Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rutgers!ames!cit-vax!mangler From: mangler@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (System Mangler) Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions Subject: Re: access(2) question Message-ID: <3158@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> Date: Mon, 6-Jul-87 06:26:43 EDT Article-I.D.: cit-vax.3158 Posted: Mon Jul 6 06:26:43 1987 Date-Received: Tue, 7-Jul-87 01:32:27 EDT References: <530@applix.UUCP> <488@its63b.ed.ac.uk> <489@its63b.ed.ac.uk> Organization: California Institute of Technology Lines: 10 Keywords: access permissions Summary: device files In article <489@its63b.ed.ac.uk>, simon@its63b.ed.ac.uk (Simon Brown) writes: > So, as a followup - try three guesses as to how the BSD4.2 test(1) program > implements "test -r", "test -w", etc...? Yes, dead right, it uses access!!!! Nope. It uses open(). But SunOS 3.X apparently did switch to access(), because while "test -w /dev/rmt8" used to be a useful way to determine if the write ring was in, now it always returns true. Probably a change imported from System V... Don Speck speck@vlsi.caltech.edu {seismo,rutgers,ames}!cit-vax!speck