Timeout doesn't work with '-re' flag in expect script - tcl

I'm trying to get an expect script to work, and when I use the -re flag (to invoke regular expression parsing), the 'timeout' keyword seems to no longer work. When the following script is run, I get the message 'timed out at step 1', then 'starting step 2' and then it times out but does NOT print the 'timed out at step 2' I just get a new prompt.
Ideas?
#!/usr/bin/expect --
spawn $env(SHELL)
match_max 100000
set timeout 2
send "echo This will print timed out\r"
expect {
timeout { puts "timed out at step 1" }
"foo " { puts "it said foo at step 1"}
}
puts "Starting test two\r"
send "echo This will not print timed out\r"
expect -re {
timeout { puts "timed out at step 2" ; exit }
"foo " { puts "it said foo at step 2"}
}

Figured it out:
expect {
timeout { puts "timed out at step 2" ; exit }
-re "foo " { puts "it said foo at step 2"}
}

Yes, the "-re" flag as it appears in your question will apply to every pattern in the expect command. So the "timeout" pattern becomes "-re timeout", losing its specialness.

Related

Expect script failed with "spawn id not open" when calling "expect eof"

I am trying to call an expect script from bash and have it return exit code in case of e.g. Connection Timeout.
Basically the bash script is calling expect like this:
if [[ -f $1 ]]; then
do something
else
script.exp $device
# here I want to evaluate the exit code but it is always 0
fi
I found some previous questions about it and that the right way to catch exit codes is:
expect eof
catch wait result
exit [lindex \$result 3].
The expect script:
#!/usr/bin/expect
exp_internal 1
log_user 1
set timeout -1
set hostname [lindex $argv 0]
set prompt "sftp>";
if { $hostname == "blah" } {
set username "user1"
set password "pass1"
} else {
set username "user2"
set password "pass2"
}
spawn sftp $username#$hostname "-o ConnectTimeout=3"
expect {
"timeout" {
puts "A timeout occured"
exp_continue
}
"password:" {
send "$password\r"
exp_continue
}
"sftp>" {
send "cd cfg\n"
expect $prompt
send "get * /some/dir/$hostname\n"
expect $prompt
send "get running-config /some/dir/$hostname-config\n"
expect $prompt
send "exit\r";
exp_continue
}
}
expect eof
catch wait result
exit [lindex \$result 3]
When I just test the expect script to see what happens, I get this error:
expect: spawn id exp4 not open
while executing
"expect eof"
I've tried moving expect eof around but it does not change the behavior. It states that the spawned process id is not open, which I guess is correct as it has exited with Timed Out/Connection closed?
Remove exp_continue after send "exit\r", otherwise EOF will be consumed by the expect { ... } block and another expect eof would fail.
Change lindex \$result 3 to lindex $result 3 as in the comments.
(Incorporating the previous comments)
Add it into the previous expect command, but with no body:
expect {
timeout {...}
password: {...}
sftp> {...}
eof
}
wait result
if {[lindex $result 2] == 0} {
exit [lindex $result 3]
} else {
error "system error: errno [lindex $result 3]"
}

need help in eliminating race condition in my code

My code is running infinitely without coming out of loop.
I am calling expect script from shell script, that is working fine,
the problem here is script is not coming out of timout {} loop.
can someone help me in this regard.
spawn ssh ${USER}#${MACHINE}
set timeout 10
expect "Password: "
send -s "${PASS}\r"
expect $prompt
send "cmd\r"
expect $prompt
send "cmd1\r"
expect $prompt
send "cmd2\r"
expect $prompt
send "cmd3\r"
expect $prompt
send "cmdn\r"
#cmdn --> is about running script which takes around 4 hours
expect {
timeout { puts "Running ....." #<--- script is nout coming out of loop its running infinitely
exp_continue }
eof {puts "EOF occured"; exit 1}
"\$.*>" { puts "Finished.." ; exit 0}
}
The problem is that your real pattern, "\$.*>", is being matched literally and not as a regular expression. You need to pass the -re flag for that pattern to be matched as a RE, like this (I've used more lines than ; chars as I think it is clearer that way, but YMMV there):
expect {
timeout {
puts "Running ....."
exp_continue
}
eof {
puts "EOF occured"
exit 1
}
-re {\$.*>} {
puts "Finished.."
exit 0
}
}
It's also a really good idea to put regular expressions in {braces} if you can, so backslash sequences (and other Tcl metacharacters) inside don't get substituted. You don't have to… but 99.99% of all cases are better that way.

