tramp 2.0.14: Why does de/encoding fail?

[Tim Hermans]

Why does tramp try every possible de/encoding method even after it has found
a valid one?  I even specified a method with 'tramp-encoding-command' and
'tramp-decoding-command'.  (By the way it's a standard Solaris install, so
these are in their usual places).  Connecting from a Win2K box to Solaris
8.0 box with the telnet method.  The tramp session ends with:

        tramp: Checking remote decoding command `tramp_uudecode' for sanity
        tramp: Checking local encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
        tramp: Checking remote encoding command `tramp_encode_with_module' for
sanity
        tramp: Checking remote encoding command `tramp_encode' for sanity
        tramp: Checking remote decoding command `tramp_decode' for sanity
        tramp: Checking to see if encoding/decoding commands work on remote 
host...
        if: Remote host cannot execute de/encoding commands.  See buffer
`*tramp/telnet
         address@hidden' for details

Of course the tramp/telnet buffer just has:

        Process *tramp/telnet address@hidden interrupt

But the debug buffer shows that not only does tramp try every possible
de/encoding method, but that most of them work.  Yet still it fails.  Why?

# Checking remote encoding command `mimencode -b' for sanity
$ ( mimencode -b </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo tramp_exit_status
$? )
tramp_exit_status 127
# Checking remote encoding command `mmencode -b' for sanity
$ echo are you awake
are you awake
$ ( mmencode -b </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo tramp_exit_status
$? )
tramp_exit_status 127
# Checking remote encoding command `recode data..base64' for sanity
$ ( recode data..base64 </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo
tramp_exit_status $? )
tramp_exit_status 127
# Checking remote encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
$ ( uuencode xxx </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo tramp_exit_status
$? )
tramp_exit_status 0
# Checking remote decoding command `uudecode -o -' for sanity
$ ( echo xyzzy | uuencode xxx | uudecode -o - >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo
tramp_exit_status $? )
tramp_exit_status 1
# Checking remote encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
$ echo are you awake
are you awake
$ ( uuencode xxx </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo tramp_exit_status
$? )
tramp_exit_status 0
# Checking remote decoding command `uudecode -p' for sanity
$ ( echo xyzzy | uuencode xxx | uudecode -p >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo
tramp_exit_status $? )
tramp_exit_status 0
# Checking local encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
# Checking remote encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
$ echo are you awake
are you awake
$ ( uuencode xxx </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo tramp_exit_status
$? )
tramp_exit_status 0
# Checking remote decoding command `tramp_uudecode' for sanity
$ ( echo xyzzy | uuencode xxx | tramp_uudecode >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo
tramp_exit_status $? )
tramp_exit_status 0
# Checking local encoding command `uuencode xxx' for sanity
# Checking remote encoding command `tramp_encode_with_module' for sanity
$ echo are you awake
are you awake
$ ( tramp_encode_with_module </dev/null >/dev/null 2>/dev/null; echo
tramp_exit_status $? )
tramp_exit_status 2


Shouldn't you just believe that I set 'tramp-encoding-command' correctly?


=======
Emacs  : GNU Emacs 21.2.1 (i386-msvc-nt5.0.2195)
 of 2002-03-19 on buffy
Package: tramp (2.0.14)

