diff --git a/src/Makefile.am b/src/Makefile.am
index d0d6a22..f639023 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/Makefile.am
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@
 	$(NULL)
 
 noinst_LTLIBRARIES = libintern.la
-libintern_la_SOURCES = simple_ctrl.c
+libintern_la_SOURCES = simple_ctrl.c client.c
 libintern_la_LIBADD = $(LIBOSMOCORE_LIBS) $(LIBOSMOGSM_LIBS)
 
 osmo_sysmon_CFLAGS = $(LIBMNL_CFLAGS) $(LIBOSMOVTY_CFLAGS) $(LIBOPING_CFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@
 
 noinst_HEADERS = \
 	osysmon.h \
+	client.h \
 	simple_ctrl.h \
 	value_node.h \
 	$(NULL)
diff --git a/src/client.c b/src/client.c
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6b37fc6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/client.c
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+/* Generic client structure and related helpers */
+
+/* (C) 2018 by Harald Welte <laforge@gnumonks.org>
+ * (C) 2019 by sysmocom - s.f.m.c. GmbH.
+ * All Rights Reserved.
+ *
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+
+ *
+ *  This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ *  it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
+ *  the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
+ *  (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ *  This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ *  but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ *  MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ *  GNU General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ *  You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
+ *  along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
+ *  Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston,
+ *  MA  02110-1301, USA.
+ */
+
+#include <stdbool.h>
+#include <string.h>
+#include <talloc.h>
+
+#include <osmocom/core/utils.h>
+
+#include "client.h"
+
+bool match_config(const struct host_cfg *cfg, const char *match, enum match_kind k)
+{
+	bool m_name = (strcmp(match, cfg->name) == 0),
+	     m_host = (strcmp(match, cfg->remote_host) == 0);
+
+	switch (k) {
+	case MATCH_NAME:
+		return m_name;
+	case MATCH_HOST:
+		return m_host;
+	case MATCH_EITHER:
+		return m_name | m_host;
+	case MATCH_BOTH:
+		return m_name & m_host;
+	default:
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	return false;
+}
+
+struct host_cfg *host_cfg_alloc(void *ctx, const char *name, const char *host, uint16_t port)
+{
+	struct host_cfg *cfg = talloc_zero(ctx, struct host_cfg);
+	if (!cfg)
+		return NULL;
+
+	cfg->name = talloc_strdup(cfg, name);
+	cfg->remote_host = talloc_strdup(cfg, host);
+	cfg->remote_port = port;
+
+	return cfg;
+}
+
+char *make_authority(void *ctx, const struct host_cfg *cfg)
+{
+	if (!cfg->remote_host)
+		return NULL;
+
+	return talloc_asprintf(ctx, "%s:%u", cfg->remote_host, cfg->remote_port);
+}
diff --git a/src/client.h b/src/client.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..605ddd7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/client.h
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+#pragma once
+
+#include <stdint.h>
+#include <stdbool.h>
+
+enum match_kind {
+	MATCH_NAME,
+	MATCH_HOST,
+	MATCH_BOTH,
+	MATCH_EITHER,
+};
+
+/* a client config */
+struct host_cfg {
+	/* name of this client */
+	const char *name;
+	/* remote host/IP */
+	const char *remote_host;
+	/* remote port */
+	uint16_t remote_port;
+};
+
+struct host_cfg *host_cfg_alloc(void *ctx, const char *name, const char *host, uint16_t port);
+bool match_config(const struct host_cfg *cfg, const char *match, enum match_kind k);
+char *make_authority(void *ctx, const struct host_cfg *cfg);
diff --git a/src/osysmon_ctrl.c b/src/osysmon_ctrl.c
index c2d0725..c54779c 100644
--- a/src/osysmon_ctrl.c
+++ b/src/osysmon_ctrl.c
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@
 #include <osmocom/vty/vty.h>
 #include <osmocom/vty/command.h>
 
