+.\" This manpage has been automatically generated by docbook2man
+.\" from a DocBook document. This tool can be found at:
+.\" <http://shell.ipoline.com/~elmert/comp/docbook2X/>
+.\" Please send any bug reports, improvements, comments, patches,
+.\" etc. to Steve Cheng <steve@ggi-project.org>.
+.TH "NBD-CLIENT" "8" "30 April 2009" "" ""
+
+.SH NAME
+nbd-client \- connect to a server running nbd-server(1), to use its exported block device
+.SH SYNOPSIS
+
+\fBnbd-client\fR [ \fBbs=\fIblocksize\fB\fR ] [ \fBtimeout=\fIseconds\fB\fR ] \fB\fIhost\fB\fR \fB\fIport\fB\fR \fB\fInbd-device\fB\fR [ \fB-sdp\fR ] [ \fB-swap\fR ] [ \fB-persist\fR ]
+
+
+\fBnbd-client\fR \fB-d \fInbd-device\fB\fR
+
+
+\fBnbd-client\fR \fB-c \fInbd-device\fB\fR
+
+.SH "DESCRIPTION"
+.PP
+With \fBnbd-client\fR, you can connect to a
+server running \fBnbd-server\fR, thus using raw
+diskspace from that server as a blockdevice on the local
+client.
+.PP
+To do this, support from the Linux Kernel is necessary, in
+the form of the Network Block Device (NBD). When you have that,
+either in the kernel, or as a module, you can connect to an NBD
+server and use its exported file through a block special file with
+major mode 43.
+.SH "OPTIONS"
+.PP
+The following options are supported:
+.TP
+\fBbs=\fIblocksize\fB\fR
+Use a blocksize of "blocksize". Default is 1024;
+allowed values are either 512, 1024, 2048 or 4096
+.TP
+\fBhost\fR
+The hostname of the machine running
+\fBnbd-server\fR\&.
+.TP
+\fBtimeout=\fIseconds\fB\fR
+Set the connection timeout to "seconds". For this to
+work, you need a kernel with support for the NBD_SET_TIMEOUT
+ioctl; this was introduced into Linus' tree on 2007-10-11,
+and will be part of kernel 2.6.24.
+.TP
+\fBport\fR
+The TCP port on which \fBnbd-server\fR is
+running at the server.
+.TP
+\fBnbd-device\fR
+The block special file this nbd-client should connect
+to.
+.TP
+\fB-c\fR
+Check whether the specified nbd device is
+connected.
+
+If the device is connected, nbd-client will exit
+with an exit state of 0 and print the PID of the nbd-client
+instance that connected it to stdout.
+
+If the device is not
+connected or does not exist (for example because the nbd
+module was not loaded), nbd-client will exit with an exit
+state of 1 and not print anything on stdout.
+
+If an error occurred, nbd-client will exit with an exit
+state of 2, and not print anything on stdout either.
+.TP
+\fB-d\fR
+Disconnect the specified nbd device from the
+server
+.TP
+\fB-persist\fR
+When this option is specified, nbd-client will
+immediately try to reconnect an nbd device if the
+connection ever drops unexpectedly due to a lost
+server or something similar.
+.TP
+\fB-sdp\fR
+Connect to the server using the Socket Direct Protocol
+(SDP), rather than IP. See nbd-server(1) for details.
+.TP
+\fB-swap\fR
+Specifies that this NBD device will be used as
+swapspace. If you intend to do that, please use this
+option to prevent deadlocks. You'll need a special kernel
+patch, available at NBD's homepage:
+http://atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~pavel
+.SH "EXAMPLES"
+.PP
+Some examples of nbd-client usage:
+.TP 0.2i
+\(bu
+To connect to a server running on port 2000 at host
+"server.domain.com", using the client's block special file
+"/dev/nb0":
+
+\fBnbd-client server.domain.com 2000
+/dev/nb0\fR
+.TP 0.2i
+\(bu
+To connect to a server running on port 2001 at host
+"swapserver.domain.com", using the client's block special
+file "/dev/nb1", for swap purposes:
+
+\fBnbd-client swapserver.domain.com 2001 /dev/nb1
+-swap\fR
+.TP 0.2i
+\(bu
+To disconnect the above connection again (after making
+sure the block special file is not in use anymore):
+
+\fBnbd-client -d /dev/nb1\fR
+.SH "SEE ALSO"
+.PP
+nbd-server (1).
+.SH "AUTHOR"
+.PP
+The NBD kernel module and the NBD tools have been written by
+Pavel Macheck (pavel@ucw.cz).
+.PP
+The kernel module is now maintained by Paul Clements
+(Paul.Clements@steeleye.com), while the userland tools are maintained by
+Wouter Verhelst (wouter@debian.org)
+.PP
+This manual page was written by Wouter Verhelst (<wouter@debian.org>) for
+the Debian GNU/Linux system (but may be used by others). Permission is
+granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the
+terms of the GNU General Public License,
+version 2, as published by the Free Software Foundation.