subject:"\[newbie\] CRON"

On Fri, 2004-08-06 at 05:47, German Guillot wrote:
> On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 03:25:10 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > Now I'm led to wonder, are you using kcron to setup the cron job - and
> > is the user YOU or root or system?
> 
> I'm not using kcron - I don't even have it. In my home dir I have a
> text file called, appropriately (or confusingly) "crontab". I edit
> this by hand when I want to make changes, and then I run:
> 
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ crontab crontab

Hmm...I always thought that /usr/bin/kcron was installed by deafult on
MDK 9+ systems...I don't recall having to specifically install it;
either which, I find it a faster and easier tool to do the same thing
(why reinvent the wheel?); and in so being, always maintains uncorrupted
crontab information (although it did muck up a few times PRIOR to
tweaking the IDE drives and a few other system params.)

> et voilà, the file /var/spool/cron/ger is updated and cron does as
> instructed, as long as you don't require it to use the X server. It's
> the user's crontab, but I've tried with with root's with the same
> result (ie, none).
> 
> For my little problem I've found a solution now. The script that cron
> runs checks my intended webpage and if it has changed since last time
> runs "cat status.1 > status", otherwise it runs "cat status.0 >
> status" (the content of status.1 is a 1, etc).
> 
> In the meantime I have a background process reading the file "status"
> at the same intervals as cron. If it finds a 0, it does nothing. If it
> finds a 1 it opens a Galeon tab. Solved!
> 
> I still don't know how you managed to make cron start Galeon directly,
> though. I'm using mdk10 OE, standard out of the box. I haven't messed
> with any configurations, I don't know enough for that yet. I guess
> you've got a few things tweaked there, haven't you? Oh man, so much to
> learn, so little time!
> 
> Germán.

I thought there was a panel applet for both Gnome and KDE that achieved
the same means - telling you when a particular website was
updated...Karamba and Superkaramba have "themes" that can do that (as
well as display them nicely on the root X window - I think that
gDesklets has features similar to that as well...)

stephen kuhn - proprietor
__
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Serving Sydney, The Illawarra, South Coast and Rural NSW
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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Thu, 05 Aug 2004 12:58:40 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> As you say, running two X servers is overkill for what you want.  I am
> trying to remember something - there is a "dummy" X server package, or
> something like that, for faking an X server.  It may be part of the VNC
> package...  If I can remember enough to get a URL, or if I have time to
> go looking for it, I will post more.  Your problem has gotten more then
> one person on the list thinking in a new direction.  This is one of the
> reasions I am on the list!
> 

It's a great list, for sure. This thread is frankly OT and has been
running for I don't know how many emails, and nothing but interest and
help from you guys. I'm a little embarrassed of all the attention it's
got, but hey. It's a pleasure to be here, and a very useful one too.
Thanks so much!

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 03:25:10 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> Now I'm led to wonder, are you using kcron to setup the cron job - and
> is the user YOU or root or system?

I'm not using kcron - I don't even have it. In my home dir I have a
text file called, appropriately (or confusingly) "crontab". I edit
this by hand when I want to make changes, and then I run:

[EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ crontab crontab

et voilà, the file /var/spool/cron/ger is updated and cron does as
instructed, as long as you don't require it to use the X server. It's
the user's crontab, but I've tried with with root's with the same
result (ie, none).

For my little problem I've found a solution now. The script that cron
runs checks my intended webpage and if it has changed since last time
runs "cat status.1 > status", otherwise it runs "cat status.0 >
status" (the content of status.1 is a 1, etc).

In the meantime I have a background process reading the file "status"
at the same intervals as cron. If it finds a 0, it does nothing. If it
finds a 1 it opens a Galeon tab. Solved!

I still don't know how you managed to make cron start Galeon directly,
though. I'm using mdk10 OE, standard out of the box. I haven't messed
with any configurations, I don't know enough for that yet. I guess
you've got a few things tweaked there, haven't you? Oh man, so much to
learn, so little time!

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

German Guillot wrote:
I'll check out xauth, though it seems a bit of overkill to have two X
servers running, just for this little toy. It'll teach me something
new, though.
I changed my run level to 3 and logged in again. I see that I own a
process called xinit, but top shows me that X is run by root (and
takes up 15% of my memory, which is why I'll try to make this work
with xauth, but just for homework. Even if it works, it's too heavy a
solution for such a small thing). Anyway, even with logging in from
level 3 the stuff I've been trying doesnt work.
Lynx would work, I guess. I hadn't thought of that.
Thank you for taking so much interest. I feel a little overwhelmed ;)
Germán.
 

