diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.c b/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.c
index af36c5882235549225efb2068f92eadf081710a6..a45f4f6e7462ac46de7ab8bbca44098a91090188 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.c
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.c
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 #include <stdlib.h>
 #include <stdio.h>
 
-#include "slurm_protocol_interface.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_defs.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_api.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_common.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_pack.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_util.h"
-#include "xmalloc.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_defs.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_api.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h>
+#include <src/common/xmalloc.h>
 
 
 uint32_t debug = false ;
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.h b/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.h
index 49fea52f4effc2b3254abf81dc70ea1893714484..f69b6c752455ad0e367861e958dbf22c4c80e99f 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.h
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_api.h
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 
 #include <sys/time.h>
 #include <stdint.h>
-#include "slurm_protocol_common.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
 
 /* high level routines */
 /* message functions */
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h b/src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h
index 33b1f9278e134334ff266a024032939b080a29e7..b451b05ac64a6e85c6e85524359983e414f5a03c 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h
@@ -1,11 +1,18 @@
 #ifndef _SLURM_PROTOCOL_COMMON_H
 #define _SLURM_PROTOCOL_COMMON_H
 
+#define AF_SLURM AF_INET
+
 /* LINUX SPECIFIC */
 /* this is the slurm equivalent of the operating system file descriptor, which in linux is just an int */
 typedef uint32_t slurm_fd ;
 /* this is the slurm equivalent of the BSD sockets sockaddr */
-typedef struct sockaddr_in slurm_addr ;
+
+typedef struct {
+	int16_t family ;
+	uint16_t port ;
+	uint32_t address ;
+} slurm_addr ;
 
 
 /* SLURM datatypes */
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h b/src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h
index ca35a4724637edf6ed39c166c61dbc5be2439c14..4df75fe3c441df03fc7d87cb78a7c80b69c297d2 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 #include <unistd.h>
 #include <fcntl.h>
 #include <stdint.h>
-#include "slurm_protocol_common.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
 
 
 
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.c b/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.c
index f43cb162c44e58af6926f907d5eae8104aaa4dd4..ba89777f516bcd9723db2a898f482547c21f5f2b 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.c
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.c
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-#include "slurm_protocol_pack.h"
-#include "pack.h"
+#include <slurm_protocol_pack.h>
+#include <src/common/pack.h>
 #include <stdio.h>
 
 extern int debug ;
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.h b/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.h
index eef3f8cc903f0bd9335053323c6aababcb4a877f..9ddecfa00f9447042a75e590cd5d961b4c174efa 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.h
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_pack.h
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 #ifndef _SLURM_PROTOCOL_PACK_H
 #define _SLURM_PROTOCOL_PACK_H
 #include <stdint.h>
-#include "slurm_protocol_defs.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_defs.h>
 #include <linux/types.h>
 
 /* Pack / Unpack methods for slurm protocol header */
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_socket_implementation.c b/src/common/slurm_protocol_socket_implementation.c
index 7002c429e1c1093026a2e3176543dd7612040740..4ae5fbcac5feb39e2d81e287e2c66309bfe44ddb 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_socket_implementation.c
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_socket_implementation.c
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 /* Author Kevin Tew
  * May 17, 2002
  */
-#include "slurm_protocol_interface.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_common.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_defs.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_interface.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_defs.h>
 #include <sys/socket.h>
 #include <netinet/in.h>
 #include <netdb.h>
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.c b/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.c
index 3d81bdd816eaa1e29be4c8946c67d521b79fb36a..9bb552d932af04bdb8e466284f06c2e34df2d3d7 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.c
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.c
@@ -1,7 +1,10 @@
-#include "slurm_protocol_defs.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_util.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_defs.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h>
 #include <stdint.h>
 #include <stdio.h>
+#include <sys/socket.h>
+#include <netinet/in.h>
 
 extern int debug ;
 
@@ -27,3 +30,10 @@ void init_header ( header_t * header , slurm_message_type_t message_type , uint1
 	header -> message_type = message_type ;
 }
 
+/* sets the fields of a slurm_addr */
+void set_slurm_addr_hton ( slurm_addr * slurm_address , uint16_t port , uint32_t ip_address )
+{
+	slurm_address -> family = AF_SLURM ;
+	slurm_address -> port = htons ( port ) ;
+	slurm_address -> address = htons ( ip_address ) ;
+}
diff --git a/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h b/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h
index 6310a96cb5bfc15dae886efb1ad28e4a218bb510..ce76a67eeb26e3af604ba63ffa5304621e615bec 100644
--- a/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h
+++ b/src/common/slurm_protocol_util.h
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 #ifndef _SLURM_PROTOCOL_UTIL_H
 
-#include "slurm_protocol_defs.h"
-#include "slurm_protocol_common.h"
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_defs.h>
+#include <src/common/slurm_protocol_common.h>
 #include <stdint.h>
 uint32_t check_header_version( header_t * header) ;
 void init_header ( header_t * header , slurm_message_type_t message_type , uint16_t flags ) ;