     START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY
     * GNATS FAQ: (gnats-faq).	FAQ for the GNU Problem Report Management System
     END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY

Copyright © 2002 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved on all copies.

Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the sections entitled ``Copying'' and ``GNU General Public License'' are included exactly as in the original, and provided that the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a permission notice identical to this one.

Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions, except that this permission notice may be stated in a translation approved by the Free Software Foundation.

GNATS Frequently Asked Questions
********************************

This document answers some frequently asked questions concerning GNATS, the GNU problem report management system, and related software. The most recent version of this FAQ can be found at http://www.ha-schneider.de/software/gnats/.

The questions and answers have been compiled by Hans-Albert Schneider, mainly using the help-gnats mailing list and the GNATS documentation as input.

General Questions
*****************

What is GNATS?
==============

GNATS is the GNU problem report management system.  Problem report management systems are also known as "bug-tracking systems", though the entries need not be bugs (e.g., think of change requests).

GNATS stores all information about the problem reports at a central site, and enables users to access this site by various means, including e-mail, WWW, and a network daemon.  New problem reports can be created, and existing reports can be queried and updated, by most of these means.

GNATS is widely customizable: Of course you can define report categories (is the report about tool A or service B?), responsibles (who takes care of this report?), and submitters (is it from customer1 or from the sales department?).  You can also define possible states of a report (open, analyzed, closed, etc.) and classes (software bug, documentation bug, change request, ...).

Starting with GNATS 4.0, you can define your own custom fields, and customize many of the built-in fields; you can have fields automatically set to a certain value when another field changes its contents (e.g., set a "Closed-Date" field to the current date when the report goes to state "closed", and unset it when it goes back from "closed" to something else), or when the report is changed at all (e.g., to maintain a "Last-Modified" field).

How it Works---User's View
--------------------------

Users enter their problem reports (PRs) via some front-end.  This front-end either directly contacts the GNATS server, or sends the report via e-mail.  (The server is available since about version 3.90 of GNATS).  For an incomplete list of front-ends see Clients.

Some front-ends (like TkGnats, see TkGnats) are capable of contacting several GNATS servers, or several problem report databases managed by the same GNATS server.

How it Works---Administrator's View
-----------------------------------

The server is started by a super-server like inetd or xinetd.  It has a built-in access control mechanism based on IP addresses and username/password.

For users sending their PRs via e-mail, some mail addresses must be configured.

Where do I get it?
==================

See the GNATS home page at http://www.gnu.org/software/gnats/.

The current development version is available via CVS only, see the GNU savannah GNATS project page (http://savannah.gnu.org/projects/gnats) for the instructions how to get it.

What is the latest version?
===========================

The version numbers of GNATS 3.x is somewhat confusing, because 3.1xx is newer than 3.2.

Version 3.2 was released in 1993 (I never tried it, but it is said to be "really broken").  A lot of new features have been added since 3.2, including multiple database support and customized fields.  Among the contributed software are comprehensive WWW and Tk based front-ends.

The latest 3.x release is 3.113.1.

A first beta of version 4.0 is available since January 10, 2002 (as ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/gnats/gnats-3.999.1.tar.gz), and an official release is expected very soon now.

Is there a Mailing List?
========================

Currently, the following GNATS mailing lists exist:

  * info-gnats@gnu.org (formerly gnats-announce@sources.redhat.com) This is a low volume moderated mailing lists for GNATS related announcements, like new releases or important information.

  * help-gnats@gnu.org (formerly gnats-devel@sources.redhat.com) A low-to-middle volume mailing list where anything related to GNATS can be discussed (development, help, questions, suggestions, etc.).

  * bug-gnats@gnu.org Bug reports can be sent there.  Please note that it's preferred to submit bug reports via the bug tracking system (see Bug Reporting), which automatically mirrors them to this list.

Lists only interesting for the GNATS developers:

  * gnats-prs@gnu.org (formerly gnats-prs@sources.redhat.com) Copies of the bug tracking system messages are sent there.  Contrast to bug-gnats@gnu.org which only gets new bug reports, this list also gets the follow-ups (Whatever goes into GNATS' >Audit-Trail: field).

  * gnats-commit@gnu.org (formerly gnats-cvs@sources.redhat.com) CVS commit messages are sent there.

  * gnats-diffs@gnu.org Diffs of committed files are sent automatically to this address.

How do I Report a Bug?
======================

Before reporting a bug, make sure it really is a bug, not a simple misunderstanding or a misconfiguration.  Please check the manual and this FAQ.  You may also ask for help on the help-gnats@gnu.org mailing list.

If it is a bug, please report it via the bug tracking system.  It resides at http://bugs.gnu.org/cgi-bin/gnatsweb.pl?database=gnats. This is a common bug database for GNATS, Gnatsweb and TkGnats. (And, yes, of course: It uses GNATS and Gnatsweb.)

When you report problems concerning GNATS itself, please do not forget to provide especially the following information:

  * The GNATS version you are using.  If your problem involves Gnatsweb or TkGnats, please also report their versions.

  * The exact way how to reproduce the bug.

  * Your configuration.

  * If you encounter a compilation or build problem, it is especially important to mention the operating system, compiler and possibly other build utilities you use.

Providing this information in the initial report avoids further unnecessary communication, saves our limited development resources and helps to track down and fix the problem soon.

Problems during Installation
****************************

I am currently not aware of common problems during compilation and installation.