I must be getting old - the X server itself has to have root permission 
to access the video hardware, so it will show as owned by root.  But 
access is normaly limmited to the user that starts it.  You can use 
xhost to let other users, or hosts, access the X server.  But this 
command has to be run by the user that is in control of the X server.

As you say, running two X servers is overkill for what you want.  I am 
trying to remember something - there is a "dummy" X server package, or 
something like that, for faking an X server.  It may be part of the VNC 
package...  If I can remember enough to get a URL, or if I have time to 
go looking for it, I will post more.  Your problem has gotten more then 
one person on the list thinking in a new direction.  This is one of the 
reasions I am on the list!

Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.


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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 2004-08-06 at 02:12, German Guillot wrote:

> Well, damnit. No, you're not missing anything, but I obviously am. I
> have a little script just like yours. I create a crontab with a task
> for it. It just doesn't work. Other scripts with other commands (cat,
> for example) are run by cron from my crontab, no problem. So it's not
> that I can't program a task in cron. It's not that I can't write a
> script to fire up a browser, that too works (run from the xterm).
> 
> The only thing I can think of is that your X configuration and mine
> are different, and mine doesn't allow me to do this. Got a lot more
> studying to do.
> 
> Germán.

Now I'm led to wonder, are you using kcron to setup the cron job - and
is the user YOU or root or system?

stephen kuhn - proprietor
__
illawarra computer services :: a kuhn media australia venture
http://kma.0catch.com  :: mobile 0410.728.389
Serving Sydney, The Illawarra, South Coast and Rural NSW
__
  * This message was composed on a 100% Microsoft free computer *
  We expressly refuse to utilise Microsoft DRM encoded documents
__
  Mandrake GNU/Linux 10.0 OE/Kernel 2.6.3-7/ No Viruses here. 

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point to the consumer in this day when individualism is an increasingly
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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Thu, 05 Aug 2004 10:47:57 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> The display manager will be running as root.  But when a suer logs in,
> it turns ownership over th the user.  If you use run level 3, then the
> user owns the X server from the start.  You can also do things like have
> more then one X server running at a time, each owned by a different
> user.  Access to each X server is controled by xauth.   There is an
> XAUTHORITY shell varable that points to the file containing the key.  It
> is possable to grant a program run by a different user access, but it is
> not simple.  Run "man xauth" and you will get an idea...
> 
> On the other hand, maybe you could use something like lynx, or wget to
> do what you are looking for?

I'll check out xauth, though it seems a bit of overkill to have two X
servers running, just for this little toy. It'll teach me something
new, though.

I changed my run level to 3 and logged in again. I see that I own a
process called xinit, but top shows me that X is run by root (and
takes up 15% of my memory, which is why I'll try to make this work
with xauth, but just for homework. Even if it works, it's too heavy a
solution for such a small thing). Anyway, even with logging in from
level 3 the stuff I've been trying doesnt work.

Lynx would work, I guess. I hadn't thought of that.

Thank you for taking so much interest. I feel a little overwhelmed ;)

Germán.

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RE: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-05 Thread Bill Shirley

Do you set and export the DISPLAY variable?

>From an xterminal run:

env | grep DISPLAY

to see what it is set to.

I would think that if you do startx as root then
the crontab would have to be root's.

Also, if your cron job fails you should
get email.  Check that for errors.

Test your script.  Open an xterm and type:
unset DISPLAY

then run your script.  Does it work?

Bill

PS.  My run level is 3 not 5.

> -Original Message-
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of German Guillot
> Sent: Thursday, August 05, 2004 12:13 PM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user
>
>
> On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 01:42:10 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > Ok...just for giggles and grins, I just created a small script to fire
> > up Galeon (/home/stephen/bin/start_galeon) ::
> >
> > 
> > #!/bin/bash
> >
> > /usr/bin/galeon http://freshmeat.net
> >
> > exit
> > 
> >
> > Fired up kcron as myself, added the task, saved the task; fired up kcron
> > again and forced a run; worked like a charm; was I missing something
> > originally in the thread?
>
> Well, damnit. No, you're not missing anything, but I obviously am. I
> have a little script just like yours. I create a crontab with a task
> for it. It just doesn't work. Other scripts with other commands (cat,
> for example) are run by cron from my crontab, no problem. So it's not
> that I can't program a task in cron. It's not that I can't write a
> script to fire up a browser, that too works (run from the xterm).
>
> The only thing I can think of is that your X configuration and mine
> are different, and mine doesn't allow me to do this. Got a lot more
> studying to do.
>
> Germán.
>
>



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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

Bill Shirley wrote:

-Original Message-
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of German Guillot
Sent: Thursday, August 05, 2004 9:29 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user
On Thu, 5 Aug 2004 08:29:16 -0400, Bill Shirley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

[EMAIL PROTECTED] tmp]# cat testg
#!/bin/sh
export DISPLAY=:0.0
echo $DISPLAY
/usr/bin/galeon
#/usr/bin/mozilla
Works for me!