How to send more than 100 cmd lines

I have expect (tcl) script for automated task working properly - configuring network devices via telnet/ssh. Most of the cases there is 1,2 or 3 command lines to execute, BUT now I have more then 100 command lines to send via expect. How can I achieved this in smart and good scripting way :)
Because I can join all command lines over 100 to a variable "commandAll" with "\n" and "send" them one after another, but I think it's pretty ugly :) Is there a way without stacking them together to be readable in code or external file ?
#!/usr/bin/expect -f
set timeout 20
set ip_address "[lrange $argv 0 0]"
set hostname "[lrange $argv 1 1]"
set is_ok ""
# Commands
set command1 "configure snmp info 1"
set command2 "configure ntp info 2"
set command3 "configure cdp info 3"
#... more then 100 dif commands like this !
#... more then 100 dif commands like this !
#... more then 100 dif commands like this !
spawn telnet $ip_address
# login & Password & Get enable prompt
#-- snnipped--#
# Commands execution
# command1
expect "$enableprompt" { send "$command1\r# endCmd1\r" ; set is_ok "command1" }
if {$is_ok != "command1"} {
send_user "\n### 9 Exit before executing command1\n" ; exit
}
# command2
expect "#endCmd1" { send "$command2\r# endCmd2\r" ; set is_ok "command2" }
if {$is_ok != "command2"} {
send_user "\n### 9 Exit before executing command2\n" ; exit
}
# command3
expect "#endCmd2" { send "$command3\r\r\r# endCmd3\r" ; set is_ok "command3" }
if {$is_ok != "command3"} {
send_user "\n### 9 Exit before executing command3\n" ; exit
}
p.s. I'm using one approach for cheeking is given cmd line is executed successfully but I'm not certain that is perfect way :D
don't use numbered variables, use a list
set commands {
"configure snmp info 1"
"configure ntp info 2"
"configure cdp info 3"
...
}
If the commands are already in a file, you can read them into a list:
set fh [open commands.file]
set commands [split [read $fh] \n]
close $fh
Then, iterate over them:
expect $prompt
set n 0
foreach cmd $commands {
send "$cmd\r"
expect {
"some error string" {
send_user "command failed: ($n) $cmd"
exit 1
}
timeout {
send_user "command timed out: ($n) $cmd"
exit 1
}
$prompt
}
incr n
}
While yes, you can send long sequences of commands that way, it's usually a bad idea as it makes the overall script very brittle; if anything unexpected happens, the script just keeps on forcing the rest of the script over. Instead, it is better to have a sequence of sends interspersed with expects to check that what you've sent has been accepted. The only real case for sending a very long string over is when you're creating a function or file on the other side that will act as a subprogram that you call; in that case, there's no really meaningful place to stop and check for a prompt half way. But that's the exception.
Note that you can expect two things at once; that's often very helpful as it lets you check for errors directly. I mention this because it is a technique often neglected, yet it allows you to make your script far more robust.
...
send "please run step 41\r"
expect {
-re {error: (.*)} {
puts stderr "a problem happened: $expect_out(1,string)"
exit 1
}
"# " {
# Got the prompt; continue with the next step below
}
}
send "please run step 42\n"
...

