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From: jv@mhres.mh.nl (Johan Vromans)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: Using argv to show process status
Message-ID: <1229@mhres.mh.nl>
Date: Sat, 22-Aug-87 12:47:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: mhres.1229
Posted: Sat Aug 22 12:47:32 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 23-Aug-87 12:23:12 EDT
References: <1217@mhres.mh.nl> <6303@brl-smoke.ARPA> <1224@mhres.mh.nl> <7164@ism780c.UUCP>
Organization: Multihouse N.V., The Netherlands
Lines: 37

In article <7164@ism780c.UUCP> mikep@ism780c.UUCP (Michael A. Petonic) writes:
>In article <1224@mhres.mh.nl> jv@mh.nl (Johan Vromans) writes:
>}We are running a kind of interpreter for a programming language in which
>}lots of applications have been written. One of the features of the
>}language is that a program can chain to a successor program. Chains are
>}handled internally by the interpreter, no new process is started.
>}
>}When a user starts an application with "RUN menu", and menu chains to different
>}application programs which all chain back to menu for the next choice,
>}the "ps" will always show the "RUN menu" command.
>
>
>Well, how about making links to small C programs that would "RUN Menu"
>(or a shell script) and then arv[0] would be the name of the link.

Apparently you missed the point.

There is a "real" program (the interpreter) and lots of "pseudo" programs
(programs written for the interpreter). The user invokes the interpreter
and specifies which pseudo program to execute. This pseudo program chains
to other (pseudo) programs. During this process, the interpreter stays
resident. For the user, the pseudo program is what he is running; for
ps it's the interpreter.

By clobbing argv, it is possible to reveal in a ps display which pseudo
program the interpreter is currently executing. This can be important in
situations where the system manager has to decide whether a user task can
be killed safely. 

Currently there is no way for the system administrator to find out who is
doing what. Clobbing argv supplies a method which works on at least
some systems (the BSD type systems). For other systems, other methods
must be used. 
-- 
Johan Vromans                           | jv@mh.nl via European backbone
Multihouse N.V., Gouda, the Netherlands | uucp: ..{seismo!}mcvax!mh.nl!jv
"It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness"