NAME lo - software loopback network interface CONTENTS Synopsis Description Diagnostics See Also History Bugs SYNOPSIS .Cd "device loop" DESCRIPTION The loop interface is a software loopback mechanism which may be used for performance analysis, software testing, and/or local communication. As with other network interfaces, the loopback interface must have network addresses assigned for each address family with which it is to be used. These addresses may be set or changed with the SIOCSIFADDR ioctl(2). The loopback interface should be the last interface configured, as protocols may use the order of configuration as an indication of priority. The loopback should never be configured first unless no hardware interfaces exist. DIAGNOSTICS
