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To: current@FreeBSD.org
Subject: Re: rdist to freefall - fails with: version numbers don't match 
From: "Julian H. Stacey" <jhs@FreeBSD.org>
Reply-To: "Julian H. Stacey" <jhs@FreeBSD.org>
Organization: Vector Systems Ltd.
Address: Holz Strasse 27d, 80469 Munich, Germany
Phone: +49.89.268616
Fax: +49.89.2608126
Web: http://www.freebsd.org/~jhs/
Mailer: EXMH 1.6.7, PGP available
In-reply-to: Your message of "Sat, 03 Aug 1996 21:54:39 +0200."
             <199608031954.VAA19947@vector.jhs.no_domain> 
Date: Sun, 04 Aug 1996 00:20:57 +0200
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Hi, Reference my own previous:
> Running `rdist' from my home box 
...
> to freefall
...
> Fails like this:
...
> my same home box to 2 other boxes out on the net Succeed:
...

Solution (Sigh ;-)
  My .cshrc was emitting a line (actually a printenv of a CVS var), ...
  that was enough to upset rdist.

  I discovered this after xxgdb said socket fail or some such;
  perhaps a rather unobvious error message for a normal user,
  & one we could improve on, but I feel silly not spotting it straight off !
  Who's guarding the conical cap ?  ... my turn for a short while :-)

Here's a patch to apply, hopefully it's acceptable ?

*** old/src/usr.bin/rdist/rdist.1	Sat Aug  3 23:55:31 1996
--- new/src/usr.bin/rdist/rdist.1	Sun Aug  4 00:15:02 1996
***************
*** 411,413 ****
--- 411,438 ----
  There should be a `force' option to allow replacement of non-empty directories
  by regular files or symlinks.  A means of updating file modes and owners
  of otherwise identical files is also needed.
+ .Pp
+ .Nm Rdist
+ relies on
+ .Nm rsh(1)
+ type remote services executing succesfully & in silence.
+ If you try something like
+ .Bd -literal -offset indent
+ rsh freefall.freebsd.org hostname  
+ .Ed
+ .sp
+ & get extra output before the program (
+ .Nm hostname(1)
+ ) output, such as
+ .Bd -literal -offset indent
+ Text_perhaps_initiated_from_~/.cshrc_or_similar
+ freefall.freebsd.org  
+ .Ed
+ .sp
+ then the unexpected extra text will cause
+ .Nm rdist
+ to fail with the (obscure) error message:
+ .Bd -literal -offset indent
+ rdist: connection failed: version numbers don't match
+ .Ed
+ .sp

Julian
--
Julian H. Stacey	jhs@freebsd.org  	http://www.freebsd.org/~jhs/