The gated configuration file consists of a sequence of statements terminated by a semi-colon '( ;'). Statements are composed of tokens separated by white space, which can be any combination of blanks, tabs and newlines. This structure simplifies identification of the parts of the configuration associated with each other and with specific protocols. Comments may be specified in either of two forms. One form begins with a pound sign (` #') and runs to the end of the line. The other form, C style, starts with a `/*' and continues until it reaches `*/'.
The configuration statements and the order in which these statements appear divide gated.conf into options statements, interface statements, definition statements, protocol statements, static statements, control statements, and aggregate statements. Entering a statement out of order causes an error when parsing the configuration file.
Two other types of statements do not fit in these categories: directive statements and trace statements. These statements provide instructions to the parser and control tracing from the configuration file. They do not relate to the configuration of any protocol and may occur anywhere in the gated.conf file.