From: utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!info-vax Newsgroups: fa.info-vax Title: mail checking Article-I.D.: ucbvax.7149 Posted: Wed May 12 01:52:51 1982 Received: Thu May 13 00:48:09 1982 >From RWK@SCRC-TENEX@MIT-AI Wed May 12 01:50:46 1982 Date: 10 May 1982 19:54-EDT (Monday) From: Mijjil (Matthew J. Lecin)I am wondering where this info is kept and whether or not the AVERAGE unprivileged user process can GET this information. I am trying, basically, to write the equivalent of DEC-20 EXEC's MAIL-CHECK feature on VMS... The stuff is on the fiche. There are MACRO and BLISS definitions for the fields in the UAF, which is an indexed file of one index, indexed on the username. It is a simple matter to write a program to access this information. It's not very difficult to make it into a shareable exec-mode routine which gives itself SYSPRV, opens the SYSUAF, and returns this information. The documentation for this is in the "Real-Time User's Guide" on priveledged sharable sections. Unless your system manager is paranoid, you can run AUTHORIZE to create yourself a UAF to use in testing your program. (Testing the part to make it a CMEXEC routine is a bit harder, you'll probably need your system manager's cooperation there...) Then when it's debugged, give your system manager your program to be INSTALLed, and ordinary non-priveledged users can link in your routine with their ordinary program, and call your new routine, which is essentially a user-added system call. Or maybe you're lucky and your system manager does not deny read access to the SYSUAF. If this is too much work, you can write your MAIL-CHECK program, and then have your system manager INSTALL it with the SYSPRV privelege.