CHAPTER

SEVEN

CONFIGURATION OVERVIEW

VyOS makes use of a unified configuration file for the entire system’s configuration: /config/[Link]. This
allows easy template creation, backup, and replication of system configuration. A system can thus also be easily cloned
by simply copying the required configuration files.

7.1 Terminology

A VyOS system has three major types of configurations:

• Active or running configuration is the system configuration that is loaded and currently active (used by VyOS).
Any change in the configuration will have to be committed to belong to the active/running configuration.
• Working configuration is the one that is currently being modified in configuration mode. Changes made to
the working configuration do not go into effect until the changes are committed with the commit command. At
which time the working configuration will become the active or running configuration.
• Saved configuration is the one saved to a file using the save command. It allows you to keep safe a configuration
for future uses. There can be multiple configuration files. The default or “boot” configuration is saved and loaded
from the file /config/[Link].
show configuration
View the current active configuration, also known as the running configuration, from the operational mode.

vyos@vyos:~$ show configuration

interfaces {
ethernet eth0 {
address dhcp
hw-id 00:53:00:00:aa:01
}
loopback lo {
}
}
service {
ssh {
port 22
}
}
system {
config-management {
commit-revisions 20
}
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console {
device ttyS0 {
speed 9600
}
}
login {
user vyos {
authentication {
encrypted-password ****************
}
level admin
}
}
ntp {
server [Link] {
}
server [Link] {
}
server [Link] {
}
}
syslog {
global {
facility all {
level notice
}
facility protocols {
level debug
}
}
}
}

By default, the configuration is displayed in a hierarchy like the above example, this is only one of the possible ways to
display the configuration. When the configuration is generated and the device is configured, changes are added through
a collection of set and delete commands.
show configuration commands
Get a collection of all the set commands required which led to the running configuration.

vyos@vyos:~$ show configuration commands

set interfaces ethernet eth0 address 'dhcp'
set interfaces ethernet eth0 hw-id '00:53:dd:44:3b:0f'
set interfaces loopback 'lo'
set service ssh port '22'
set system config-management commit-revisions '20'
set system console device ttyS0 speed '9600'
set system login user vyos authentication encrypted-password '$6$Vt68...QzF0'
set system login user vyos level 'admin'
set system ntp server '[Link]'
set system ntp server '[Link]'
set system ntp server '[Link]'
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set system syslog global facility all level 'notice'
set system syslog global facility protocols level 'debug'

Both these show commands should be executed when in operational mode, they do not work directly in configuration
mode. There is a special way on how to :ref:run_opmode_from_config_mode.

Hint: Use the show configuration commands | strip-private command when you want to hide private data.
You may want to do so if you want to share your configuration on the forum.

show configuration json

View the current active configuration in JSON format.

{"interfaces": {"ethernet": {"eth0": {"address": ["[Link]/24", "[Link]/24"],

˓→ "hw-id": "52:54:00:48:a0:c6"}, "eth1": {"address": ["[Link]/24"], "hw-id":

˓→"52:54:00:fc:50:0b"}}, "loopback": {"lo": {}}}, "protocols": {"static": {"route":

˓→{"[Link]/0": {"next-hop": {"[Link]": {}}}}}}, "service": {"ssh": {"disable-

˓→host-validation": {}}}, "system": {"config-management": {"commit-revisions": "100

˓→"}, "console": {"device": {"ttyS0": {"speed": "115200"}}}, "host-name": "r11-vyos

˓→", "login": {"user": {"vyos": {"authentication": {"encrypted-password": "$6$Vt68..

˓→.F0", "plaintext-password": "", "public-keys": {"vyos@vyos": {"key": "AAAAxxx=",

˓→"type": "ssh-rsa"}}}}}}, "name-server": ["[Link]"], "ntp": {"server": {

˓→"[Link]": {}, "[Link]": {}, "[Link]": {}}}, "syslog": {

˓→"global": {"facility": {"all": {"level": "info"}, "protocols": {"level": "debug"}}

˓→}}, "time-zone": "America/New_York"}}

show configuration json pretty

View the current active configuration in readable JSON format.

