Missing file or directory after new Guardium S-TAP installation

Symptoms

When you attempt to install S-TAP, you receive the following error message.

Tap_controller::init failed Opening pseudo device /dev/guard_ktap No such file or directory

In addition, /dev/*ktap* does not exist.

Causes

There are many possible reasons why the K-TAP device creation can fail. The following are the most common causes.

  • You did not use the module files, including the K-TAP module for the Linux kernel.
  • You did not specify the Flex Loading option to load the K-TAP module from the module files.
  • A previous K-TAP module from an old installation is still running or installed.

Environment

All Linux and UNIX operating systems in which the IBM Guardium S-TAP product can be installed are affected.

Resolving the problem

To resolve the problem, take the following steps.

  1. Run these commands as root.
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader stop
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader uninstall
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader install
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader start
  2. Check whether the K-TAP device is now created with the command ls /dev/*ktap*. If it was created, issue is resolved. If not, continue to next step.
  3. Stop the S-TAP process guard_stap if it is running. You can check whether it is running with command ps -ef | grep guard_stap.
  4. Verify that the S-TAP process is not running with the command ps -ef | grep guard_stap.
  5. Uninstall the S-TAP.
  6. Confirm that the S-TAP directory is gone.
  7. Check whether a K-TAP module is still running from an old installation. Use the appropriate command for your operating system.
    Linux    : lsmod | grep ktap
    Solaris  : modinfo | grep  tap 
    HP-UX    : lsdev | grep tap
    AIX      : genkex | grep tap   
    If a device such as ktap_<release> is listed, then a K-TAP module is running.
  8. If you find a K-TAP module is running in previous step, run the following steps to stop and uninstall the K-TAP module.
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader stop
    <STAP directory>/KTAP/guard_ktap_loader uninstall
    Restart the server.
  9. If you are using the Guardium Installation Manager (GIM), go to Manage > Module Installation > Set up by Client (Legacy), select the client and click Reset Clients. Wait for the server to reappear in the client list.
  10. Reinstall the S-TAP. If you are using GIM to install the S-TAP, reinstall the S-TAP bundle with GIM and the following commands.
    KTAP-ALLOW_COMBOS=Y
    KTAP_LIVE_UPDATE=Y
    KTAP_ENABLED=Y