+#include "client.h"
 #include "osysmon.h"
 #include "simple_ctrl.h"
 #include "value_node.h"
@@ -38,7 +39,7 @@
 struct ctrl_client {
 	/* links to osysmon.ctrl_clients */
 	struct llist_head list;
-	struct ctrl_cfg cfg;
+	struct host_cfg *cfg;
 	struct simple_ctrl_handle *sch;
 	/* list of ctrl_client_get_var objects */
 	struct llist_head get_vars;
@@ -62,7 +63,7 @@
 {
 	struct ctrl_client *cc;
 	llist_for_each_entry(cc, &os->ctrl_clients, list) {
-		if (!strcmp(name, cc->cfg.name))
+		if (match_config(cc->cfg, name, MATCH_NAME))
 			return cc;
 	}
 	return NULL;
@@ -79,9 +80,13 @@
 	cc = talloc_zero(os, struct ctrl_client);
 	if (!cc)
 		return NULL;
-	cc->cfg.name = talloc_strdup(cc, name);
-	cc->cfg.remote_host = talloc_strdup(cc, host);
-	cc->cfg.remote_port = port;
+
+	cc->cfg = host_cfg_alloc(cc, name, host, port);
+	if (!cc->cfg) {
+		talloc_free(cc);
+		return NULL;
+	}
+
 	INIT_LLIST_HEAD(&cc->get_vars);
 	llist_add_tail(&cc->list, &os->ctrl_clients);
 	/* FIXME */
@@ -156,10 +161,10 @@
 	struct ctrl_client *cc;
 	cc = ctrl_client_find(g_oss, argv[0]);
 	if (cc) {
-		if ((strcmp(cc->cfg.remote_host, argv[1])) ||
-		    (cc->cfg.remote_port != atoi(argv[2]))) {
+		if ((strcmp(cc->cfg->remote_host, argv[1])) ||
+		    (cc->cfg->remote_port != atoi(argv[2]))) {
 			vty_out(vty, "Client %s has different IP/port, please remove it first%s",
-				cc->cfg.name, VTY_NEWLINE);
+				cc->cfg->name, VTY_NEWLINE);
 			return CMD_WARNING;
 		}
 	} else
@@ -215,8 +220,8 @@
 static void write_one_ctrl_client(struct vty *vty, struct ctrl_client *cc)
 {
 	struct ctrl_client_get_var *ccgv;
-	vty_out(vty, "ctrl-client %s %s %u%s", cc->cfg.name,
-		cc->cfg.remote_host, cc->cfg.remote_port, VTY_NEWLINE);
+	vty_out(vty, "ctrl-client %s %s %u%s", cc->cfg->name,
+		cc->cfg->remote_host, cc->cfg->remote_port, VTY_NEWLINE);
 	llist_for_each_entry(ccgv, &cc->get_vars, list) {
 		vty_out(vty, " get-variable %s%s", ccgv->cfg.name, VTY_NEWLINE);
 		if (ccgv->cfg.display_name)
@@ -259,11 +264,11 @@
 static int ctrl_client_poll(struct ctrl_client *cc, struct value_node *parent)
 {
 	struct ctrl_client_get_var *ccgv;
-	struct value_node *vn_clnt = value_node_add(parent, cc->cfg.name, NULL);
+	struct value_node *vn_clnt = value_node_add(parent, cc->cfg->name, NULL);
 
 	/* attempt to re-connect */
 	if (!cc->sch)
-		cc->sch = simple_ctrl_open(cc, cc->cfg.remote_host, cc->cfg.remote_port, 1000);
+		cc->sch = simple_ctrl_open(cc, cc->cfg->remote_host, cc->cfg->remote_port, 1000);
 	/* abort, if that failed */
 	if (!cc->sch) {
 		return -1;
diff --git a/src/simple_ctrl.c b/src/simple_ctrl.c
index b56fc83..883e92f 100644
--- a/src/simple_ctrl.c
+++ b/src/simple_ctrl.c
@@ -35,10 +35,11 @@
 #include <osmocom/gsm/ipa.h>
 #include <osmocom/gsm/protocol/ipaccess.h>
 
+#include "client.h"
 #include "simple_ctrl.h"
 
-#define CTRL_ERR(cfg, fmt, args...) \
-	fprintf(stderr, "CTRL %s:%u error: " fmt, cfg.remote_host, cfg.remote_port, ##args)
+#define CTRL_ERR(sch, fmt, args...) \
+	fprintf(stderr, "CTRL %s error: " fmt, make_authority(sch, &sch->cfg), ##args)
 