{
"interfaces": {
"ethernet": {
"eth0": {
"address": [
"[Link]/24",
"[Link]/24"
],
"hw-id": "52:54:00:48:a0:c6"
},
"eth1": {
"address": [
"[Link]/24"
],
"hw-id": "52:54:00:fc:50:0b"
}
},
"loopback": {
"lo": {}
}
},
"protocols": {
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"static": {
"route": {
"[Link]/0": {
"next-hop": {
"[Link]": {}
}
}
}
}
},
"service": {
"ssh": {
"disable-host-validation": {}
}
},
"system": {
"config-management": {
"commit-revisions": "100"
},
"console": {
"device": {
"ttyS0": {
"speed": "115200"
}
}
},
"host-name": "r11-vyos",
"login": {
"user": {
"vyos": {
"authentication": {
"encrypted-password": "$6$Vt68...F0",
"plaintext-password": "",
"public-keys": {
"vyos@vyos": {
"key": "AAAAxxx=",
"type": "ssh-rsa"
}
}
}
}
}
},
"name-server": [
"[Link]"
],
"ntp": {
"server": {
"[Link]": {},
"[Link]": {},
"[Link]": {}
}
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},
"syslog": {
"global": {
"facility": {
"all": {
"level": "info"
},
"protocols": {
"level": "debug"
}
}
}
},
"time-zone": "America/New_York"
}
}

When entering the configuration mode you are navigating inside a tree structure, to enter configuration mode enter the
command configure when in operational mode.

vyos@vyos$ configure
[edit]
vyos@vyos#

Note: When going into configuration mode, prompt changes from $ to #.

All commands executed here are relative to the configuration level you have entered. You can do everything from the
top level, but commands will be quite lengthy when manually typing them.
The current hierarchy level can be changed by the edit command.

[edit]
vyos@vyos# edit interfaces ethernet eth0

[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]

vyos@vyos#

You are now in a sublevel relative to interfaces ethernet eth0, all commands executed from this point on are
relative to this sublevel. Use either the top or exit command to go back to the top of the hierarchy. You can also use
the up command to move only one level up at a time.
show
The show command within configuration mode will show the working configuration indicating line changes with + for
additions, > for replacements and - for deletions.
Example:

vyos@vyos:~$ configure
[edit]
vyos@vyos# show interfaces
ethernet eth0 {
description MY_OLD_DESCRIPTION
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disable
hw-id 00:53:dd:44:3b:03
}
loopback lo {
}
[edit]
vyos@vyos# set interfaces ethernet eth0 address dhcp
[edit]
vyos@vyos# set interfaces ethernet eth0 description MY_NEW_DESCRIPTION
[edit]
vyos@vyos# delete interfaces ethernet eth0 disable
[edit]
vyos@vyos# show interfaces
ethernet eth0 {
+ address dhcp
> description MY_NEW_DESCRIPTION
- disable
hw-id 00:53:dd:44:3b:03
}
loopback lo {
}

It is also possible to display all set commands within configuration mode using show | commands

vyos@vyos# show interfaces ethernet eth0 | commands

set address dhcp
set hw-id 00:53:ad:44:3b:03

These commands are also relative to the level you are inside and only relevant configuration blocks will be displayed
when entering a sub-level.

[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]

vyos@vyos# show
address dhcp
hw-id 00:53:ad:44:3b:03

Exiting from the configuration mode is done via the exit command from the top level, executing exit from within a
sub-level takes you back to the top level.

[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]

vyos@vyos# exit
[edit]
vyos@vyos# exit
Warning: configuration changes have not been saved.

The configuration can be edited by the use of set and delete commands from within configuration mode.
set
Use this command to set the value of a parameter or to create a new element.
Configuration commands are flattened from the tree into ‘one-liner’ commands shown in show configuration
commands from operation mode. Commands are relative to the level where they are executed and all redundant in-
formation from the current level is removed from the command entered.

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[edit]
vyos@vyos# set interface ethernet eth0 address [Link]/24

[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]

vyos@vyos# set address [Link]/24

These two commands above are essentially the same, just executed from different levels in the hierarchy.
delete
To delete a configuration entry use the delete command, this also deletes all sub-levels under the current level
you’ve specified in the delete command. Deleting an entry will also result in the element reverting back to its
default value if one exists.

[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]

vyos@vyos# delete address [Link]/24

commit
Any change you do on the configuration, will not take effect until committed using the commit command in
configuration mode.

vyos@vyos# commit
[edit]
vyos@vyos# exit
Warning: configuration changes have not been saved.
vyos@vyos:~$

Hint: You can specify a commit message with commit comment <message>.

save
Use this command to preserve configuration changes upon reboot. By default it is stored at /config/[Link].
In the case you want to store the configuration file somewhere else, you can add a local path, a SCP address, a
FTP address or a TFTP address.

vyos@vyos# save
Saving configuration to '/config/[Link]'...
Done

vyos@vyos# save [tab]

Possible completions:
<Enter> Save to system config file
<file> Save to file on local machine
scp://<user>:<passwd>@<host>:/<file> Save to file on remote machine
[Link] Save to file on remote machine
t[Link] Save to file on remote machine
vyos@vyos# save t[Link]
Saving configuration to 't[Link]
######################################################################## 100.0%
Done

exit [discard]

