ifup: couldn't read interfaces file "/etc/network/interfaces"

dobharweim · 12-13-2013, 09:45 AM

Hi everybody,

I'm extremely new to linux, as part of a college project I've had to install and use a Debian Virtual Machine for a number of tasks, and I'm extremely impressed with how powerful an OS it is.

Anyway, the final part of my assignment is to set the machine a static ip address, which I did using this guide http://elinux.org/RPi_Setting_up_a_static_IP_in_Debian
and an elevated gedit window.

Unfortunately when I try to restart the network connection I get the error mentioned in my title.

My interfaces file is as follows:

# This file describes the network interfaces #available on your system
# and how to activate them. For more information, #see interfaces(5).

# The primary network interface
allow-hotplug eth0
#iface eth0 inet dhcp

# Enable a loopback interface
auto lo
iface lo inet loopback
auto eth0
iface eth0 inet static

#Static IP address
address 192.168.15.4

#your gateway IP
gateway 192.168.15.1
netmask 255.255.255.0

#Network address settings
network 192.168.15.1

Can anyone see the issue?

Thanks a million for any help!

rtmistler · 12-13-2013, 11:20 AM

Hmmm that looks correct. The only thing I don't normally include is the allow-hotplug. Try taking that out. I have an identical interfaces file which does work for me:

Code:

# Interfaces file
auto lo
iface lo inet loopback

# Ethernet to remote station
auto eth1
iface eth1 inet static
address 192.168.20.10
netmask 255.255.255.0