Path: utzoo!dciem!nrcaer!scs!spl1!laidbak!att!pacbell!lll-tis!helios.ee.lbl.gov!pasteur!ucbvax!decwrl!sun!pitstop!sundc!seismo!uunet!munnari!otc!m
From: ians@kylie.oz (Ian Sergeant)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: Finding where an executable was run from -- a proposal.
Message-ID: <252@kylie.oz>
Date: 31 May 88 01:26:50 GMT
Article-I.D.: kylie.252
References: <67@uvaarpa.virginia.edu> <6800012@cpe> <4527@hoptoad.uucp> <10310@ulysses.homer.nj.att.com>
Organization: K.M. Software Development, Sydney, Aust.
Lines: 22
Summary: kernel mod needed, what if you can't read all your path?

In article <10310@ulysses.homer.nj.att.com>, dgk@ulysses.homer.nj.att.com (David Korn[eww]) writes:
> 
> ksh passes the full pathname of the executable as the first environment
> variable and names it _.  Thus, if the program is run by ksh,
> genenv("_"); returns a pathname for the executable.  Now if everyone
> would follow this convention the problem would be solved.
> 
> David Korn
> ulysses!dgk

A convention is not good enough.  I know of no absolutely reliable way
of finding out what the absolute pathname of an executable is when you
exec it.

You need to be able to read all the ".." directories to be able to reliably
determine the pathname of a file in your current directory in any environment.

Ian.
-- 
Ian Sergeant            ACSnet: ians@kylie.oz
			Internet: ians@kylie.oz.au@uunet.uu.net
==