Tcl/Tk : embed expect send script inside wish script

I have a wish script which will do spawn, expect and send and get the required data.
When I run the script as wish ex.tcl, its not working.
Please find the code below for more information.
#!/usr/bin/wish
package require Expect
proc openSession { targetHost } {
log_user 1
set user $::env(USER)
set password "tmp1234"
set timeout 60
set spawn_id ""
puts "Ssh to $user#$targetHost"
spawn ssh -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null $user#$targetHost
match_max -i $spawn_id 99999
expect {
"\(yes\/no\)\? " { send "yes\r" ; exp_continue }
"password\:" { puts 2 ; send "$password\r" ; exp_continue }
"$ " { puts 3 ; send "\r" ; puts "Ssh Session ready" }
timeout { puts 4 ; set spawn_id "" ; puts "Timeout during ssh $targetHost" }
}
set timeout 10
return $spawn_id
}
proc closeSession { sshSess args } {
puts "Closing Ssh session..."
expect -i $sshSess "$ " { send -i $sshSess "exit\r" }
expect -i $sshSess "closed." { puts "Connection Closed" }
catch { exp_close -i $sshSess }
catch { exp_wait -i $sshSess }
return
}
set sessId [openSession testbng76]
grid [ttk::button .mybutton -text Mytext]
closeSession $sessId
Error seen:
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)? Error in startup script: wrong # args: should be "send ?options? interpName arg ?arg ...?"
while executing
"send "yes\r" "
invoked from within
"expect {
"\(yes\/no\)\? " { send "yes\r" ; exp_continue }
"password\:" { puts 2 ; send "$password\r" ; exp_continue }
"$ " { p..."
(procedure "openSession" line 12)
invoked from within
"openSession testbng76"
invoked from within
"set sessId [openSession testbng76]"
(file "./log.tcl" line 36)
How can I spawn the remote session and get the required output using tk?
Tk also has a send command for talking to other Tk-enabled interpreters (it works in a totally different way to Expect) and the two interact. Or rather Expect backs off when it sees Tk, and doesn't create a send command.
Fortunately, you can use exp_send instead; it's another name for exactly the functionality you want, and Expect always creates it. For example:
"\(yes\/no\)\? " { exp_send "yes\r" ; exp_continue }