current state:
==============
(setq
 tramp-ls-command nil
 tramp-test-groks-nt nil
 tramp-file-exists-command nil
 tramp-current-multi-method nil
 tramp-current-method nil
 tramp-current-user nil
 tramp-current-host nil
 tramp-auto-save-directory nil
 tramp-default-method "ssh"
 tramp-rsh-end-of-line "\n"
 tramp-remote-path '("/bin" "/usr/bin" "/usr/sbin" "/usr/local/bin"
                     "/usr/ccs/bin" "/local/bin" "/local/freeware/bin"
                     "/local/gnu/bin" "/usr/freeware/bin" "/usr/pkg/bin"
                     "/usr/contrib/bin")
 tramp-login-prompt-regexp ".*ogin: *"
 tramp-password-prompt-regexp "^.*\\([pP]assword\\|passphrase.*\\): ? *"
 tramp-wrong-passwd-regexp "^.*\\(Connection
\\(?:\\(?:clo\\|refu\\)sed\\)\\|Hos
t key verification failed\\.\\|Login \\(?:[Ii]ncorrect\\)\\|Name or service
not
known\\|\\(?:Permission denied\\|Sorry, try
again\\)\\.\\).*\\|^.*\\(Received si
gnal [0-9]+\\).*"
 tramp-yesno-prompt-regexp "Are you sure you want to continue connecting
(yes/no
)\\? *"
 tramp-temp-name-prefix "tramp."
 tramp-file-name-structure
'("\\`/\\(\\([a-zA-Z0-9-]+\\):\\)?\\(\\([^:@/]+\\)@\\
)?\\([^:/]+\\):\\(.*\\)\\'" 2 4 5 6)
 tramp-file-name-regexp "\\`/[^/:]+:"
 tramp-multi-file-name-structure
'("\\`/\\(\\([a-zA-Z0-9]+\\)?:\\)\\(\\(%s\\)+\\
)\\(.*\\)\\'" 2 3 -1)
 tramp-multi-file-name-hop-structure
'("\\([a-zA-z0-9_]+\\):\\([^@:/]+\\)@\\([^:
/]+\\):" 1 2 3)
 tramp-multi-methods '("multi" "multiu")
 tramp-multi-connection-function-alist '(("telnet"
tramp-multi-connect-telnet
                                          "telnet %h%n")
                                         ("rsh" tramp-multi-connect-rlogin
                                          "rsh %h -l %u%n")
                                         ("ssh" tramp-multi-connect-rlogin
                                          "ssh %h -l %u%n")
                                         ("su" tramp-multi-connect-su
                                          "su - %u%n")
                                         ("sudo" tramp-multi-connect-su
                                          "sudo -u %u -s%n")
                                         )
 tramp-make-tramp-file-format "/%m:address@hidden:%p"
 tramp-end-of-output "/////"
 tramp-coding-commands '(("mimencode -b" "mimencode -u -b"
                          base64-encode-region base64-decode-region)
                         ("mmencode -b" "mmencode -u -b"
base64-encode-region
                          base64-decode-region)
                         ("recode data..base64" "recode base64..data"
                          base64-encode-region base64-decode-region)
                         ("uuencode xxx" "uudecode -o -" nil
                          uudecode-decode-region)
                         ("uuencode xxx" "uudecode -p" nil
                          uudecode-decode-region)
                         ("uuencode xxx" "tramp_uudecode" nil
                          uudecode-decode-region)
                         ("tramp_encode_with_module"
                          "tramp_decode_with_module" base64-encode-region
                          base64-decode-region)
                         ("tramp_encode" "tramp_decode" base64-encode-region
                          base64-decode-region)
                         )
 tramp-actions-before-shell '((tramp-password-prompt-regexp
                               tramp-action-password)
                              (tramp-login-prompt-regexp tramp-action-login)
                              (shell-prompt-pattern tramp-action-succeed)
                              (tramp-wrong-passwd-regexp
                               tramp-action-permission-denied)
                              (tramp-yesno-prompt-regexp
tramp-action-yesno))
 tramp-multi-actions '((tramp-password-prompt-regexp
                        tramp-multi-action-password)
                       (tramp-login-prompt-regexp tramp-multi-action-login)
                       (shell-prompt-pattern tramp-multi-action-succeed)
                       (tramp-wrong-passwd-regexp
                        tramp-multi-action-permission-denied)
                       )
 tramp-terminal-type "dumb"
 shell-prompt-pattern "^[^#$%>\n]*[#$%>] *"
 backup-by-copying nil
 backup-by-copying-when-linked nil
 backup-by-copying-when-mismatch nil
 backup-by-copying-when-privileged-mismatch 200
 file-name-handler-alist
'(("\\.Z\\(~\\|\\.~[0-9]+~\\)?\\'\\|\\.bz2\\'\\|\\.tgz\
\'\\|\\.g?z\\(~\\|\\.~[0-9]+~\\)?\\'" . jka-compr-handler)
                           ("\\`/[^/:]+:" . tramp-file-name-handler)
                           ("\\`/:" . file-name-non-special))
 )