Xref: utzoo news.software.b:3177 news.admin:7191
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!brutus.cs.uiuc.edu!coolidge
From: coolidge@brutus.cs.uiuc.edu (John Coolidge)
Newsgroups: news.software.b,news.admin
Subject: Re: How can I remain calm?
Message-ID: <1989Oct11.235318.23465@brutus.cs.uiuc.edu>
Date: 11 Oct 89 23:53:18 GMT
References: <1989Oct11.211031.10051@ee.rochester.edu> <1989Oct11.215444.11983@rpi.edu> <35575@apple.Apple.COM>
Sender: news@brutus.cs.uiuc.edu
Reply-To: coolidge@cs.uiuc.edu
Organization: U of Illinois, CS Dept., Systems Research Group
Lines: 28

chuq@Apple.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) writes:
>>brodie@moocow.mcw.edu requested the sys file of every site in the
>>world with a "sendsys" control message.

>Gads. I hope he has a *large* disk in /usr/spool/mail.

Actually, he's on a VMS machine, so the mail goes directly into his mail
folder analogue. He _might_ be safe if on a quota'd disk, since overquota
mail might just be bounced --- unless mail has exquota privs. In that
case, it's hello full user disk, and probably bye bye any mail (since
the only reasonable recovery is mass delete).

This brings up a point: if you just want to check connectivity, the
'version' control is almost certainly a better option. Or 'senduuname'.
'sendsys' should be reserved for cases when you _really_ want a sys
file (for debugging a feed, for instance), and should be carefully
checked for the right Distributions: and Newsgroup: headers before
releasing it into the world. 'version' and 'senduuname' both give you
just one line of output (plus the obligatory massive headers). 'sendsys'
gives you lots of lines for each site...

--John

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
John L. Coolidge     Internet:coolidge@cs.uiuc.edu   UUCP:uiucdcs!coolidge
Of course I don't speak for the U of I (or anyone else except myself)
Copyright 1989 John L. Coolidge. Copying allowed if (and only if) attributed.
You may redistribute this article if and only if your recipients may as well.