Rats! I sure wish I could say the same. Just to be sure, do you mean
it's working as a cron job, opening a browser window at certain times?
Because that's what I can't get it to do. I can use the script to open
Galeon if I run it from an xterm, but that's it. I've tried putting it
in a crontab for root, I've tried logging in from run level 3 and then
typing startx (but the X process is still owned by root), no result.
I have got cron to do other things, but not this. It's like Mikkel said:

I bet it will not work from the command line if you are at the command
line interface, instead of the command line in an xterm.  Any command
that needs X to run will NOT work in a cron job.  This is because it can
not connect to an X server - at least not with the default security
settings.  It is not a good idea to change the settings to allow this,
unless you are on an isulated machine.  (I remember playing tricks on
people running an open X server...)  ;)

So do you have your security settings tweaked to allow you to connect
to the X server? Because what he says there seems to fit the behaviour
on my system exactly, and I'd decided it wasn't worth compromising
security for this. But I'm also pretty sure that there must be a
workaround (or maybe I'm just mule-headed).
Germán.

Works from a cron job:
44 11 * * * /root/tmp/tmp/testg
Here is my setup:
I have vncserver running on my server.  I open root's desktop with vncviewer
from another PC.  From the same "another PC", I ssh in and can run the
script which starts galeon and the window opens in vncviewer.  (I only use
the real console in emergencies.)  The ssh terminal does not have the
environment variable DISPLAY set;  thus emulating the environment of cron
jobs.
This setup also works if the script is run from cron.  I tested it here.
I'm not sure what you guys are talking about when you say security settings.
The "another PC" is on my local LAN and the server allows a connection.
[EMAIL PROTECTED] tmp]# cat testg
#!/bin/sh
export DISPLAY=:0.0
echo $DISPLAY
/usr/bin/galeon
#/usr/bin/mozilla
Root gets an email from the echo command which reads:
:0.0
HTH,
Bill

Running a VNC server is a bit different from running an X server.  I 
have not looked at the security settings for the VNC server.  The VNC 
server takes the place of the normal X server, so the settings of the 
VNC server determine what programs can connect.

My experence in using ssh with X has been slightly different - I use ssh 
to run a program on a remote machine, and have it connect to the X 
server on my machine.  With ssh set to forward the X connection, the 
local X server thinks I am running a program on the local machine.  If I 
am running X localy, it works better then VNC for me.  I usualy do not 
need the remote window manager.  If I do, then I start it in and Xnest 
window on my normal desktop.

Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 01:42:10 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> Ok...just for giggles and grins, I just created a small script to fire
> up Galeon (/home/stephen/bin/start_galeon) ::
> 
> 
> #!/bin/bash
> 
> /usr/bin/galeon http://freshmeat.net
> 
> exit
> 
> 
> Fired up kcron as myself, added the task, saved the task; fired up kcron
> again and forced a run; worked like a charm; was I missing something
> originally in the thread?

Well, damnit. No, you're not missing anything, but I obviously am. I
have a little script just like yours. I create a crontab with a task
for it. It just doesn't work. Other scripts with other commands (cat,
for example) are run by cron from my crontab, no problem. So it's not
that I can't program a task in cron. It's not that I can't write a
script to fire up a browser, that too works (run from the xterm).

The only thing I can think of is that your X configuration and mine
are different, and mine doesn't allow me to do this. Got a lot more
studying to do.

Germán.