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Configuration mode can not be exited while uncommitted changes exist. To exit configuration mode without
applying changes, the exit discard command must be used.
All changes in the working config will thus be lost.

vyos@vyos# exit
Cannot exit: configuration modified.
Use 'exit discard' to discard the changes and exit.
[edit]
vyos@vyos# exit discard

commit-confirm <minutes>
Use this command to temporarily commit your changes and set the number of minutes available for confirmation.
confirm must be entered within those minutes, otherwise the system will revert into a previous configuration.
The default value is 10 minutes.
The definition of ‘revert’ and ‘a previous configuration’ depends on the setting:

vyos@vyos# set system config-management commit-confirm action

Possible completions:
reload Reload previous configuration if not confirmed
reboot Reboot to saved configuration if not confirmed (default)

Note that ‘reload’ loads the most recent completed configuration and does not require a reboot.
What if you are doing something dangerous? Suppose you want to setup a firewall, and you are not sure
there are no mistakes that will lock you out of your system. You can use confirmed commit. If you issue the
commit-confirm command, your changes will be committed, and if you don’t issue the confirm command in
10 minutes, your system will reboot into previous config revision.

vyos@router# set firewall interface eth0 local name FromWorld

vyos@router# commit-confirm
commit confirm will be automatically reboot in 10 minutes unless confirmed
Proceed? [confirm]y
[edit]
vyos@router# confirm
[edit]

copy
Copy a configuration element.
You can copy and remove configuration subtrees. Suppose you set up a firewall ruleset FromWorld with one rule
that allows traffic from specific subnet. Now you want to setup a similar rule, but for different subnet. Change
your edit level to firewall name FromWorld and use copy rule 10 to rule 20, then modify rule 20.

vyos@router# show firewall name FromWorld

default-action drop
rule 10 {
action accept
source {
address [Link]/24
}
}
[edit]
vyos@router# edit firewall name FromWorld
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[edit firewall name FromWorld]
vyos@router# copy rule 10 to rule 20
[edit firewall name FromWorld]
vyos@router# set rule 20 source address [Link]/24
[edit firewall name FromWorld]
vyos@router# commit
[edit firewall name FromWorld]

rename
Rename a configuration element.
You can also rename config subtrees:
vyos@router# rename rule 10 to rule 5
[edit firewall name FromWorld]
vyos@router# commit
[edit firewall name FromWorld]

Note that show command respects your edit level and from this level you can view the modified firewall ruleset
with just show with no parameters.
vyos@router# show
default-action drop
rule 5 {
action accept
source {
address [Link]/24
}
}
rule 20 {
action accept
source {
address [Link]/24
}
}

comment <config node> “comment text”

Add comment as an annotation to a configuration node.
The comment command allows you to insert a comment above the <config node> configuration section. When
shown, comments are enclosed with /* and */ as open/close delimiters. Comments need to be committed, just
like other config changes.
To remove an existing comment from your current configuration, specify an empty string enclosed in double
quote marks ("") as the comment text.
Example:
vyos@vyos# comment firewall all-ping "Yes I know this VyOS is cool"
vyos@vyos# commit
vyos@vyos# show
firewall {
/* Yes I know this VyOS is cool */
all-ping enable
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broadcast-ping disable
...
}

Note: An important thing to note is that since the comment is added on top of the section, it will not appear
if the show <section> command is used. With the above example, the show firewall command would return
starting after the firewall { line, hiding the comment.

When inside configuration mode you are not directly able to execute operational commands.
run
Access to these commands are possible through the use of the run [command] command. From this command
you will have access to everything accessible from operational mode.
Command completion and syntax help with ? and [tab] will also work.

[edit]
vyos@vyos# run show interfaces
Codes: S - State, L - Link, u - Up, D - Down, A - Admin Down
Interface IP Address S/L Description
--------- ---------- --- -----------
eth0 [Link]/0 u/u

VyOS comes with an integrated versioning system for the system configuration. It automatically maintains a backup
of every previous configuration which has been committed to the system. The configurations are versioned locally for
rollback but they can also be stored on a remote host for archiving/backup reasons.
Revisions are stored on disk. You can view, compare and rollback them to any previous revisions if something goes
wrong.
show system commit
View all existing revisions on the local system.

vyos@vyos:~$ show system commit

0 2015-03-30 08:53:03 by vyos via cli
1 2015-03-30 08:52:20 by vyos via cli
2 2015-03-26 21:26:01 by root via boot-config-loader
3 2015-03-26 20:43:18 by root via boot-config-loader
4 2015-03-25 11:06:14 by root via boot-config-loader
5 2015-03-25 01:04:28 by root via boot-config-loader
6 2015-03-25 00:16:47 by vyos via cli
7 2015-03-24 23:43:45 by root via boot-config-loader

set system config-management commit-revisions <N>

You can specify the number of revisions stored on disk. N can be in the range of 0 - 65535. When the number
of revisions exceeds the configured value, the oldest revision is removed. The default setting for this value is to
store 100 revisions locally.
VyOS lets you compare different configurations.
compare <saved | N> <M>
Use this command to spot what the differences are between different configurations.

