[Nmh-workers] ** /dev/, LCK problem ** (was Re: nmh-1.1-RC4 post /tmp/, LCK.* problem)

[rader]

Sorry--I've firing off these msgs a little too quickly!  If you look
at the strace output in my first msg, you'll see that the problem
is that post, w/o MHCONTEXT set, is trying to lock */dev/null* via
creating files named /dev/,LCK*, which in turn causes a 30 second hang.

Here's the specifics: 

 sbr/context_foil.c context_foil() sets (line 24)

    defpath = context = "/dev/null";

 uip/post.c main() -alias in calls alias()

 uip/aliasbr.c alias() calls etcpath()

 config/config.c etcpath() calls context_read()
 
 sbr/context_read.c context_read() does (~line 120)...

    if ((cp = getenv ("MHCONTEXT")) == (char *)0 || *cp == '\0')
        cp = context;

 getenv("MHCONTEXT") fails, cp gets set to "/dev/null" 

 sbr/context_read.c context_read() sets ctxpath to cp on line ~124

 sbr/context_read.c context_read() does (~line 126)...

    if ((ib = lkfopen (ctxpath, "r"))) {

 where ctxpath is "/dev/null"

 lkfopen("/dev/null","r") hangs trying to lock via /dev/,LCK* files

Setting MHCONTEXT is a fine work-around.

I have no idea how to appropiately fix the problem.  If someone
can point me in the right direction, I'd be happy to take a stab
at it.

steve 
- - - 
systems & network manager
high energy physics
university of wisconsin