From tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU!core Thu Feb 7 02:24:19 EST 1991 Article 11771 of cis.staff: Path: tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU!core >From: core@CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU (douglas lee ii core) Newsgroups: cis.staff Subject: Problem with mail Message-ID: <9102070407.AA02380@broccoli.cis.ohio-state.edu> Date: 7 Feb 91 04:07:01 GMT Sender: core@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu Lines: 133 To: cis.staff Fr: Doug Core I have been having a problem with my default mail file. For a couple of weeks now I have seen these messages when giving the command 'mail' from the shell: Mail: ignoring NULL characters in mail file Mail: skipping garbage before messages No mail for core This, even though it told me almost every day there was new mail. It also took it a very long time to come back with the 'No mail for core' message. I decided to check into it and found the mail file was huge (8430000 bytes huge) as the ls entry below shows. The first day, I used cp to copy a null file to the mail file. This worked as I was able to send mail to myself, log out, log back in and read that mail. The next day, however, the file was back to the same size. I found the strings command so I could pick out what was legible in the file and I included the results from that on 2/6 below. This was after the mail file was nulled on 2/5. The results of strings from 2/5 and 2/6 are also different so itis not just copying the same file from somewhere. I spoke to one of the operators tonight (did not get a name) and he looked at the file but had no clue as to how or why it is doing this. He suggested I mail cis.staff. I can not receive mail right now (unless someone fixes this) so please send any questions or possible solutions to a news group I can read. cis.general would probably be good. Also, I left the current mail file as is in case someone wants to look at it. Thanks for any help. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -rw-r--r-- 1 core 8434096 Feb 6 18:33 /usr/spool/mail/core in.comsat @(#) Copyright (c) 1980 Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved. @(#)in.comsat.c 1.13 89/09/01 SMI %s: getsockname /var/spool/mail /etc/utmp comsat /etc/utmp: %m alarm changed malloc failed mailfor %s bad format /dev/ notify %s on %s wrong mode getpwnam failed setuid failed fopen failed New mail for %s@%.*s has arrived:%s ----%s HERE %s's mail starting at %d Cant read the mail ...more...%s >From Date >From Subject %s%s ----%s console ttyp0 wisniewsc3po.cis.ohio-st' Httyp1 raghavanstock.cob.ohio-s' ~*ttyp2 large gershwin.psy.ohi' ttyp3 demirkaybme1.bme.ohio-st' .ttyp4 alkamhawvalhalla.cs.wrig' ttyp5 2d2.cis.ohio-st' ttyp6 3po.cis.ohio-st' ttyp7 2d2.cis.ohio-st' ttyp8 3po.cis.ohio-st' v0ttyp9 3po.cis.ohio-st' ttypa 2d2.cis.ohio-st' ttypb 3po.cis.ohio-st' gttypc 2d2.cis.ohio-st' Lttypd 2d2.cis.ohio-st' ttypf 3po.cis.ohio-st' ttyq1 2d2.cis.ohio-st' System Diagnostic /usr/diag/sundiag /usr/diag/sundiag/sundiag cis.osu.new root:W1tvWITrHhb8U:0:1:Operator:/:/bin/csh nobody:*:65534:65534::/: daemon:*:1:1::/: sys:*:2:2::/:/bin/csh bin:*:3:3::/bin: audit:*:9:9::/etc/security/audit:/bin/csh sysdiag:*:0:1:Old System Diagnostic:/usr/diag/sysdiag:/usr/diag/sysdiag/sysdiag sundiag:*:0:1:System Diagnostic:/usr/diag/sundiag:/usr/diag/sundiag/sundiag +::0:0::: /var/yp/binding/cis.osu.new.2 cis.osu.new cis.osu.new passwd.byname !alkamhawvalhalla.cs.wrig' ttyp5 /usr/lib/ld.so main_$main_ /usr/lib/libc.so.1.5 tsoc_fcn_get tT +::0:0::: :1:System Diagnostic:/usr/diag/sundiag:/usr/diag/sundiag/sundiag /dev/ttyp4 alkamhaw 5~ in.comsat HOME=/ PATH=/etc:/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/etc:/usr/ucb in.comsat From tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!stegosaur.cis.ohio-state.edu!jrm Thu Feb 7 02:24:26 EST 1991 Article 11772 of cis.staff: Path: tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!stegosaur.cis.ohio-state.edu!jrm >From: jrm@stegosaur.cis.ohio-state.edu (John R. Mudd) Newsgroups: cis.staff Subject: Is biff rotten to the core (was Re: Problem with mail) Message-ID: <88086@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu> Date: 7 Feb 91 05:33:37 GMT References: <9102070407.AA02380@broccoli.cis.ohio-state.edu> Sender: news@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu Reply-To: John R. Mudd Organization: The Ohio State University Dept. of Computer & Information Science Lines: 38 In article <9102070407.AA02380@broccoli.cis.ohio-state.edu> core@CIS.OHIO-STATE.EDU (douglas lee ii core) writes: >I have been having a problem with my default mail file. For a couple of weeks >now I have seen these messages when giving the command 'mail' from the shell: > > Mail: ignoring NULL characters in mail file > Mail: skipping garbage before messages > No mail for core [ stuff deleted ] This entire posting is a riot. For starters: Good J, real good. However you choose usernames, I really think 'core' should go into ``reserved'' list. >This, even though it told me almost every day there was new mail. Does this say anything about our mail system? As Tom says, ``biff biffed.'' (The core file seemed to be generated by in.comsat(8), which is the biff server.) >It also >took it a very long time to come back with the 'No mail for core' message. I bet. 8 meg--I wonder why it took a long time. >I can not receive mail right now (unless someone fixes this) I think Carl's changing the poor guy's username right now. ... John (with help from Frank and Tom--tag team news posting)