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From: avolio@decuac.DEC.COM (Frederick M. Avolio)
Newsgroups: net.unix-wizards,net.unix
Subject: Re: Repeat of a question posted to net.unix (resp: shell processing)
Message-ID: <1066@decuac.DEC.COM>
Date: Sat, 20-Sep-86 08:16:37 EDT
Article-I.D.: decuac.1066
Posted: Sat Sep 20 08:16:37 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 20-Sep-86 20:42:43 EDT
References: <2729@rsch.WISC.EDU> <5867@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU>
Distribution: na
Organization: ULTRIX Applications Center, MD
Lines: 25
Summary: rm acts as -f with non-tty
Xref: mnetor net.unix-wizards:7926 net.unix:5555

> > Assume that file "nxf" does not exist.
> > Assume that the following lines are in shell script 'cmd':
> >   #!/bin/csh
> >   rm nxf         >& cmd_out
> >   echo $status   >  cmd_stat

> Same problem here on a 4.2 system.  But replace "rm nxf" with "ping
> foo" or "test" and everything works OK.  Bug in rm?

No a feature!  I answered the original poster by mail a week or two
ago (whenever it was posted).  After that the poster reposted to
net.unix-wizards saying there was no response from net.unix.
Suggestion -- wait a week or more for your article or propagate
through the net and another week to get something back before you
repost.

Rm checks to see if there is a controlling tty.  In the case of a
shell execing a background process, the child does not inherit the
controlling terminal.  Rm checks to see and if no controlling terminal
it acts as if you said "-f".  This is why no error message in this
case.
-- 
Fred @ DEC Ultrix Applications Center
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