GNU bug report logs - #25963
25.2; tramp su fails

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Fri, 03 Mar 2017 21:02:29 -0500

Hello,

I'm having a problem opening files as root. 

From emacs -Q, I issue
`(require 'tramp)`, customize tramp-verbose to 10, and try to open a
file as root: `C-x C-f /su::/etc/fstab`. I'm then prompted for my root
password. Entering the password, Emacs pauses for ca. 10 seconds, then
appears to open a new file called fstab, but it's not the fstab that
already exists in /etc/fstab. The message about calling make-directory
to create the parent directories shows up, so I've apparently opened a
new file somewhere. I can't see where, exactly, as `C-x C-f`, or even
`M-x shell-commmand pwd` both prompt me for the root password, and then
fail. 

Despite having turned `tramp-verbose` to the maximum value, there's not
much in my *Messages* buffer after all this:


Creating customization setup...done  
Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...  
Tramp: Sending command ‘exec su - root’  
Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...  
Tramp: Sending Password  
Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...failed  
Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...failed  
Use M-x make-directory RET RET to create the directory and its parents  

Tramp: Checking ‘vc-registered’ for /su:root@<myhostname>: 
/etc/fstab...failed  
Use M-x make-directory RET RET to create the directory and its parents  
Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...  
Tramp: Sending command ‘exec su - root’  
Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...  
Tramp: Sending Password  
Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...failed  
Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...failed  
Quit  

This is all on a laptop, I'm not trying to connect to another machine. 

Emacs 25.1.91.1, and confirmed again with Emacs 25.2.1.

In GNU Emacs 25.2.1 (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu, GTK+ Version 3.22.8)
 of 2017-03-03 built on onottra672626p
Repository revision: 6e788ef0e262fafc014c21f4ad52cc5dc9f1715b
Windowing system distributor 'The X.Org Foundation', version
11.0.11901000
System Description:     Debian GNU/Linux 9.0 (stretch)

Configured features:
XPM JPEG TIFF GIF PNG RSVG IMAGEMAGICK SOUND GPM DBUS GCONF GSETTINGS
NOTIFY ACL LIBSELINUX GNUTLS LIBXML2 FREETYPE M17N_FLT LIBOTF XFT ZLIB
TOOLKIT_SCROLL_BARS GTK3 X11

Important settings:
  value of $LANG: en_CA.UTF-8
  locale-coding-system: utf-8-unix

Major mode: Lisp Interaction

Minor modes in effect:
  tooltip-mode: t
  global-eldoc-mode: t
  electric-indent-mode: t
  mouse-wheel-mode: t
  tool-bar-mode: t
  menu-bar-mode: t
  file-name-shadow-mode: t
  global-font-lock-mode: t
  font-lock-mode: t
  blink-cursor-mode: t
  auto-composition-mode: t
  auto-encryption-mode: t
  auto-compression-mode: t
  line-number-mode: t
  transient-mark-mode: t

Recent messages:
For information about GNU Emacs and the GNU system, type C-h C-a.
Making completion list... [2 times]
user-error: End of history; no default available

Load-path shadows:
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/home/tws/research/programs/emacs-github/lisp/play/landmark hides
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/home/tws/research/programs/emacs-github/lisp/emacs-lisp/gulp hides
/home/tws/research/programs/emacs-github/lisp/obsolete/gulp
/home/tws/research/programs/emacs-github/lisp/net/eudcb-ph hides
/home/tws/research/programs/emacs-github/lisp/obsolete/eudcb-ph
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Features:
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Memory information:
((conses 16 87181 6288)
 (symbols 48 19950 0)
 (miscs 40 53 171)
 (strings 32 14702 4549)
 (string-bytes 1 420962)
 (vectors 16 11979)
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 (buffers 976 21))


Best,

Tyler

Message #8 received at 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Michael Albinus <michael.albinus <at> gmx.de>
To: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
Cc: 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#25963: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Sat, 04 Mar 2017 14:37:11 +0100

Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca> writes:

> Hello,

Hi Tyler,

> From emacs -Q, I issue
> `(require 'tramp)`, customize tramp-verbose to 10, and try to open a
> file as root: `C-x C-f /su::/etc/fstab`. I'm then prompted for my root
> password. Entering the password, Emacs pauses for ca. 10 seconds, then
> appears to open a new file called fstab, but it's not the fstab that
> already exists in /etc/fstab. The message about calling make-directory
> to create the parent directories shows up, so I've apparently opened a
> new file somewhere. I can't see where, exactly, as `C-x C-f`, or even
> `M-x shell-commmand pwd` both prompt me for the root password, and then
> fail. 
>
> Despite having turned `tramp-verbose` to the maximum value, there's not
> much in my *Messages* buffer after all this:
>
> Creating customization setup...done  
> Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...  
> Tramp: Sending command ‘exec su - root’  
> Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...  
> Tramp: Sending Password  
> Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...failed  
> Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...failed  

This tells us that the su command hasn't been successful. When you have
turned `tramp-verbose' to 10, there is a Tramp debug buffer. Pls show this.

> Best,
>
> Tyler

Best regards, Michael.

