Interactive Shell Scripting in OS X

[icouto]

It seems the only way to run a unix command on OS X from LiveCode is to use the shell() function, right?

Unfortunately, shell() does not seem to allow for interactive commands that require user input - i.e., via stdin - such as starting an ssh session, or running a command with sudo (both of these usually require the user to provide a password). The "open process" command seems to support full-on interactive scripting, but is not available on OS X!...

I run several servers, and need to do certain checks on them regularly, everyday. These checks are usually done by ssh-ing to the servers, and then running several tools as a local superuser - using sudo. I need to automate this task, and thought that LiveCode would be great for this, but perhaps I've hit a wall...

[monte]

Check the open process command in the docs

[jacque]

Monte, it isn't supported on OS X. Someone should fix that...

[monte]

The docs lie

Edit: no they don't... support for OS X was added in version 2.0.

[jacque]

I think this is the roadblock:

"Note: On OS X systems, you can use the open process command to start up an application, but not a Unix process. To work with a Unix process, use the shell func instead."

[monte]

Well I don't believe that's right. Try this:

Code: Select all

on mouseUp
   open process "ls" for read
   read from process "ls" until eof
   put it
end mouseUp

[icouto]

Ok, it seems Monte is correct: you *can* use "open process" in OS X - the docs need to be updated.

I'm still stuck, however. Let's say, for instance, that I want to script an ssh connection to server "example.com", as user "admin", using password "password". In the Terminal you'd use the command:

Code: Select all

ssh admin@example.com

...and wait to enter your "password" at the password prompt:

Code: Select all

Password:

This does not look like something that can be scripted from within LiveCode with either open process or shell. If I try:

Code: Select all

on mouseUp
   open process "ssh admin@example.com" for text update
   read from process "ssh" until ":"
   write "password" to process "ssh"
   if it is empty then put the result into field "output"
   else put it into field "output"
end mouseUp

I get the following into my "output" field:

Code: Select all

process is not open for write

I guessed that it wants me to use the original string I used to open the process to identify it, so I tried also:

Code: Select all

on mouseUp
   open process "ssh admin@example.com" for text update
   read from process "ssh admin@example.com" until ":"
   write "password" to process "ssh admin@example.com"
   if it is empty then put the result into field "output"
   else put it into field "output"
end mouseUp

Then I get:

Code: Select all

Pseudo-terminal will not be allocated because stdin is not a terminal.
Permission denied (publickey,gssapi-keyex,gssapi-with-mic,keyboard-interactive).

Which is the same message I get if I try to do:

Code: Select all

put shell("ssh admin@example.com") into field "output"

Is there a way to do this from inside LiveCode? - or will I have to resort to using a bash script?...

[monte]

StackOverflow to the rescue:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7114 ... a-terminal

[jacque]

Ok, it seems Monte is correct:

Monte is always correct. I've been trying to catch him in a mistake for years.

[monte]

lol... tell that to Rebecca

[rjay]

i am after the same or similar functionality as originally posted -- basically opening a ssh session to devices and servers by clicking on them in a map but i can't seem to get anything but 'process not open for write'. last thing i tried was this ...

on mouseUp
   open process "ssh -t -t name@servercom" for text update
   read from process "ssh" until ":"
   write "password" to process "ssh"
   if it is empty then put the result into field "output"
   else put it into field "output"
end mouseUp