GNU bug report logs - #2412
spurious "Sign failed" errors

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Message #5 received at submit <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Fri, 20 Feb 2009 19:03:44 +0100 (MET)

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

Gnus v5.13
GNU Emacs 23.0.60.1 (i486-pc-linux-gnu, GTK+ Version 2.12.11)
 of 2008-11-30 on turtle, modified by Debian
200 news.motzarella.org InterNetNews NNRP server INN 2.4.5 ready (posting ok).

I'm experiencing painful, but not always reproducible problems with
sending or previewing signed mails.  Often I get an error "Sign failed"
and a backtrace like this:

,----
| Debugger entered--Lisp error: (error "Sign failed")
|   signal(error ("Sign failed"))
|   byte-code("<snipped>" [mml2015-epg-secret-key-id-list error password-cache-remove signal] 4)
|   mml2015-epg-sign((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
|   mml2015-sign((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
|   mml-pgpmime-sign-buffer((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
|   mml-generate-mime-1((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
|   mml-generate-mime()
|   message-encode-message-body()
|   mml-to-mime()
|   mml-preview(nil)
|   call-interactively(mml-preview nil nil)
`----

If this happens during sending, the message actually is signed and sent,
but no copy lands in my archive folder. :-(

I'm using gpg-agent with pinentry-gtk2 for the passphrase.

[Message part 2 (application/emacs-lisp, inline)]

Message #10 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
To: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Subject: Re: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2009 12:25:46 -0500

Hi Daiki,

This may be a bug in epg, could you take a look?  This is Bug#2412 in
the Emacs bug tracker.  Thanks.


Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> wrote:

> Gnus v5.13
> GNU Emacs 23.0.60.1 (i486-pc-linux-gnu, GTK+ Version 2.12.11)
>  of 2008-11-30 on turtle, modified by Debian
> 200 news.motzarella.org InterNetNews NNRP server INN 2.4.5 ready
> (posting ok).

> I'm experiencing painful, but not always reproducible problems with
> sending or previewing signed mails.  Often I get an error "Sign failed"
> and a backtrace like this:

> ,----
> | Debugger entered--Lisp error: (error "Sign failed")
> |   signal(error ("Sign failed"))
> |   byte-code("<snipped>" [mml2015-epg-secret-key-id-list error password-cache-remove signal] 4)
> |   mml2015-epg-sign((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
> |   mml2015-sign((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
> |   mml-pgpmime-sign-buffer((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
> |   mml-generate-mime-1((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))
> |   mml-generate-mime()
> |   message-encode-message-body()
> |   mml-to-mime()
> |   mml-preview(nil)
> |   call-interactively(mml-preview nil nil)
> `----
>
> If this happens during sending, the message actually is signed and sent,
> but no copy lands in my archive folder. :-(
>
> I'm using gpg-agent with pinentry-gtk2 for the passphrase.

Message #15 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
To: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Subject: Re: bug#2412: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Sun, 22 Feb 2009 05:40:18 +0900

Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com> writes:

> Hi Daiki,
>
> This may be a bug in epg, could you take a look?  This is Bug#2412 in
> the Emacs bug tracker.  Thanks.

Thanks for noticing this.

> Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> wrote:
>> | Debugger entered--Lisp error: (error "Sign failed")
>> |   signal(error ("Sign failed"))
>> |   byte-code("<snipped>" [mml2015-epg-secret-key-id-list error password-cache-remove signal] 4)
>> |   mml2015-epg-sign((part (sign . "pgpmime") (tag-location . 186) (contents . "Nur ein Test.\n")))

It looks like epg is signalling the error.

Sven, could you please try (setq epg-debug t) and show me the contents
of " *epg-debug*" buffer next time you see the error?

Regards,
-- 
Daiki Ueno

Message #20 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
To: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 00:27:29 -0400

Hi Sven,

Are you still experiencing these problems?  If so, please do as Daiki
requested:

> could you please try (setq epg-debug t) and show me the contents of
> " *epg-debug*" buffer next time you see the error?

Message #25 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
To: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
Subject: Re: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:56:50 +0200

On 2009-04-16 06:27 +0200, Chong Yidong wrote:

> Hi Sven,
>
> Are you still experiencing these problems?

Sorry for not replying sooner.  Yes, they still persist. :-(

>  If so, please do as Daiki requested:
>
>> could you please try (setq epg-debug t) and show me the contents of
>> " *epg-debug*" buffer next time you see the error?