Message #11 received at 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
To: Michael Albinus <michael.albinus <at> gmx.de>
Cc: 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#25963: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Mon, 06 Mar 2017 08:43:46 -0500

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

Thanks Michael,

That buffer, `debug tramp/su ...` is quite large, 1269 lines. I've
attached it as a txt file, if you'd prefer me to post it somewhere or
paste it inline, let me know. There is a second debug buffer `debug
tramp/nil nil`, which contains only:

;; GNU Emacs: 25.2.1 Tramp: 2.2.13.25.2 -*- mode: outline; -*-
;; Location: /usr/local/share/emacs/25.2/lisp/net/tramp.elc Git: nil
08:34:19.239257 tramp-call-process (6) # ‘locale -a’ nil  *temp*
08:34:19.241458 tramp-call-process (6) # 0
C
C.UTF-8
en_CA.utf8
POSIX


Best,

Tyler

-- 
plantarum.ca

On Sat, Mar 4, 2017, at 08:37 AM, Michael Albinus wrote:
> Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca> writes:
> 
> > Hello,
> 
> Hi Tyler,
> 
> > From emacs -Q, I issue
> > `(require 'tramp)`, customize tramp-verbose to 10, and try to open a
> > file as root: `C-x C-f /su::/etc/fstab`. I'm then prompted for my root
> > password. Entering the password, Emacs pauses for ca. 10 seconds, then
> > appears to open a new file called fstab, but it's not the fstab that
> > already exists in /etc/fstab. The message about calling make-directory
> > to create the parent directories shows up, so I've apparently opened a
> > new file somewhere. I can't see where, exactly, as `C-x C-f`, or even
> > `M-x shell-commmand pwd` both prompt me for the root password, and then
> > fail. 
> >
> > Despite having turned `tramp-verbose` to the maximum value, there's not
> > much in my *Messages* buffer after all this:
> >
> > Creating customization setup...done  
> > Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...  
> > Tramp: Sending command ‘exec su - root’  
> > Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...  
> > Tramp: Sending Password  
> > Tramp: Waiting for prompts from remote shell...failed  
> > Tramp: Opening connection for root@<myhostname> using su...failed  
> 
> This tells us that the su command hasn't been successful. When you have
> turned `tramp-verbose' to 10, there is a Tramp debug buffer. Pls show
> this.
> 
> > Best,
> >
> > Tyler
> 
> Best regards, Michael.

[debug-tramp-su-root.txt (text/plain, attachment)]

Message #14 received at 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Michael Albinus <michael.albinus <at> gmx.de>
To: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
Cc: 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#25963: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Mon, 06 Mar 2017 15:06:03 +0100

Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca> writes:

> Thanks Michael,

Hi Tyler,

> That buffer, `debug tramp/su ...` is quite large, 1269 lines. I've
> attached it as a txt file, if you'd prefer me to post it somewhere or
> paste it inline, let me know.

No, it is sufficient.

> There is a second debug buffer `debug
> tramp/nil nil`, which contains only:

This one is of no interest this time.

Let's see what happened:

> 08:34:19.246330 tramp-send-command (6) # exec su - root
> 08:34:34.147941 tramp-process-actions (6) # 
> Password: 
> [30;41m~ [0;31m‚ [m

Looks, like beside the su password, there are some further escape
sequences (color?) in the shell output, which disturb Tramp. Pls
suppress them; the Tramp manual shall tell you how.

> Best,
>
> Tyler

Best regards, Michael.

Message #17 received at 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
To: Michael Albinus <michael.albinus <at> gmx.de>
Cc: 25963 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#25963: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Mon, 06 Mar 2017 19:12:15 -0500

On Mon, Mar 6, 2017, at 09:06 AM, Michael Albinus wrote:
> 
> > 08:34:19.246330 tramp-send-command (6) # exec su - root
> > 08:34:34.147941 tramp-process-actions (6) # 
> > Password: 
> > [30;41m~ [0;31m [m
> 
> Looks, like beside the su password, there are some further escape
> sequences (color?) in the shell output, which disturb Tramp. Pls
> suppress them; the Tramp manual shall tell you how.

Thank you Michael!

Following your suggestion, I discovered that one of those escape
sequences is a special 'arrow' symbol used in the custom powerline
prompt. Adding that symbol to the appropriate place in
tramp-shell-prompt-pattern fixes the problem.

Best, 

Tyler

Message #22 received at 25963-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Michael Albinus <michael.albinus <at> gmx.de>
To: Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca>
Cc: 25963-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#25963: 25.2; tramp su fails
Date: Tue, 07 Mar 2017 09:16:57 +0100

Tyler Smith <tyler <at> plantarum.ca> writes:

> Thank you Michael!

Hi Tyler,

> Following your suggestion, I discovered that one of those escape
> sequences is a special 'arrow' symbol used in the custom powerline
> prompt. Adding that symbol to the appropriate place in
> tramp-shell-prompt-pattern fixes the problem.

Thanks for confirmation! So there's no problem with Tramp. I'm closing
the bug.

> Best, 
>
> Tyler

Best regards, Michael.

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