grady@fxgrp.fx.com (Steven Grady) (08/11/89)
Is there a reason why the config file (ie /usr/lib/news/bin/config normally) does not export the variable settings? I've got alternate paths set up in the config file, but they don't get propagated (eg from rnews to newsspool) because the variables are not exported to the environment. Seems like it makes the config file kind of useless. Will it cause problems if I change the config file to export the variables? Steven ...!ucbvax!grady grady@postgres.berkeley.edu "Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue!"
henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) (08/12/89)
In article <1989Aug11.005854.12935@fxgrp.fx.com> grady@fxgrp.fx.com (Steven Grady) writes: >Is there a reason why the config file (ie /usr/lib/news/bin/config normally) >does not export the variable settings? I've got alternate paths set up >in the config file, but they don't get propagated (eg from rnews to newsspool) >because the variables are not exported to the environment... You're going about it the wrong way -- you want to start with the sources and go through "build" again, which will generate a doit.bin that runs "subst" to get the new variables into everything. If you do get your new variables down into newsspool via the environment, it will decide that since they don't match the ones config.c knows about, you must be playing tricks on it or running it for testing only... and it will renounce setuid privileges to make sure nothing evil happens. There is no terribly strong argument for or against exporting the variable in config. It simply doesn't make much difference. All the shell files pick it up explicitly anyway, and all the C programs rely on config.c as the final authority (which means, as explained above, that you *can't* change the variables by just changing config -- that only gets the shell programs). Nothing is likely to break if you do the exporting, but it won't do what you think. -- V7 /bin/mail source: 554 lines.| Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology 1989 X.400 specs: 2200+ pages. | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu