/bin/ps shell command broken

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Level 1

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/bin/ps shell command broken

I'm running 10.6.3 and recently noticed the /bin/ps command is broken.

$ ps -ef
ps: illegal option -- f
usage: ps [-AaCcEefhjlMmrSTvwXx] [-O fmt | -o fmt] [-G gid[,gid...]]
[-u]
[-p pid[,pid...]] [-t tty[,tty...]] [-U user[,user...]]
ps [-L]

How do you log an issue with Apple?

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.3)

Posted on Jun 4, 2010 5:37 AM

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Answer 1

thomas_r.

Level 7

32,031 points

Jun 4, 2010 5:58 AM in response to kfrodgers

Executing "ps -ef" in the Terminal works just fine for me. I don't have a clue what's wrong in your case, but evidently it's not an issue with 10.6.3. You'd do better to post to the [Mac OS X Technologies > Unix forum|http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=735] for assistance with a problem like this.

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Answer 2

BobHarris

Level 9

56,921 points

Jun 4, 2010 7:44 AM in response to kfrodgers

Yes this discussion should be held in the Mac OS X Technologies Unix forum

As a point of information, /bin/ps -ef also gives me an illegal -f option.

HOWEVER, if I become root, it works


sudo /bin/ps -ef
 UID PID PPID C STIME TTY TIME CMD
 0 1 0 0 19:58.45 ?? 20:07.86 /sbin/launchd
 0 10 1 0 0:03.90 ?? 0:21.57 /usr/libexec/kextd
 0 11 1 0 0:24.04 ?? 0:43.67 /usr/sbin/DirectoryService
...
...

it works nicely.

Update. The above was run from iTerm session. When I started an Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal session, the /bin/ps -ef WORKED!

Very strange. I wonder what environmental conditions are affecting the ps option parsing. I find it very hard to beleive that it is the actual terminal emulator.

Take this discussion over to Mac OS X Technologies -> Unix forum, and let the other interested Unix users have a go at figuring this out.

Message was edited by: BobHarris

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