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Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!apple!coherent!dplatt
From: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.misc,comp.mail.uucp
Subject: Re: pathalias breaks on latest map distribution - HELP!
Message-ID: <58728@coherent.coherent.com>
Date: 29 May 90 23:02:10 GMT
References: <1990May29.182555.27806@pmsmam.uucp>
Reply-To: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt)
Followup-To: comp.mail.misc
Organization: Coherent Thought Inc., Palo Alto CA
Lines: 33

In article <1990May29.182555.27806@pmsmam.uucp> wwm@pmsmam.uucp (Bill Meahan) writes:

> Since the latest distribution I've received from comp.mail.maps, my attempts
> to build a new pathalias database result in pathalias hanging forever while
> taking up about 4.5 MEGS of core.
> 
> After spending far too much time chasing the problem, I've found that
> keeping u.usa.nm.1 out of the input stream solves(?) the problem.  Apparently
> something in the lastest bunch of maps (which do NOT include nm.1 so far)
> is inconsistent with the Apr 25 version of u.usa.nm.1.

I ran into exactly the same problem.  The version of pathalias I've been
using (pathalias9) runs into a loop... it cycles repeatedly between
nodes "rt1", "rt1.lanl.gov", and "bcsinc".  rt1 and rt1.lanl.gov are one
and the same, and there's a bi-directional private dead link between rt1
and bcsinc.

I have no idea why this particular combination causes pathalias to
loop... it seems that it should work properly.

I was able to resolve (work around) the problem by downloading the
latest version of pathalias from uunet (~/mail/pathalias.Z).  This is a
more recent version than the one I had been using... it supports the
"adjust" clause, rather than the "-a" command-line option.  It seems to
"eat" the current maps distribution without any distress.

Ghu alone knows why it fixes things, though.

-- 
Dave Platt                                             VOICE: (415) 493-8805
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