GNU bug report logs - #34009
doc: mkdir: warn that --mode doesn't affect parents

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

From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
To: bug-coreutils <at> gnu.org
Subject: warn that mkdir --mode doesn't affect parents created
Date: Mon, 07 Jan 2019 23:36:28 +0800

On man mkdir

       -m, --mode=MODE
              set file mode (as in chmod), not a=rwx - umask

       -p, --parents
              no error if existing, make parent directories as needed

do warn that --mode doesn't affect any parents created.

$ mkdir --mode 700 -p /tmp/g/h/i
$ find /tmp/g -ls
    55795      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g
    55796      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h
    55797      0 drwx------   2 jidanni  jidanni        40 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h/i

Also warn on (info "(coreutils) mkdir invocation") more directly. Thanks.

Message #8 received at 34009 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Assaf Gordon <assafgordon <at> gmail.com>
To: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>,
 34009 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#34009: warn that mkdir --mode doesn't affect parents created
Date: Fri, 11 Jan 2019 01:49:50 -0700

severity 34009 wishlist
retitle 34009 doc: mkdir: warn that --mode doesn't affect parents
stop

Hello,

On 2019-01-07 8:36 a.m., 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson wrote:
> 
> do warn that --mode doesn't affect any parents created.
> 
> $ mkdir --mode 700 -p /tmp/g/h/i
> $ find /tmp/g -ls
>      55795      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g
>      55796      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h
>      55797      0 drwx------   2 jidanni  jidanni        40 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h/i
> 
> Also warn on (info "(coreutils) mkdir invocation") more directly. Thanks.

The info manual does contain a short sentence about parents' modes:
 "To set the file permission bits of any newly-created parent
  directories to a value [...]"

But this can be improved.

Marking as wishlist. Patches are welcomed.

regards,
 - assaf'

Message #15 received at 34009 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Stefan Kangas <stefankangas <at> gmail.com>
To: Assaf Gordon <assafgordon <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 34009 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>,
 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
Subject: Re: bug#34009: doc: mkdir: warn that --mode doesn't affect parents
Date: Sun, 18 Sep 2022 10:29:48 -0400

Assaf Gordon <assafgordon <at> gmail.com> writes:

> On 2019-01-07 8:36 a.m., 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson wrote:
>> do warn that --mode doesn't affect any parents created.
>> $ mkdir --mode 700 -p /tmp/g/h/i
>> $ find /tmp/g -ls
>>      55795      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g
>>      55796      0 drwxr-xr-x   3 jidanni  jidanni        60 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h
>>      55797      0 drwx------   2 jidanni  jidanni        40 Jan  7 23:30 /tmp/g/h/i
>> Also warn on (info "(coreutils) mkdir invocation") more directly. Thanks.
>
> The info manual does contain a short sentence about parents' modes:
>  "To set the file permission bits of any newly-created parent
>   directories to a value [...]"
>
> But this can be improved.
>
> Marking as wishlist. Patches are welcomed.

This was fixed below (in coreutils-9.0), so this can probably be closed:

commit 3e61d5dd315be3aa1982b66b4e137564c61c849f
Author: Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>
Date:   Tue Dec 15 11:52:19 2020 -0800

    doc: document mkdir -m -p better

    Chris Colohan wrote that the man page did not do enough to dispel
    a common misunderstanding that “contributed to one of the scariest
    outages Google has ever seen” (Bug#45258).
    * doc/coreutils.texi (mkdir invocation):
    * src/mkdir.c (usage): Document -m vs -p better.

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