Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!srcsip!nic.MR.NET!shamash!nis!sialis!rjg
From: rjg@sialis.mn.org (Robert J. Granvin)
Newsgroups: unix-pc.general
Subject: Re: yet again Re: crontab Daemon-from-Hell
Message-ID: <1559@sialis.mn.org>
Date: 11 Jun 89 04:18:54 GMT
References: <19071@cup.portal.com> <14373@bfmny0.UUCP> <19196@cup.portal.com> <1545@sialis.mn.org> <1212@cbnewsc.ATT.COM>
Reply-To: rjg@sialis.mn.org (Robert J. Granvin)
Organization: Dr. Ho Laboratory and Day Care Center
Lines: 43

>> The solution is VERY simple.  Remove the `cd`, and make the find
>> reference an explicit path.  If the directory dies or goes away, the
>> find will fail, and nothing more will happen than your uucp mailfile
>> getting a note of the failure.
>
>Could someone please tell me if my postings on this group are getting out?
>
>Twice this past week I mentioned that a failed 'cd' (due to, for example,
>the directory named as the argument to 'cd' not being present) would ABORT a
>script running under /bin/sh, uucpadm's default shell.
>
>I apologize for sounding exasperated.  I assume that my posts just haven't
>gotten to Robert's site yet.  Are they getting out at all?

Yes, they're getting here.  However, I should have clarified a point
(just like I noted that the original posting didn't clarify the point
:-).

This made the exact point that I failed to...

There are more than a few people who insist upon changing default
shells away from /bin/sh to other shells including ksh and others.

Prudent or wise?  Your decision.  (Although a real cron will warn you
that the commands will be executed with /bin/sh.  What does a stock
3b1 do if you change your default shell and run a cron job?)

However, if run as ksh, the failed cd will NOT cancel the execution of
the script.  So, even if safe under a cron job, it may not be safe
under a manually executed job.

And since so many people are panicking about it and beating it into
the ground (which was a point I _did_ make), then just "solve" it and
quit letting it eat your cerebral cortex.  Seeing everything from
comments about "reprehensible" to lawsuits, it's just not worth
discussing it anymore since people are just not thinking rationally
about it.  Just fix it, and "Don't worry, be happy."

-- 
________Robert J. Granvin________   INTERNET: rjg@sialis.mn.org
____National Computer Systems____   CONFUSED: rjg%sialis.mn.org@shamash.cdc.com
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