to only to the system log, to the console, or to a file, respectively. (If --detach is specified, ovsdb-tool closes its standard file descriptors, so logging to the console will have no effect.)

        On Windows platform, syslog is accepted as a word and is only useful along with the --syslog-target option (the word has no effect otherwise).

    •   off, emer, err, warn, info, or dbg, to control the log level. Messages of the given severity or higher will be logged, and messages of lower severity will be filtered out. off filters out all messages. See ovs-appctl(8) for a definition of each log level.

    Case is not significant within spec.

    Regardless of the log levels set for file, logging to a file will not take place unless --log-file is also specified (see below).

    For compatibility with older versions of OVS, any is accepted as a word but has no effect.

-v  Sets the maximum logging verbosity level, equivalent to --verbose=dbg.

-vPATTERN:destination:pattern
    Sets the log pattern for destination to pattern. Refer to ovs-appctl(8) for a description of the valid syntax for pattern.

-vFACILITY:facility
    Sets the RFC5424 facility of the log message. facility can be one of kern, user, mail, daemon, auth, syslog, lpr, news, uucp, clock, ftp, ntp, audit, alert, clock2, local0, local1, local2, local3, local4, local5, local6 or local7. If this option is not specified, daemon is used as the default for the local system syslog and local0 is used while sending a message to the target provided via the --syslog-target option.

--log-file[=file]
    Enables logging to a file. If file is specified, then it is used as the exact name for the log file. The default log file name used if file is omitted is /var/log/openvswitch/ovsdb-tool.log.

--syslog-target=host:port
    Send syslog messages to UDP port on host, in addition to the system syslog. The host must be a numerical IP address, not a hostname.

--syslog-method=method
    Specify method how syslog messages should be sent to syslog daemon. Following forms are supported:

    •   libc, use libc syslog() function. This is the default behavior. Downside of using this options is that libc adds fixed prefix to every message before it is actually sent to the syslog daemon over /dev/log UNIX domain socket.

    •   unix:file, use UNIX domain socket directly. It is possible to specify arbitrary message format with this option. However, rsyslogd 8.9 and older versions use hard coded parser function anyway that limits UNIX domain socket use. If you want to use arbitrary message format with older rsyslogd versions, then use UDP socket to localhost IP address instead.

    •   udp:ip:port, use UDP socket. With this method it is possible to use arbitrary message format also with older rsyslogd. When sending syslog messages over UDP socket extra precaution needs to be taken into account, for example, syslog daemon needs to be configured to listen on the specified UDP port, accidental iptables rules could be interfering with local syslog traffic and there are some security considerations that apply to UDP sockets, but do not apply to UNIX domain sockets.

  Other Options

-h  Prints a brief help message to the console.

-V  Prints version information to the console.

FILES
The default db is /etc/openvswitch/conf.db. The default schema is /usr/share/openvswitch/vswitch.ovsschema. The help command also displays these defaults.

SEE ALSO
ovsdb-server(1), ovsdb-client(1), and the OVSDB specification.