libtool-patches
[Top][All Lists]
Advanced

[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: [PATCH 6/7] syntax-check: fix violations and implement sc_prohibit_t


From: Eric Blake
Subject: Re: [PATCH 6/7] syntax-check: fix violations and implement sc_prohibit_test_const_follows_var.
Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2011 08:23:51 -0700
User-agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:7.0.1) Gecko/20110930 Thunderbird/7.0.1

On 11/22/2011 02:02 AM, Stefano Lattarini wrote:
>>> test a = "$b"
>>>
>>> is just as likely to trigger improper evaluation in buggy test(1)
>>> implementations as:
>>>
>>> test "$b" = a
>>
>> :-o  For real?  On non-museum pieces?

Okay, you've convinced me otherwise.  It looks like even buggy versions
of test(1) at least have the decency to recognize "non-op" "="
"arbitrary" as always being a string comparison, even if "arbitrary"
looks like an operator (I tried "!", "=", "(", ")", "-a", and so on).
It is only when the first argument looks like an operator that the
parser gets confused on what the remaining two arguments should be.

> And in fact the autconf manual says:
> 
>   Similarly, Posix says that both `test "string1" = "string2"' and
>   `test "string1" != "string2"' work for any pairs of strings, but
>   in practice this is not true for troublesome strings that look
>   like operators or parentheses, or that begin with `-'.
> 
> (Text that should be probably be expandend to show some examples,
> *and* to report the exact names and versions of the affected
> shells).

Yes, the autoconf manual could be improved, based on the results of this
thread.

> 
>> I tested a bunch of /bin/sh, bash, ksh and zsh versions that I have
>> easy access to, and for all of them, the only way to upset test with
>> leading hypens the first argument.
>>
> I couldn't do this either (for leading hypens, that is); but see the
> slighlty more elaborated issues presented above.

I can demonstrate a problem with leading hyphen, on Solaris 10 at least:

$ touch =; /bin/sh -c 'test -f ='; echo $?
/bin/sh: test: argument expected
1

>>
>> I'll postpone pushing this patch until we get to the bottom of the
>> issue though.

I withdraw my objection to the libtool patch.  It might not be a common
idiom to list the constant first, but who knows? maybe you've started a
new trend.

-- 
Eric Blake   address@hidden    +1-919-301-3266
Libvirt virtualization library http://libvirt.org

Attachment: signature.asc
Description: OpenPGP digital signature


reply via email to

[Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread]