inetutils.info: inetd invocation

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18 'inetd': Internet super-server
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'inetd' program should be run at boot time by /etc/rc.  It then listens
for connections on certain internet sockets.  When a connection is found
on one of its sockets, it decides what service the socket corresponds
to, and invokes a program to service the request.  The server program is
invoked with the service socket as its standard input, output and error
descriptors.  After the program is finished, inetd continues to listen
on the socket (except in some cases which will be described below).
Essentially, inetd allows running one daemon to invoke several others,
reducing load on the system.

   There are two types of services that inetd can start: standard and
TCPMUX. A standard service has a well-known port assigned to it; it may
be a service that implements an official Internet standard or is a
BSD-specific service.  As described in RFC 1078, TCPMUX services are
nonstandard services that do not have a well-known port assigned to
them.  They are invoked from inetd when a program connects to the
"tcpmux" well-known port and specifies the service name.  This feature
is useful for adding locally-developed servers.

Invocation

Configuration file

Built-in services

TCPMUX

Inetd Environment

Error Messages