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vyos@vyos# compare [tab]

Possible completions:
<Enter> Compare working & active configurations
saved Compare working & saved configurations
<N> Compare working with revision N
<N> <M> Compare revision N with M
Revisions:
0 2013-12-17 20:01:37 root by boot-config-loader
1 2013-12-13 15:59:31 root by boot-config-loader
2 2013-12-12 21:56:22 vyos by cli
3 2013-12-12 21:55:11 vyos by cli
4 2013-12-12 21:27:54 vyos by cli
5 2013-12-12 21:23:29 vyos by cli
6 2013-12-12 21:13:59 root by boot-config-loader
7 2013-12-12 16:25:19 vyos by cli
8 2013-12-12 15:44:36 vyos by cli
9 2013-12-12 15:42:07 root by boot-config-loader
10 2013-12-12 15:42:06 root by init

The command compare allows you to compare different type of configurations. It also lets you compare different
revisions through the compare N M command, where N and M are revision numbers. The output will describe
how the configuration N is when compared to M indicating with a plus sign (+) the additional parts N has when
compared to M, and indicating with a minus sign (-) the lacking parts N misses when compared to M.

vyos@vyos# compare 0 6
[edit interfaces]
+dummy dum1 {
+ address [Link]/31
+}
[edit interfaces ethernet eth0]
+vif 99 {
+ address [Link]/31
+}
-vif 900 {
- address [Link]/24
-}

show system commit diff <number>

Show commit revision difference.
The command above also lets you see the difference between two commits. By default the difference with the running
config is shown.

vyos@router# run show system commit diff 4

[edit system]
+ipv6 {
+ disable-forwarding
+}

This means four commits ago we did set system ipv6 disable-forwarding.
You can rollback configuration changes using the rollback command. This will apply the selected revision and trigger
a system reboot.
rollback <N>

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Rollback to revision N (currently requires reboot)

vyos@vyos# compare 1
[edit system]
>host-name vyos-1
[edit]

vyos@vyos# rollback 1
Proceed with reboot? [confirm][y]
Broadcast message from root@vyos-1 (pts/0) (Tue Dec 17 21:07:45 2013):
The system is going down for reboot NOW!

VyOS can upload the configuration to a remote location after each call to commit. You will have to set the commit-
archive location. TFTP, FTP, SCP and SFTP servers are supported. Every time a commit is successful the config.
boot file will be copied to the defined destination(s). The filename used on the remote host will be config.
boot-hostname.YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.
set system config-management commit-archive location <URI>
Specify remote location of commit archive as any of the below URI (Uniform Resource Identifier)
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• s[Link]
• scp://<user>:<passwd>@<host>:/<dir>
• t[Link]
• git+[Link]
Since username and password are part of the URI, they need to be properly url encoded if containing special
characters.

Note: The number of revisions don’t affect the commit-archive.

Note: When using Git as destination for the commit archive the source-address CLI option has no effect.

Note: You may find VyOS not allowing the secure connection because it cannot verify the legitimacy of the
remote server. You can use the workaround below to quickly add the remote host’s SSH fingerprint to your
~/.ssh/known_hosts file:

vyos@vyos# ssh-keyscan <host> >> ~/.ssh/known_hosts

You can use the save and load commands if you want to manually manage specific configuration files.
When using the save command, you can add a specific location where to store your configuration file. And, when
needed it, you will be able to load it with the load command:
load <URI>

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Use this command to load a configuration which will replace the running configuration. Define the
location of the configuration file to be loaded. You can use a path to a local file, an SCP address, an
SFTP address, an FTP address, an HTTP address, an HTTPS address or a TFTP address.

vyos@vyos# load
Possible completions:
<Enter> Load from system config file
<file> Load from file on local machine
scp://<user>:<passwd>@<host>:/<file> Load from file on remote machine
s[Link] Load from file on remote machine
[Link] Load from file on remote machine
[Link] Load from file on remote machine
[Link] Load from file on remote machine
t[Link] Load from file on remote machine

In the case you want to completely delete your configuration and restore the default one, you can enter the following
command in configuration mode:

load /opt/vyatta/etc/[Link]

You will be asked if you want to continue. If you accept, you will have to use commit if you want to make the changes
active.
Then you may want to save in order to delete the saved configuration too.

Note: If you are remotely connected, you will lose your connection. You may want to copy first the config, edit it to
ensure connectivity, and load the edited config.

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