NetworkManager on routers

[Philip Boulain <philip boulain smoothwall net>]

Hi,

I know NetworkManager's main design goal is to be a daemon to manage
network connections on a *client* machine, and get them a working
Internet connection out under changing circumstances.

How suitable do you feel that it is to use NetworkManager in a
*router* role, where it is being asked to apply and respond to queries
about an arbitrary number of more complicated devices and connections?

I am investigating redesigning how we handle interfaces on an embedded
router/firewall product, and our requirements at a low level are some
form of daemon which can be instructed to bring up network interfaces
with given configurations (which may be static IP, DHCP, etc.), and
can be queried for information about them (e.g. address allocated by
the DHCP server). At a rough level, NM does fit this bill, and to a
large extent its "desktop-y" behaviour can be disabled by setting
devices to manual or unmanaged (and we may want to do so for
complicated VPN/bridge/bonding configurations if NM can't or shouldn't
be expanded to fit our needs here), but I am interested in opinions on
the idea from your end: how plausible does this sound?

-- 
Dr. Philip Boulain
Developer
philip boulain smoothwall net

Smoothwall Ltd
Phone: +44 (0) 8701 999500
www.smoothwall.net

Smoothwall Limited is registered in England, Company Number: 4298247
and whose registered address is 1 John Charles Way, Leeds, LS12 6QA
United Kingdom
Any opinions stated in this message are solely those of the author.