Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!rutgers!sri-spam!ames!ptsfa!ihnp4!inuxc!iuvax!bsu-cs!dhesi
From: dhesi@bsu-cs.UUCP (Rahul Dhesi)
Newsgroups: comp.sources.d,comp.sources.bugs
Subject: Unusual behavior in "screen"
Message-ID: <1049@bsu-cs.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 24-Aug-87 18:27:01 EDT
Article-I.D.: bsu-cs.1049
Posted: Mon Aug 24 18:27:01 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 26-Aug-87 01:33:58 EDT
Reply-To: dhesi@bsu-cs.UUCP (Rahul Dhesi)
Organization: CS Dept, Ball St U, Muncie, Indiana
Lines: 26
Summary: ghosts left behind in /etc/utmp
Xref: mnetor comp.sources.d:1173 comp.sources.bugs:216

Summary:
     Torture-testing the "screen" program, which allows multiple
     virtual terminals to be created, I found that it is possible
     to get spurious entries in /etc/utmp.
Software:
     4.3BSD straight from Berkeley, obtained around September 1986.
Hardware:
     VAX-11/785.
Symptoms:
     After a user logs out from a new login session that was running under
     control of "screen", the user's name is still in /etc/utmp and
     the "who" command will show the user still logged in.
Repeat-By:
     1.   Invoke "screen".
     2.   Execute /bin/login by typing "/bin/login".
     3.   Log normally at the login prompt.
     4.   Log out normally.
     5.   Use the "who" or "w" command and observe that you are shown
	  logged in twice.
Comments:
     It's a bit disconcerting to be able to create an entry in
     /etc/utmp that doesn't seem to get removed.  This confuses my
     timeout program, because it examines /etc/utmp to look for idle
     users.
-- 
Rahul Dhesi         UUCP:  {ihnp4,seismo}!{iuvax,pur-ee}!bsu-cs!dhesi