ping.rb -- check a host for upness
SYNOPSIS
require 'ping'
print "'jimmy' is alive and kicking\n" if Ping.pingecho('jimmy', 10) ;
DESCRIPTION
This module contains routines to test for the reachability of remote hosts.
Currently the only routine implemented is pingecho().
pingecho() uses a TCP echo (I<not> an ICMP one) to determine if the
remote host is reachable. This is usually adequate to tell that a remote
host is available to rsh(1), ftp(1), or telnet(1) onto.
Parameters
: hostname
The remote host to check, specified either as a hostname or as an
IP address.
: timeout
The timeout in seconds. If not specified it will default to 5 seconds.
: service
The service port to connect. The default is "echo".
WARNING
pingecho() uses user-level thread to implement the timeout, so it may block
for long period if named does not respond for some reason.
end
Required files
timeout
socket