vtysh

Integrated shell for FRRouting daemons

TLDR

Start the interactive shell

$ sudo vtysh

Execute a single command

$ sudo vtysh -c "[show ip route]"

Execute command and echo it (for scripting)

$ sudo vtysh -E -c "[show ip route]"

Connect to a specific daemon only

$ sudo vtysh -d [bgpd]

Execute boot startup configuration

$ sudo vtysh -b

Show running configuration

$ sudo vtysh -c "show running-config"

SYNOPSIS

vtysh [-b] [-c command] [-d daemon] [-E] [-h]

vtysh is an integrated command shell for FRRouting (FRR) and Quagga routing software. It provides a unified Cisco IOS-like CLI for configuring and monitoring all routing daemons (Zebra, BGP, OSPF, RIP, IS-IS, etc.) from a single interface.The shell operates in hierarchical modes: User EXEC mode for basic commands, Privileged EXEC mode (via enable) for administrative commands, and Configuration mode (via configure terminal) for making changes. Each routing protocol has its own configuration sub-mode.vtysh connects to all running routing daemons through their control sockets, presenting their combined functionality. Commands like show ip route, show bgp summary, and show running-config aggregate information from all relevant daemons.Configuration can be saved with write memory to the integrated config file (/etc/frr/frr.conf) or individual daemon configs.

PARAMETERS

-b, --boot

Execute boot startup configuration from the integrated config file.

-c command, --command command

Execute specified command and exit. Can be used multiple times for multiple commands.

-d daemon, --daemon daemon

Connect to specific daemon only (zebra, bgpd, ospfd, ripd, isisd, etc.).

-E, --echo

Echo the command and prompt before displaying results. Useful for scripting.

-C, --dryrun

Check the configuration file for syntax validity without applying.

-n, --noerror

Ignore errors for purposes of return codes (useful in scripts).

-u, --user

Restrict to unprivileged mode, disallowing configuration commands.

-h, --help

Display help message.

INSTALL

sudo apt install frr

sudo dnf install frr

sudo apk add quagga

sudo zypper install frr

nix profile install nixpkgs#frr

CAVEATS

Requires root privileges or membership in the frr/quagga group to access daemon control sockets. The integrated config file must be enabled for unified configuration. Some commands may behave differently than Cisco IOS despite similar syntax. Tab completion and context-sensitive help (?) are available in interactive mode.

HISTORY

vtysh was developed as part of the Quagga routing suite, which forked from GNU Zebra in 2003. When Quagga development stalled, the FRRouting project forked it in 2017 and continued active development. vtysh remains the primary CLI for FRR, providing a familiar interface for network engineers accustomed to commercial router operating systems.