GNU bug report logs - #55837
Options `-p` and `--tmpdir` behave differently

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

From: Klaatu <klaatu <at> mixedsignals.ml>
To: bug-coreutils <at> gnu.org
Subject: Options `-p` and `--tmpdir` behave differently
Date: Wed, 08 Jun 2022 12:28:14 +1200

According to the man page, `--tmpfile` is the long option for `-p`
However, I get different results when using one or the other.
The `-p` option results in success:

<pre><code>
$ mktemp -p ~/Demo 
/home/klaatu/Demo/tmp.6TWPxScyKK
$ mktemp -p ~/Demo XXX
/home/klaatu/Demo/KdC
</code></pre>

However, `--tempdir` results in failure:

<pre><code>
$ mktemp --tmpdir ~/Demo 
mktemp: too few X's in template ‘/home/klaatu/Demo’
$ mktemp --tmpdir ~/Demo XXX
mktemp: too many templates
Try 'mktemp --help' for more information.
$ mktemp --tmpdir='~/Demo' XXX
mktemp: failed to create file via template ‘~/Demo/XXX’: No such file or 
directory
</code></pre>

Here's strace:

<pre><code>
$ mktemp --version
mktemp (GNU coreutils) 8.32

$ cat /etc/os-release | grep PRETTY
PRETTY_NAME="Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.0 (Plow)"

$ strace mktemp --tmpdir ~/Demo XXX
execve("/usr/bin/mktemp", ["mktemp", "--tmpdir", "/home/klaatu/Demo", "XXX"], 
0x7ffdb6f6dee8 /* 51 vars */) = 0
brk(NULL)                               = 0x5589aecdf000
arch_prctl(0x3001 /* ARCH_??? */, 0x7ffc6717d8b0) = -1 EINVAL (Invalid 
argument)
access("/etc/ld.so.preload", R_OK)      = -1 ENOENT (No such file or 
directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/ld.so.cache", O_RDONLY|O_CLOEXEC) = 3
newfstatat(3, "", {st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_size=57851, ...}, AT_EMPTY_PATH) = 
0
mmap(NULL, 57851, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 3, 0) = 0x7f2176368000
close(3)                                = 0
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/lib64/libc.so.6", O_RDONLY|O_CLOEXEC) = 3
read(3, "\177ELF\2\1\1\3\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\3\0>\0\1\0\0\0\220P\4\0\0\0\0\0"..., 
832) = 832
pread64(3, "\6\0\0\0\4\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0"..., 
784, 64) = 784
pread64(3, "\4\0\0\0 
\0\0\0\5\0\0\0GNU\0\2\0\0\300\4\0\0\0\3\0\0\0\0\0\0\0"..., 48, 848) = 48
pread64(3, "\4\0\0\0\24\0\0\0\3\0\0\0GNU\0y\356%$
[\271\321\0350\340\225\347\356&)\252"..., 68, 896) = 68
newfstatat(3, "", {st_mode=S_IFREG|0755, st_size=2389384, ...}, AT_EMPTY_PATH) 
= 0
mmap(NULL, 8192, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 
0x7f2176366000
pread64(3, "\6\0\0\0\4\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0@\0\0\0\0\0\0\0"..., 
784, 64) = 784
mmap(NULL, 2136752, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_DENYWRITE, 3, 0) = 
0x7f217615c000
mprotect(0x7f2176188000, 1880064, PROT_NONE) = 0
mmap(0x7f2176188000, 1531904, PROT_READ|PROT_EXEC, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED|
MAP_DENYWRITE, 3, 0x2c000) = 0x7f2176188000
mmap(0x7f21762fe000, 344064, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED|MAP_DENYWRITE, 
3, 0x1a2000) = 0x7f21762fe000
mmap(0x7f2176353000, 24576, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED|
MAP_DENYWRITE, 3, 0x1f6000) = 0x7f2176353000
mmap(0x7f2176359000, 51888, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_FIXED|
MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 0x7f2176359000
close(3)                                = 0
mmap(NULL, 12288, PROT_READ|PROT_WRITE, MAP_PRIVATE|MAP_ANONYMOUS, -1, 0) = 
0x7f2176159000
arch_prctl(ARCH_SET_FS, 0x7f2176159740) = 0
set_tid_address(0x7f2176159a10)         = 42371
set_robust_list(0x7f2176159a20, 24)     = 0
mprotect(0x7f2176353000, 12288, PROT_READ) = 0
mprotect(0x5589adf75000, 4096, PROT_READ) = 0
mprotect(0x7f21763ab000, 8192, PROT_READ) = 0
prlimit64(0, RLIMIT_STACK, NULL, {rlim_cur=8192*1024, 
rlim_max=RLIM64_INFINITY}) = 0
munmap(0x7f2176368000, 57851)           = 0
getrandom("\x40\x9a\x11\x9c\x8d\x3b\x6d\x8a", 8, GRND_NONBLOCK) = 8
brk(NULL)                               = 0x5589aecdf000
brk(0x5589aed00000)                     = 0x5589aed00000
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/lib/locale/locale-archive", O_RDONLY|O_CLOEXEC) = 3
newfstatat(3, "", {st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_size=223542144, ...}, 
AT_EMPTY_PATH) = 0
mmap(NULL, 223542144, PROT_READ, MAP_PRIVATE, 3, 0) = 0x7f2168c29000
close(3)                                = 0
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/locale.alias", O_RDONLY|O_CLOEXEC) = 3
newfstatat(3, "", {st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_size=2998, ...}, AT_EMPTY_PATH) = 
0
read(3, "# Locale name alias data base.\n#"..., 4096) = 2998
read(3, "", 4096)                       = 0
close(3)                                = 0
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en_NZ.UTF-8/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", 
O_RDONLY) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en_NZ.utf8/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", 
O_RDONLY) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en_NZ/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", O_RDONLY) 
= -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en.UTF-8/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", 
O_RDONLY) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en.utf8/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", 
O_RDONLY) = -1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
openat(AT_FDCWD, "/usr/share/locale/en/LC_MESSAGES/coreutils.mo", O_RDONLY) = 
-1 ENOENT (No such file or directory)
write(2, "mktemp: ", 8mktemp: )                 = 8
write(2, "too many templates", 18too many templates)      = 18
write(2, "\n", 1
)                       = 1
write(2, "Try 'mktemp --help' for more inf"..., 42Try 'mktemp --help' for more 
information.
) = 42
close(1)                                = 0
close(2)                                = 0
exit_group(1)                           = ?
+++ exited with 1 +++
 </code></pre>

