Re: system()

schms wrote:
> I am trying to run the following system() command. It seems as Perl is
> not able to handover $POLICYNAME
> to the Unix shell

It *looks* like you are trying to hand over $POLICYNAME to 
/usr/openv/netbackup/bin/admincmd/bpplinfo and not to the shell.

Whether or not system() invokes a shell to run your command depends on 
the presence of shell meta-characters and/or the version of Perl that 
you are running.


> and that the shell gets a problem with the strings -
> modify and -inactive as they contain a minus (-). Is there a way to
> run the command

On the command line you would put -- just after the command to indicate 
that everything following are not switches.


> /usr/openv/netbackup/bin/admincmd/bpplinfo $POLICYNAME -modify -
> inactive
> 
> from a Perl script ?
> 
> 
> (..)
> 
> open(RDME, "$COMMAND |") or die "Error in: $!\n";

open RDME, '-|', $COMMAND or die "Error in '$COMMAND' $!\n";


> while (<RDME>) {
>         my $POLICYNAME = $_;

while ( my $POLICYNAME = <RDME> ) {
     chomp $POLICYNAME;


>         my @args = ("/usr/openv/netbackup/bin/admincmd/bpplinfo
> $POLICYNAME -modify -inactive");
>         system(@args);

     my @args = ( '/usr/openv/netbackup/bin/admincmd/bpplinfo', 
$POLICYNAME, '-modify', '-inactive' );

     0 == system @args or die "system @args failed: $?";


> }
> 
> close(RDME);

close RDME
     or warn $! ? "Error closing '$COMMAND' pipe: $!"
                : "Exit status $? from '$COMMAND'";



John
-- 
Perl isn't a toolbox, but a small machine shop where you
can special-order certain sorts of tools at low cost and
in short order.                            -- Larry Wall