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RE: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-05 Thread Bill Shirley



> -Original Message-
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of German Guillot
> Sent: Thursday, August 05, 2004 9:29 AM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user
>
>
> On Thu, 5 Aug 2004 08:29:16 -0400, Bill Shirley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > [EMAIL PROTECTED] tmp]# cat testg
> > #!/bin/sh
> >
> > export DISPLAY=:0.0
> >
> > echo $DISPLAY
> >
> > /usr/bin/galeon
> >
> > #/usr/bin/mozilla
> >
> > Works for me!
> >
>
> Rats! I sure wish I could say the same. Just to be sure, do you mean
> it's working as a cron job, opening a browser window at certain times?
> Because that's what I can't get it to do. I can use the script to open
> Galeon if I run it from an xterm, but that's it. I've tried putting it
> in a crontab for root, I've tried logging in from run level 3 and then
> typing startx (but the X process is still owned by root), no result.
>
> I have got cron to do other things, but not this. It's like Mikkel said:
>
> > I bet it will not work from the command line if you are at the command
> > line interface, instead of the command line in an xterm.  Any command
> > that needs X to run will NOT work in a cron job.  This is because it can
> > not connect to an X server - at least not with the default security
> > settings.  It is not a good idea to change the settings to allow this,
> > unless you are on an isulated machine.  (I remember playing tricks on
> > people running an open X server...)  ;)
>
> So do you have your security settings tweaked to allow you to connect
> to the X server? Because what he says there seems to fit the behaviour
> on my system exactly, and I'd decided it wasn't worth compromising
> security for this. But I'm also pretty sure that there must be a
> workaround (or maybe I'm just mule-headed).
>
> Germán.
>
>

Works from a cron job:
44 11 * * * /root/tmp/tmp/testg

Here is my setup:
I have vncserver running on my server.  I open root's desktop with vncviewer
from another PC.  From the same "another PC", I ssh in and can run the
script which starts galeon and the window opens in vncviewer.  (I only use
the real console in emergencies.)  The ssh terminal does not have the
environment variable DISPLAY set;  thus emulating the environment of cron
jobs.

This setup also works if the script is run from cron.  I tested it here.

I'm not sure what you guys are talking about when you say security settings.

The "another PC" is on my local LAN and the server allows a connection.

[EMAIL PROTECTED] tmp]# cat testg
#!/bin/sh

export DISPLAY=:0.0
echo $DISPLAY

/usr/bin/galeon
#/usr/bin/mozilla

Root gets an email from the echo command which reads:
:0.0

HTH,

Bill



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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

Bill Shirley wrote:
 [EMAIL PROTECTED] tmp]# cat testg #!/bin/sh
 export DISPLAY=:0.0
 echo $DISPLAY
 /usr/bin/galeon
 #/usr/bin/mozilla
 Works for me!
 Bill
Are you running X as the same user?  If user bill logs in to the DM, or 
runs startx, user joe can not connect to the X server without a LOT more 
work then this.  (User root will also get an error when trying to 
connect...)  This can be changed using the xhost command.  (USE WITH 
CAUTION!)  The xhost command MUST be run by the user "owning" the X server.

Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.


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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

German Guillot wrote:
On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 20:22:44 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
 

Bill Shirley wrote:
   

Try putting in the script:
DISPLAY=:0.0
at the top after #!/bin/sh
HTH, Bill
 

This only works if you are running the X server.  If another user is
running X, you will not be able to connect to the X server, unless you
turn off security.  It also fails if you are not running an X server.
Also, if you are running more then one X server, the DISPLAY setting may
be different for "your" X server.
   

The thing is, the X server is running, but the owner is root. Should
that be so? I have the machine set to boot to run level 5, and then I
log in from there. If I booted to run level 3, logged in, and _then_
started X, would I own the server process? I wonder if it would work
if I made the cron entry in root's crontab, and put the script in
cron's path. I'll try that now, just to see, though I'm not too sure I
want root to run wget and galeon regularly. I don't know nuttin', but
it somehow seems like a risky practice to me.
On the other hand, this seems like a limitation that should have a
workaround without compromising security. If I can run the script
while I'm logged in to an x session, but not from cron, it means cron
is using a different session, all it's own. Isn't there a way to
instruct cron that a command must be run from the active session of
the user whose crontab it is? That sounds reasonable, no?
More to investigate. What fun!
Germán.
 

The display manager will be running as root.  But when a suer logs in, 
it turns ownership over th the user.  If you use run level 3, then the 
user owns the X server from the start.  You can also do things like have 
more then one X server running at a time, each owned by a different 
user.  Access to each X server is controled by xauth.   There is an 
XAUTHORITY shell varable that points to the file containing the key.  It 
is possable to grant a program run by a different user access, but it is 
not simple.  Run "man xauth" and you will get an idea...

On the other hand, maybe you could use something like lynx, or wget to 
do what you are looking for?

Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.


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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 2004-08-06 at 01:20, German Guillot wrote:
> On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 01:06:05 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > Maybe I walked in late in the thread here - but I'm trying to NOW figure
> > out what y'all tryin to do - is it that you want cron to open a browser
> > for you for a specific URL and that's all?
> 
> Yep, that's it. I'm starting to feel a little embarrassed that the
> thread has run so long, this being OT and all. But basically that's
> the object of the exercise. I'm really just trying my hand out at
> scripting, and learning loads trying to solve this little problem.
> 
> If you have any ideas, they're most welcome!
> 
> Germán.

Ok...just for giggles and grins, I just created a small script to fire
up Galeon (/home/stephen/bin/start_galeon) ::

#!/bin/bash

/usr/bin/galeon http://freshmeat.net

exit

Fired up kcron as myself, added the task, saved the task; fired up kcron
again and forced a run; worked like a charm; was I missing something
originally in the thread?

stephen kuhn - proprietor
__
illawarra computer services :: a kuhn media australia venture
http://kma.0catch.com  :: mobile 0410.728.389
Serving Sydney, The Illawarra, South Coast and Rural NSW
__
  * This message was composed on a 100% Microsoft free computer *
  We expressly refuse to utilise Microsoft DRM encoded documents
__
  Mandrake GNU/Linux 10.0 OE/Kernel 2.6.3-7/ No Viruses here. 

Support bacteria -- it's the only culture some people have!

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 06 Aug 2004 01:06:05 +1000, Stephen Kühn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> Maybe I walked in late in the thread here - but I'm trying to NOW figure
> out what y'all tryin to do - is it that you want cron to open a browser
> for you for a specific URL and that's all?

Yep, that's it. I'm starting to feel a little embarrassed that the
thread has run so long, this being OT and all. But basically that's
the object of the exercise. I'm really just trying my hand out at
scripting, and learning loads trying to solve this little problem.

If you have any ideas, they're most welcome!

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Fri, 2004-08-06 at 00:54, German Guillot wrote:
> On Thu, 5 Aug 2004 09:18:36 -0500, Hoyt Bailey <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >
> > You might try:
> > '/usr/bin/galeon weather.com' (or whatever site you want)
> 
> Yeah, tried that too. I think I've tried everything short of changing
> security settings in the X server,  but I'm not going down that route.
> Anyway, I've learnt about cron, I've learnt a bit about shell
> scripting, and that's all good. I can't open a browser window
> directly, but I'll find other ways of getting a notification. After
> all if I'm running X anyway, I can always click on a bookmark.
> 
> Or... leave a process running which reads a file, which cron updates.
> When the file reads 1, the running process opens a window. When the
> file reads 0, do nothing. Hm! Gonna try that.
> 
> Germán.

Maybe I walked in late in the thread here - but I'm trying to NOW figure
out what y'all tryin to do - is it that you want cron to open a browser
for you for a specific URL and that's all?

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Thu, 5 Aug 2004 09:18:36 -0500, Hoyt Bailey <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> You might try:
> '/usr/bin/galeon weather.com' (or whatever site you want)

Yeah, tried that too. I think I've tried everything short of changing
security settings in the X server,  but I'm not going down that route.
Anyway, I've learnt about cron, I've learnt a bit about shell
scripting, and that's all good. I can't open a browser window
directly, but I'll find other ways of getting a notification. After
all if I'm running X anyway, I can always click on a bookmark.

Or... leave a process running which reads a file, which cron updates.
When the file reads 1, the running process opens a window. When the
file reads 0, do nothing. Hm! Gonna try that.

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 20:22:44 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Bill Shirley wrote:
> 
> >  Try putting in the script:
> >
> >  DISPLAY=:0.0
> >
> >  at the top after #!/bin/sh
> >
> >  HTH, Bill
> >
> This only works if you are running the X server.  If another user is
> running X, you will not be able to connect to the X server, unless you
> turn off security.  It also fails if you are not running an X server.
> Also, if you are running more then one X server, the DISPLAY setting may
> be different for "your" X server.

The thing is, the X server is running, but the owner is root. Should
that be so? I have the machine set to boot to run level 5, and then I
log in from there. If I booted to run level 3, logged in, and _then_
started X, would I own the server process? I wonder if it would work
if I made the cron entry in root's crontab, and put the script in
cron's path. I'll try that now, just to see, though I'm not too sure I
want root to run wget and galeon regularly. I don't know nuttin', but
it somehow seems like a risky practice to me.

On the other hand, this seems like a limitation that should have a
workaround without compromising security. If I can run the script
while I'm logged in to an x session, but not from cron, it means cron
is using a different session, all it's own. Isn't there a way to
instruct cron that a command must be run from the active session of
the user whose crontab it is? That sounds reasonable, no?

More to investigate. What fun!

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 20:14:21 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> Or you script can start something like:
> 
> #!/bin/bash
> #
> PATH=/bin;/usr/bin;/home/ger/bin
> 
> Another way you can do it is to define variables for all your commands
> at the start of the script, and then use the variable where you would
> use the command.
> 
> MYCOMMAND=/home/ger/bin/command
> INFILE=/home/ger/infile.txt
> OUTFILE=/home/ger/outfile.txt
> 
> $MYCOMMAND  <$INFINE >$OUTFILE

Those are all good tips. I'm starting to learn shell scripting, so
I'll keep them in mind. Thanks!

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

On Wed, 4 Aug 2004 17:57:55 -0400, Bill Shirley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Try putting in the script:
> 
> DISPLAY=:0.0
> 
> at the top after #!/bin/sh

Thanks for the suggestion. It desn't work, though, unfortunately.

Germán.

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

Bill Shirley wrote:
 Try putting in the script:
 DISPLAY=:0.0
 at the top after #!/bin/sh
 HTH, Bill
This only works if you are running the X server.  If another user is 
running X, you will not be able to connect to the X server, unless you 
turn off security.  It also fails if you are not running an X server.
Also, if you are running more then one X server, the DISPLAY setting may 
be different for "your" X server.

Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.


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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

German Guillot wrote:
> I find specifing the path the script expects in the script itself
> cuts way down on problems, especialy if you later change your path
> from what it was when you wrote the script. You can usualy depend
> on /bin;/usr/sbin, but anything else depends on how the script is
> being run.
 Hm. With a script such as:
 #!/bin/bash cat /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2
 you mean I should write:
 #!/bin/bash /bin/cat /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2
Or you script can start something like:
#!/bin/bash
#
PATH=/bin;/usr/bin;/home/ger/bin
Another way you can do it is to define variables for all your commands 
at the start of the script, and then use the variable where you would 
use the command.

MYCOMMAND=/home/ger/bin/command
INFILE=/home/ger/infile.txt
OUTFILE=/home/ger/outfile.txt
$MYCOMMAND  <$INFINE >$OUTFILE
 right? Well, darn it, yes! I just tried it (that very example with
 cat, which was not working either) and now it works. That was really
 mystifying me, because I reckoned cat should always work. Of course
 it does.
Mikkel
--
   Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.


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RE: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-04 Thread Bill Shirley

Try putting in the script:

DISPLAY=:0.0

at the top after #!/bin/sh

HTH,
Bill


> -Original Message-
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of German Guillot
> Sent: Wednesday, August 04, 2004 4:43 PM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user
>
>
> On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 15:07:43 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> > > Yep, I did that. I tried PATH=/home/ger/bin and when that didn't work
> > >  PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11: etc, the whole bash environment
> > > variable.
> > >
> > Did you add the full path in the script, or in the crontab entry?
>
> I added it only in the crontab entry, both in the PATH variable and in
> the line to be executed.
>
> > I find specifing the path the script expects in the script itself cuts way
> > down on problems, especialy if you later change your path from what it
> > was when you wrote the script.  You can usualy depend on /bin;/usr/sbin,
> > but anything else depends on how the script is being run.
>
> Hm. With a script such as:
>
> #!/bin/bash
> cat  /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2
>
> you mean I should write:
>
> #!/bin/bash
> /bin/cat  /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2
>
> right? Well, darn it, yes! I just tried it (that very example with
> cat, which was not working either) and now it works.  That was really
> mystifying me, because I reckoned cat should always work. Of course it
> does.
>
>
> > > Just to see, I made another script to open a browser window. All it
> > > has is this:
> > >
> > > #!/bin/bash galeon
> > >
> > > It's called /home/ger/bin/gal and works from the command line. But
> > > not from cron. Those things you point out might be the reason... I'll
> > > use a command that always works and check it. Any suggestions?
> > >
> > I bet it will not work from the command line if you are at the command
> > line interface, instead of the command line in an xterm.  Any command
> > that needs X to run will NOT work in a cron job.  This is because it can
> > not connect to an X server - at least not with the default security
> > settings.  It is not a good idea to change the settings to allow this,
> > unless you are on an isulated machine.  (I remember playing tricks on
> > people running an open X server...)  ;)
>
> Right again! :) If I try to run my little "program" gal from a login
> shell and not an xterm, I get and error message:
>
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ gal
> (galeon-bin: 13165): Gtk-WARNING **: cannot open display:
>
>
> > I hope this helps...
>
> It does indeed, thank you. All the mysteries have been explained. I
> still can't do what I was trying to do, but now I know why. It was
> only to learn, so I can count the whole thing a success after all.
>
> Thank you again.
>
> Germán.
>
>