 /***********************************************************************
  * blocking I/O with timeout helpers
@@ -101,7 +102,7 @@
 	int fd;
 	uint32_t next_id;
 	uint32_t tout_msec;
-	struct ctrl_cfg cfg;
+	struct host_cfg cfg;
 };
 
 struct simple_ctrl_handle *simple_ctrl_open(void *ctx, const char *host, uint16_t dport,
@@ -122,7 +123,7 @@
 	fd = osmo_sock_init(AF_INET, SOCK_STREAM, IPPROTO_TCP, host, dport,
 			    OSMO_SOCK_F_CONNECT | OSMO_SOCK_F_NONBLOCK);
 	if (fd < 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "connecting socket: %s\n", strerror(errno));
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "connecting socket: %s\n", strerror(errno));
 		return NULL;
 	}
 
@@ -131,17 +132,17 @@
 	FD_SET(fd, &writeset);
 	rc = select(fd+1, NULL, &writeset, NULL, timeval_from_msec(tout_msec));
 	if (rc == 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "timeout during connect\n");
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "timeout during connect\n");
 		goto out_close;
 	}
 	if (rc < 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "error connecting socket: %s\n", strerror(errno));
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "error connecting socket: %s\n", strerror(errno));
 		goto out_close;
 	}
 
 	/* set FD blocking again */
 	if (ioctl(fd, FIONBIO, (unsigned char *)&off) < 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "cannot set socket blocking: %s\n", strerror(errno));
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "cannot set socket blocking: %s\n", strerror(errno));
 		goto out_close;
 	}
 
@@ -173,10 +174,10 @@
 
 	rc = read_timeout(sch->fd, (uint8_t *) &hh, sizeof(hh), sch->tout_msec);
 	if (rc < 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "read(): %d\n", rc);
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "read(): %d\n", rc);
 		return NULL;
 	} else if (rc < sizeof(hh)) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "short read (header)\n");
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "short read (header)\n");
 		return NULL;
 	}
 	len = ntohs(hh.len);
@@ -190,7 +191,7 @@
 	resp->l2h = resp->tail;
 	rc = read(sch->fd, resp->l2h, len);
 	if (rc < len) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "short read (payload)\n");
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "short read (payload)\n");
 		msgb_free(resp);
 		return NULL;
 	}
@@ -222,7 +223,7 @@
 			*tmp = '\0';
 			return resp;
 		} else {
-			CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "unknown IPA message %s\n", msgb_hexdump(resp));
+			CTRL_ERR(sch, "unknown IPA message %s\n", msgb_hexdump(resp));
 			msgb_free(resp);
 		}
 	}
@@ -237,10 +238,10 @@
 
 	rc = write_timeout(sch->fd, msg->data, msg->len, sch->tout_msec);
 	if (rc < 0) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "write(): %d\n", rc);
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "write(): %d\n", rc);
 		return rc;
 	} else if (rc < msg->len) {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "short write\n");
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "short write\n");
 		msgb_free(msg);
 		return -1;
 	} else {
@@ -291,7 +292,7 @@
 		free(rx_var);
 		free(rx_val);
 	} else {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "GET(%s) results in '%s'\n", var, (char *)msgb_l2(resp));
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "GET(%s) results in '%s'\n", var, (char *)msgb_l2(resp));
 	}
 
 	msgb_free(resp);
@@ -329,7 +330,7 @@
 			free(rx_var);
 		}
 	} else {
-		CTRL_ERR(sch->cfg, "SET(%s=%s) results in '%s'\n", var, val, (char *) msgb_l2(resp));
+		CTRL_ERR(sch, "SET(%s=%s) results in '%s'\n", var, val, (char *) msgb_l2(resp));
 	}
 
 	msgb_free(resp);
diff --git a/src/simple_ctrl.h b/src/simple_ctrl.h
index f35eab1..81a759d 100644
--- a/src/simple_ctrl.h
+++ b/src/simple_ctrl.h
@@ -2,16 +2,6 @@
 
 #include <stdint.h>
 
-/* a CTRL client config */
-struct ctrl_cfg {
-	/* name of this CTRL client */
-	const char *name;
-	/* remote host/IP */
-	const char *remote_host;
-	/* remote CTRL port */
-	uint16_t remote_port;
-};
-
 struct simple_ctrl_handle;
 
 struct simple_ctrl_handle *simple_ctrl_open(void *ctx, const char *host, uint16_t dport,