Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!uwvax!umn-d-ub!umn-cs!ems!pwcs!elric!corum!root
From: root@corum.UUCP (System Administration)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.xenix
Subject: ps-fe vs. ps-funews funny stuff
Message-ID: <132@corum.UUCP>
Date: 23 Mar 88 22:50:16 GMT
Organization: Unisys Inc., Eagan, MN, 55121, USA
Lines: 49
Keywords: ps

I have noticed this behaviour on my SCO Xenix 2.1.3 system on a Sperry (now
Unisys (:-)) PC/IT system...  If i do a ps -fe, several of the running commands
show up as garbage under the COMMAND column, whereas if i do a ps -fu<login>
the commands come out ok.  Observe the following:
# ps -fe
    UID   PID  PPID  C   STIME TTY  TIME COMMAND
   root     0     0 13        ?  ? 12592:28 swapper
   root     1     0  0        ?  ?  0:59 /etc/init
   root 28461     1  0  Mar 21  co  0:03 -sh
   news 29145    33  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   root    25     1  0  Mar 11   ? 16:10 /etc/update
     lp    30     1  0  Mar 11   ?  0:02 [ sh scrip ]
   root    33     1  0  Mar 11   ?  5:17 /etc/cron
   root  4135     1  0 06:17:59  ?  0:01 [ sh scrip ]
   root    41     1  0  Mar 11   ?  0:01 [ sh scrip ]
   root    42     1  0  Mar 11   ?  0:01 [ sh scrip ]
   root    43     1  0  Mar 11   ?  0:01 [ sh scrip ]
   root  4541     1  0 16:03:20  ?  0:01 - tty2A m
   news 29146 29145  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   news 29147 29146  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   news 29151 29147  0  Mar 21   ?  3:45 ?????G?  ?????g?????? u????????du??????w?????~?????????t?????????????????u??????
   news  3426 29151  0  Mar 22   ?  0:02 ?????G?  ?????g?????? u????????du??????w?????~?????????t?????????????????u??????
   news  3427  3426  0  Mar 22   ?  0:10 [ sh scrip ]
   news  3447  3426  0  Mar 22   ?  0:06 ?????G?  ?????g?????? u????????du??????w?????~?????????t?????????????????u??????
   root  3448    33  0  Mar 22   ?  0:01 [ sh scrip ]
   root  3449  3448  0  Mar 22   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   root  3450  3449  0  Mar 22   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   root  3451  3450  0  Mar 22   ?  0:00 [ sh scrip ]
   root  4562 28461 29 16:24:23 co  0:04 ps -fe

# ps -funews
    UID   PID  PPID  C   STIME TTY  TIME COMMAND
   news 29145    33  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ sh ]
   news 29146 29145  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ time ]
   news 29147 29146  0  Mar 21   ?  0:00 [ sh ]
   news 29151 29147  0  Mar 21   ?  3:45 [ rnews ]
   news  3426 29151  0  Mar 22   ?  0:02 [ rnews ]
   news  3427  3426  0  Mar 22   ?  0:10 [ compress ]
   news  3447  3426  0  Mar 22   ?  0:06 [ rnews ]

The procs under news (which are supposed to be rnews, etc) show up as mostly
question marks under the ps -fe command (run when i'm logged in as root, btw).
Now, is this a feature (some sort of security feature perhaps?), or a bug, or
me plain misunderstanding whats going on?  Is there a fix to this?  It,
offhand, does not seem like reasonable behaviour to me.

derek
-- 
Derek Terveer	root@corum.UUCP		..!clyde!lily!corum!root