.TH EXPORTFS 4
.SH NAME
exportfs \- network file server plumbing
.SH SYNOPSIS
.B exportfs
[
.B -a
]
[
.B -c
.I ctlfile
]
.SH DESCRIPTION
.I Exportfs
is a user level file server that allows Plan 9 compute servers,
rather than file servers,
to export
portions of a name space across networks.
The service is started either by the
.IR cpu (1)
command or by a network listener process.
An initial
protocol establishes a root directory for the exported name space.
The connection
to
.I exportfs
is then mounted.
.I Exportfs
then acts as a relay file server: operations
in the imported file tree are executed on the remote server and the results returned.
This gives the appearance of exporting a name space from a remote machine
into a local file tree.
.PP
The
.B -a
option instructs
.I exportfs
to authenticate the user, usually because it is
being invoked from a remote machine.
.PP
The
.B -c
options specifies a network control file onto which
.I exportfs
will push the
.I fcall
line discipline.
This option is intended for networks that do not preserve
read/write boundaries.
.PP
The
.B cpu
command uses
.I exportfs
to serve device files in the terminal.
The
.IR import (4)
command calls
.I exportfs
on a remote machine, permitting users to
access
arbitrary pieces of name space on other systems.