Looks innocent enough to me:

,----
| gpg --no-tty --status-fd 1 --yes --use-agent --command-fd 0 --armor --textmode --output /tmp/epg-output2077H-b --detach-sign
| [GNUPG:] USERID_HINT ECB679C787E9AABE Sven Joachim (Debian User) <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
| [GNUPG:] NEED_PASSPHRASE ECB679C787E9AABE ECB679C787E9AABE 17 0
| [GNUPG:] GOOD_PASSPHRASE
| [GNUPG:] BEGIN_SIGNING
| [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906974 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE
| gpg --no-tty --status-fd 1 --yes --use-agent --command-fd 0 --armor --textmode --output /tmp/epg-output2077UIi --detach-sign
| [GNUPG:] USERID_HINT ECB679C787E9AABE Sven Joachim (Debian User) <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
| [GNUPG:] NEED_PASSPHRASE ECB679C787E9AABE ECB679C787E9AABE 17 0
| [GNUPG:] GOOD_PASSPHRASE
| [GNUPG:] BEGIN_SIGNING
| [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906984 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE
`----

IIRC, the first try did show the preview of the test mail, the second
one gave the "Sign failed" error.

Sven

Message #30 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
To: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
Subject: Re: bug#2412: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Sun, 03 May 2009 14:43:42 +0900

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

Hi,

Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> writes:

>>> could you please try (setq epg-debug t) and show me the contents of
>>> " *epg-debug*" buffer next time you see the error?

> Looks innocent enough to me:

> | [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906974 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE
> | [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906984 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE

Thanks.  It looks innocent for me too, but now I can suspect a timing
problem.  Could you please try the patch attached below?

[epg.el.diff (text/x-diff, inline)]

diff --git a/lisp/epg.el b/lisp/epg.el
index e96258f..3c80ef9 100644
--- a/lisp/epg.el
+++ b/lisp/epg.el
@@ -1175,7 +1175,8 @@ This function is for internal use only."
 (defun epg-wait-for-completion (context)
   "Wait until the `epg-gpg-program' process completes."
   (while (eq (process-status (epg-context-process context)) 'run)
-    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1)))
+    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1))
+  (sleep-for 0.1))
 
 (defun epg-reset (context)
   "Reset the CONTEXT."

[Message part 3 (text/plain, inline)]

Regards,
-- 
Daiki Ueno

Message #35 received at 2412 <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
To: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
Cc: 2412 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
Subject: Re: bug#2412: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Sun, 03 May 2009 12:33:30 +0200

On 2009-05-03 07:43 +0200, Daiki Ueno wrote:

> Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> writes:
>
>>>> could you please try (setq epg-debug t) and show me the contents of
>>>> " *epg-debug*" buffer next time you see the error?
>
>> Looks innocent enough to me:
>
>> | [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906974 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE
>> | [GNUPG:] SIG_CREATED D 17 2 01 1239906984 9AACBC0C69283380715D3788ECB679C787E9AABE
>
> Thanks.  It looks innocent for me too, but now I can suspect a timing
> problem.  Could you please try the patch attached below?
>
>
> diff --git a/lisp/epg.el b/lisp/epg.el
> index e96258f..3c80ef9 100644
> --- a/lisp/epg.el
> +++ b/lisp/epg.el
> @@ -1175,7 +1175,8 @@ This function is for internal use only."
>  (defun epg-wait-for-completion (context)
>    "Wait until the `epg-gpg-program' process completes."
>    (while (eq (process-status (epg-context-process context)) 'run)
> -    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1)))
> +    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1))
> +  (sleep-for 0.1))
>  
>  (defun epg-reset (context)
>    "Reset the CONTEXT."

That seems to do the trick.  At least, I had no problem in ~15 attempts
to preview/send signed messages, whereas without your patch the "Sign
failed" error would happen about every second time.

Cheers,
       Sven

Message #40 received at 2412-done <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
To: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>
Cc: 2412-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
Subject: Re: bug#2412: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Mon, 04 May 2009 07:36:48 +0900

Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de> writes:

>> -    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1)))
>> +    (accept-process-output (epg-context-process context) 1))
>> +  (sleep-for 0.1))
>
> That seems to do the trick.  At least, I had no problem in ~15 attempts
> to preview/send signed messages, whereas without your patch the "Sign
> failed" error would happen about every second time.

Thanks for testing.  I've checked in the patch.

Regards,
-- 
Daiki Ueno

Message #41 received at 2412-done <at> emacsbugs.donarmstrong.com (full text, mbox):

From: Chong Yidong <cyd <at> stupidchicken.com>
To: Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org>
Cc: Sven Joachim <svenjoac <at> gmx.de>, 2412-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#2412: spurious "Sign failed" errors
Date: Sun, 03 May 2009 21:02:58 -0400

Daiki Ueno <ueno <at> unixuser.org> writes:

> Thanks for testing.  I've checked in the patch.

Please add a prominent comment about why this change was done.  Future
changes to accept-process-output may make it unnecessary.  Thanks.

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