Problems looping to prompt for another password

I need some help with an EXPECT script please....
I'm trying to automate a login, prior to accessing a load of hosts, and cater for when a user enters a password incorrectly. I am getting the username and password first, and then validating this against a particular host. If the password is invalid, I want to loop round and ask for the username and password again.
I am trying this :-
(preceding few irrelevant lines omitted)
while {1} {
send_user "login as:- "
expect -re "(.*)\n"
send_user "\n"
set user $expect_out(1,string)
stty -echo
send_user "password: "
expect -re "(.*)\n"
set password $expect_out(1,string)
stty echo
set host "some-box.here.there.co.uk"
set hostname "some-box"
set host_unknown 0
spawn ssh $user#$host
while {1} {
expect {
"Password:" {send $password\n
break}
"(yes/no)?" {send "yes\n"}
"Name or service not known" {set host_unknown 1
break}
}
}
if {$host_unknown < 1} {
expect {
"$hostname#" {send "exit\r"
break
}
"Password:" {send \003
expect eof
close $spawn_id
puts "Invalid Username or Password - try again..."
}
}
} elseif {$host_unknown > 0} {
exit 0}
}
puts "dropped out of loop"
And now I can go off and do lots of stuff to lots of boxes .....
This works fine when I enter a valid username or password, and my script goes off and does all the other stuff I want, but when I enter an invalid password I get this :-
Fred#Aserver:~$ ./Ex_Test.sh ALL
login as:- MyID
password: spawn ssh MyID#some-box.here.there.co.uk
Password:
Password:
Invalid Username or Password - try again...
login as:- cannot find channel named "exp6"
while executing "expect -re "(.*)\n""
invoked from within "if {[lindex $argv 1] != ""} {
puts "Too many arguments"
puts "Usage is:- Ex_Test.sh host|ALL"
} elseif {[lindex $argv 0] != ""} {
while {1} {
..."
(file "./Ex_Test.sh" line 3)
Its the line "can not find channel named "exp6" which is really bugging me.
What am I doing wrong? I am reading Exploring Expect (Don Lines) but getting nowhere....
Whenever expect is supposed to wait for some word, it will save the spawn_id for that expect process into expect_out(spawn_id).
As per your code, expect's spawn_id is generated when it encounters
expect -re "(.*)\n"
When user typed something and pressed enter key, it will save the expect's spawn_id. If you have used expect with debugging, you might have seen the following in the debugging output
expect does "" (spawn_id exp0) match regular expression "(.*)\n"
Lets say user typed 'Simon', then the debugging output will be
expect: does "Simon\n" (spawn_id exp0) match regular expression "(.*)\n"? Gate "*\n"? gate=yes re=yes
expect: set expect_out(0,string) "Simon\n"
expect: set expect_out(1,string) "Simon"
expect: set expect_out(spawn_id) "exp0"
expect: set expect_out(buffer) "Simon\n"
As you can see, the expect_out(spawn_id) holds the spawn_id from which it has to expect for values. In this case, the term exp0 pointing the standard input.
If spawn command is used, then as you know, the tcl variable spawn_id holds the reference to the process handle which is known as the spawn handle. We can play around with spawn_id by explicitly setting the process handle and save it for future reference. This is one good part.
As per your code, you are closing the ssh connection when wrong password given with the following code
close $spawn_id
By taking advantage of spawn_id, you are doing this and what you are missing is that setting the expect's process handle back to it's original reference handle. i.e.
While {1} {
###Initial state. Nothing present in spawn_id variable ######
expect "something here"; #### Now exp0 will be created
###some code here ####
##Spawning a process now###
spawn ssh xyz ##At this moment, spawn_id updated
###doing some operations###
###closing ssh with some conditions###
close $spawn_id
##Loop is about to end and still spawn_id has the reference to ssh process
###If anything present in that, expect will assume that might be current process
###so, it will try to expect from that process
}
When the loop executes for the 2nd time, expect will try to expect commands from the spawn_id handle which is nothing but ssh process which is why you are getting the error
can not find channel named "exp6"
Note that the "exp6" is nothing but the spawn handle for the ssh process.
Update :
If some process handle is available in the
spawn_id, then expect will always expect commands from that
process only.
Perhaps you can try something like the following to avoid these.
#Some reference variable
set expect_init_spawn_id 0
while {1} {
if { $expect_spawn_id !=0 } {
#when the loop enters from 2nd iteration,
#spawn_id is explicitly set to initial 'exp0' handle
set spawn_id $expect_init_spawn_id
}
expect -re "(.*)\n"
#Saving the init spawn id of expect process
#And it will have the value as 'exp0'
set expect_init_spawn_id $expect_out(spawn_id)
spawn ssh xyz
##Manipulations here
#closing ssh now
close $spawn_id
}
This is my opinion and it may not be the efficient approach. You can also think of your own logic to handle these problems.
You simply need to store the $spawn_id as a temp variable before a nested expect command, then set the $spawn_id to the temp variable after a nested expect command.
Also, get rid of the while {1} loops. They are not needed because expect behaves like a loop provided you use exp_continue whenever you don't wish to exit. You don't need expect eof nor do you need close $spawn_id. I don't use them in the following example:
#!/usr/bin/expect
set domain [lindex $argv 0];
set timeout 300
spawn ./certbot-add.sh $domain
expect {
"*replace the certificate*" {
send "2\r";
exp_continue;
}
"*_acme-challenge*" {
puts [open output.txt w] $expect_out(buffer)
spawn ./acme-add.sh $domain
set tmp_spawn_id $spawn_id
expect {
"$ "
}
set spawn_id $tmp_spawn_id
send "\r";
exp_continue;
}
"*certificate expires on*" {
puts "Certificate Added!"
}
}