Message #8 received at 55837 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Bernhard Voelker <mail <at> bernhard-voelker.de>
To: Klaatu <klaatu <at> mixedsignals.ml>, 55837 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#55837: Options `-p` and `--tmpdir` behave differently
Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2022 19:11:59 +0200

tag 55837 notabug
close 55837
stop

On 6/8/22 02:28, Klaatu wrote:
> According to the man page, `--tmpfile` is the long option for `-p`
> However, I get different results when using one or the other.
> The `-p` option results in success:
> 
> <pre><code>
> $ mktemp -p ~/Demo
> /home/klaatu/Demo/tmp.6TWPxScyKK
> $ mktemp -p ~/Demo XXX
> /home/klaatu/Demo/KdC
> </code></pre>
> 
> However, `--tempdir` results in failure:
> 
> <pre><code>
> $ mktemp --tmpdir ~/Demo
> mktemp: too few X's in template ‘/home/klaatu/Demo’
> $ mktemp --tmpdir ~/Demo XXX
> mktemp: too many templates
> Try 'mktemp --help' for more information.

The option --tmpdir is indeed the long option for -p, but it has to be used with
it's argument following immediately and beginning after the '=' character:

  $ mktemp --help | grep -- '-p.*tmpdir'
    -p DIR, --tmpdir[=DIR]  interpret TEMPLATE relative to DIR; if DIR is not

As the documentation states, the argument is optional, and therefore `mktemp`
took ~/Demo as pattern instead of argument to --tmpdir.

Use `mktemp --tmpdir=/some/dir` instead.

> $ mktemp --tmpdir='~/Demo' XXX
> mktemp: failed to create file via template ‘~/Demo/XXX’: No such file or
> directory
> </code></pre>

In this last code example, `mktemp` will receive the '~/Demo' literally because
the calling shell doesn't replace it with the real path (like /home/someuser/Demo)
as it usually would do without the quoting; therefore `mktemp` fails to create
a file there.

The program works as specified, and therefore I'm marking this as not a bug.

Have a nice day,
Berny

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