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Re: inc command can't lock file

1998-05-11 21:48:06
"Patrice ALLAIS" <allais(_at_)lucent(_dot_)com> writes:
inc: unable to lock and fopen /var/spool/mail/patrice

  I've included relevant snippets from the MH FAQ.  You can get the
  rest at:

    http://www.faqs.org/faqs/mail/mh-faq/part1/preamble.html

Subject: 03.09 Fixing "cannot fopen and lock /var/spool/mail/(user)".
From: Patrick(_dot_)Wambacq(_at_)esat(_dot_)kuleuven(_dot_)ac(_dot_)be
Date: Mon, 30 Sep 96 15:00:16 +0200

  One should put the following lines in the mtstailor (mts.conf in
  nmh) file:

        lockldir:
        lockstyle: 1

  This prevents MH from using kernel level locking, and uses lock
  files instead.  It solved the problem for me on two different
  architectures.  When the lockldir entry is left empty as above, the
  lock file is put in the same directory as the file to be locked. If
  another directory is wanted, its name should be put here.

From: alhy(_at_)MAILBOX(_dot_)SLAC(_dot_)Stanford(_dot_)EDU
Date: Mon, 9 Sep 1996 01:01:16 -0700

  Often, this is caused by an NFS file lock.  Don't ask me how it got
  there in the first place.  To remove the file lock, do the following:

        # cd /var/spool/mail
        # cp user /tmp/user.tmp; rm user        # save mail; remove locked file
        # chown user /tmp/user.tmp              # allow user to inc old mail
        # su - user
        user% inc -file user.tmp                # incorporate user's old mail

  Any mail that you receive in the fraction of a second that the second
  set of commands takes will be lost.

  (See also "Why does inc hang (on Sun)?")

------------------------------
  
Subject: 03.12 Why does inc hang (on Sun)?
From: ericding(_at_)mit(_dot_)edu (Eric J. Ding)
Date: 30 Apr 1996 00:22:01 -0400

  This may be due to a non-robust implementation of lockf() over NFS.
  Try setting lockstyle to 1 in the mtstailor (mts.conf in nmh) file
  so that MH uses dotfile locking rather than FLOCK or LOCKF.


Bill Wohler <wohler(_at_)newt(_dot_)com>
Say it with MIME.  Maintainer of comp.mail.mh and news.software.nn FAQs.
If you're passed on the right, you're in the wrong lane.


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