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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-04 Thread German Guillot

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 15:07:43 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> > Yep, I did that. I tried PATH=/home/ger/bin and when that didn't work
> >  PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11: etc, the whole bash environment
> > variable.
> > 
> Did you add the full path in the script, or in the crontab entry?

I added it only in the crontab entry, both in the PATH variable and in
the line to be executed.

> I find specifing the path the script expects in the script itself cuts way
> down on problems, especialy if you later change your path from what it
> was when you wrote the script.  You can usualy depend on /bin;/usr/sbin,
> but anything else depends on how the script is being run.

Hm. With a script such as:

#!/bin/bash
cat  /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2

you mean I should write:

#!/bin/bash
/bin/cat  /home/ger/test.1 >> /home/ger/test.2

right? Well, darn it, yes! I just tried it (that very example with
cat, which was not working either) and now it works.  That was really
mystifying me, because I reckoned cat should always work. Of course it
does.

> > Just to see, I made another script to open a browser window. All it
> > has is this:
> >
> > #!/bin/bash galeon
> >
> > It's called /home/ger/bin/gal and works from the command line. But
> > not from cron. Those things you point out might be the reason... I'll
> > use a command that always works and check it. Any suggestions?
> > 
> I bet it will not work from the command line if you are at the command
> line interface, instead of the command line in an xterm.  Any command
> that needs X to run will NOT work in a cron job.  This is because it can
> not connect to an X server - at least not with the default security
> settings.  It is not a good idea to change the settings to allow this,
> unless you are on an isulated machine.  (I remember playing tricks on
> people running an open X server...)  ;)

Right again! :) If I try to run my little "program" gal from a login
shell and not an xterm, I get and error message:

[EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ gal
(galeon-bin: 13165): Gtk-WARNING **: cannot open display:

> I hope this helps...

It does indeed, thank you. All the mysteries have been explained. I
still can't do what I was trying to do, but now I know why. It was
only to learn, so I can count the whole thing a success after all.

Thank you again.

Germán.

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Go to http://www.mandrakestore.com
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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

German Guillot wrote:
On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 11:34:36 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

You might want to try adding a PATH= before
the first command in the script.

Yep, I did that. I tried PATH=/home/ger/bin and when that didn't work
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11: etc, the whole bash environment
variable.

Did you add the full path in the script, or in the crontab entry? I
find specifing the path the script expects in the script itself cuts way
down on problems, especialy if you later change your path from what it
was when you wrote the script. You can usualy depend on /bin;/usr/sbin,
but anything else depends on how the script is being run.

I am not sure how you added the path to the crontab entry, but it
doesn't sound like your script is using it.

I created a file in my home dir called "crontab", and then did
crontab crontab. The new generated file appeared as
/var/spool/cron/ger, and crontab -l showed its contents properly.

If it is using the default path, then it will not find any programs
that are not in /bin or /usr/bin. A couple of other things to be
carefull of
- some programs do not work well if you do not have an active
ternimal. - when run by crontab, you have a very limmited set of
varables set.

Just to see, I made another script to open a browser window. All it
has is this:
#!/bin/bash galeon
It's called /home/ger/bin/gal and works from the command line. But
not from cron. Those things you point out might be the reason... I'll
use a command that always works and check it. Any suggestions?
I bet it will not work from the command line if you are at the command
line interface, instead of the command line in an xterm. Any command
that needs X to run will NOT work in a cron job. This is because it can
not connect to an X server - at least not with the default security
settings. It is not a good idea to change the settings to allow this,
unless you are on an isulated machine. (I remember playing tricks on
people running an open X server...) ;)

If you would post your crontab entry, and your script, we may be
able to give you more specific help. (Any error mail from crontab
also...)

[EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ crontab -l # DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE - edit the
master and reinstall. # (crontab installed on Wed Aug 4 18:50:32
2004) # (Cron version -- $Id: crontab.c,v 2.13 1994/01/17 03:20:37
vixie Exp $) SHELL=/bin/bash MAILTO=ger
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11:/usr/X11R6/bin:/usr/local/bin:/opt/X11R6/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/games:/usr/lib/jre-1.4.2_04/bin:/home/ger/bin

*/15 * * * * /home/ger/bin/gal
That's the current content. Tha actual script I'm trying to run is an
adaptation of Todd Slater's recently posted script to check a web
page for new content. The only differences being that wget reads my
galeon cookie file (it's a site that requires login) and that if
there is any change Galeon opens a tab in the background. As I said,
from the command line it works.
Incidentally, about the mail. I've been looking for it, but I didn't
want to ask different kinds of questions in the same email. The
directory /var/spool/mail/ is empty and there's no mail-related stuff
in my home dir. I've never yet read system mail so I don't know if
there's a deamon that should be running and isn't, or something.

Anyway, good pointers there, I'll try with other simple commands to
see what happens. Thanks a lot.

Germán.
I hope this helps...
Mikkel
--
Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons,
for you are crunchy and taste good with Ketchup!

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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-04 Thread German Guillot

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 11:34:36 -0500, Mikkel L. Ellertson
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> You might want to try adding a PATH= before the
> first command in the script.

Yep, I did that. I tried PATH=/home/ger/bin and when that didn't work
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11: etc, the whole bash environment
variable.

>  I am not sure how you added the path to
> the crontab entry, but it doesn't sound like your script is using it.

I created a file in my home dir called "crontab", and then did crontab
crontab. The new generated file appeared as /var/spool/cron/ger, and
crontab -l showed its contents properly.

> If it is using the default path, then it will not find any programs that
> are not in /bin or /usr/bin.  A couple of other things to be carefull of
> 
> - some programs do not work well if you do not have an active ternimal.
> - when run by crontab, you have a very limmited set of varables set.

Just to see, I made another script to open a browser window. All it has is this:

#!/bin/bash
galeon

It's called /home/ger/bin/gal and works from the command line. But not
from cron. Those things you point out might be the reason... I'll use
a command that always works and check it. Any suggestions?

> 
> If you would post your crontab entry, and your script, we may be able to
> give you more specific help.  (Any error mail from crontab also...)

[EMAIL PROTECTED] ger]$ crontab -l
# DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE - edit the master and reinstall.
# (crontab installed on Wed Aug  4 18:50:32 2004)
# (Cron version -- $Id: crontab.c,v 2.13 1994/01/17 03:20:37 vixie Exp $)
SHELL=/bin/bash
MAILTO=ger
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/bin/X11:/usr/X11R6/bin:/usr/local/bin:/opt/X11R6/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/games:/usr/lib/jre-1.4.2_04/bin:/home/ger/bin

*/15 * * * * /home/ger/bin/gal

That's the current content. Tha actual script I'm trying to run is an
adaptation of Todd Slater's recently posted script to check a web page
for new content. The only differences being that wget reads my galeon
cookie file (it's a site that requires login) and that if there is any
change Galeon opens a tab in the background. As I said, from the
command line it works.

Incidentally, about the mail. I've been looking for it, but I didn't
want to ask different kinds of questions in the same email. The
directory /var/spool/mail/ is empty and there's no mail-related stuff
in my home dir. I've never yet read system mail so I don't know if
there's a deamon that should be running and isn't, or something.

Anyway, good pointers there, I'll try with other simple commands to
see what happens. Thanks a lot.

Germán.

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RE: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user

2004-08-04 Thread Tony S. Sykes

Have you got your scripts path explicit in the crontab?

Tony.

> -Original Message-
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of German Guillot
> Sent: Wednesday, August 04, 2004 4:02 PM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user
> 
> 
> On Wed, 4 Aug 2004 10:07:58 -0400, JoeHill 
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> 
> > I was having the same problem, turned out it was that in 
> the crontab entry I did
> > not put the full path the script. Even though it was in 
> *my* PATH, cron still
> > needed the full directions.
> 
> Thanks Joe. I had it like that to start with, and it didn't work.
> That's when I added the path to the script in the crontab PATH
> variable. Still no banana. So I added my whole path, just in case it
> needed it for the commands in the script. Nyet. I'm all confused. By
> rights it _should_ work.
> 
> Starting to lose my sense of humour here - better go brew 
> some caffeine.
> 
> GermÃn.
> 
> 


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Re: [newbie] Cron doesn't run for user