However, as installation and configuration problems often overlap, please check also Configuration.

Configuration Issues
********************

General Configuration Questions
===============================

How do I add a new database?
............................

A: (GNATS 3.1xx)

 1. Create the base directory for the new database, say /usr/local/gnats/db2, and make sure it is owned by the GNATS user.

 2. In there, create subdirectories gnats-adm, gnats-adm/locks, and gnats-queue, and make sure they is owned by the GNATS user.

 3. Now you need to populate the new gnats-adm directory.  The easiest way is to copy all files from gnats-db/gnats-adm to /usr/local/gnats/db2/gnats-adm, and edit them to reflect the needs of your new database.  Again, make sure they are owned by the gnats user.

     Note that there must be a category named pending.  It is used when no category is given in a report, and when a report names an invalid category.

 4. As the GNATS user, run mkcat --directory=/usr/local/gnats/db2 to create the directories for the categories, and maybe gen-index --directory=/usr/local/gnats/db2 to create an (empty) index file.

 5. Now add a line for the new database to gnats-db.conf, like this:

     /usr/local/gnats/db2:GreatNewDB

     Gnatsd reads it on startup (and as it is started by inetd, this means it becomes effective with the next connection to gnatsd). Gnatsweb learns the database list from gnatsd, so it will offer you the new database "GreatNewDB" when it is invoked next time.

     If you do not know where gnats-db.conf lives, run:

     strings /where/ever/gnatsd | grep gnats-db.conf

 6. Don't forget to setup a cron job to run through the additional gnats-queue.

 7. Don't forget to create mail aliases for your new database (see Setting up mail aliases (Keeping Track)). Take care that the aliases have the right database, e.g.,

          GreatNewDB-bugs:  "|/usr/local/lib/gnats/queue-pr -d /usr/local/gnats/db2 -q"
          GreatNewDB-query: "|/usr/local/lib/gnats/mail-query -d /usr/local/gnats/db2"

A: (GNATS 4.x) With version 4, this has become much easier (see Adding another database (Keeping Track)):

 1. Add a line for the new database to databases, like this:

     GreatNewDB:Our great tools:/usr/local/gnats/db2

     Then, as the GNATS user, run mkdb GreatNewDB to create the database.  Make sure that the directory (in our example, /usr/local/gnats/db2) can be created by the GNATS user.

     Gnatsd reads the file databases on startup (and as it is started by inetd, this means it becomes effective with the next connection to gnatsd).  Gnatsweb learns the database list from gnatsd, so it will offer you the new database "GreatNewDB" when it is invoked next time.

     If you do not know where databases lives, run:

     strings /where/ever/gnatsd | grep databases

 2. Now, as the GNATS user, edit the files in directory /usr/local/gnats/db2/gnats-adm to reflect the needs of your new database.

 3. Depending on the settings in the dbconfig file of the new database, you need not run mkcat anymore in order to create new category directories in your database---GNATS 4 creates them automatically when they are missing.  See The dbconfig file (Keeping Track), for details.

 4. Don't forget to create mail aliases for your new database (see Setting up mail aliases (Keeping Track)). Take care that the aliases have the right database, e.g.,

          GreatNewDB-bugs:  "|/usr/local/libexec/gnats/queue-pr -d GreatNewDB -q"
          GreatNewDB-query: "|/usr/local/libexec/gnats/mail-query -d GreatNewDB"

     If you are updating from GNATS 3.1xx, note that the -d option has changed its meaning: it does not give the directory of the database, but its name.  (In case you prefer the long form of the option, it is now --database instead of --directory.)

Gnatsd, the GNATS Daemon
========================

Gnatsd Port Number
------------------

In 3.xxx versions, gnatsd uses port 1529 by default; as this port is officially assigned to another application (see the list of port numbers (http://www.iana.org/assignments/port-numbers) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (http://www.iana.org/)) it will probably change in 4.x.

If you want/need to run gnatsd on another port, you can change the default port at compile time (call configure --help to learn about compile time configuration options).  Most clients also accept an option or configuration variable to change the port.  Don't forget to tell inetd (or xinetd, or whatever super-server you use) to start gnatsd on the other port.

How to Start Gnatsd
-------------------

Gnatsd is intended to be started by some "super server", like inetd or xinetd.  ("Super servers" are sometimes also called "super daemons".)

This is also described in the GNATS manual; see Installing the daemon (Keeping Track).

How to configure inetd to start gnatsd
......................................

If your gnatsd will be started by inetd (the "internet daemon"), add the following entry to your /etc/inetd.conf:

     # port                    userid program
     support stream tcp nowait gnats /usr/local/libexec/gnats/gnatsd gnatsd

and to /etc/services:

     support		1529/tcp		# GNATS

(You may need to use tabulator characters to separate the fields of /etc/services.)  Then send inetd a hangup signal (kill -HUP pid-of-inetd).

You may want to use another port instead of 1529 (see Port Number).

How to configure xinetd to start gnatsd
.......................................

If your gnatsd will be started by xinetd (the "extended internet daemon"), create a file /etc/xinetd.d/support with the following lines (see Installing the daemon (Keeping Track)):

     service support
     {
             disable     = no
             socket_type = stream
             protocol    = tcp
             wait        = no
             user        = gnats
             server      = /usr/local/lib/gnats/gnatsd
             server_args = gnatsd
     }

or add theses lines to your xinetd.conf file, whatever is appropriate.  The equal signs seem to need spaces around them with some versions of xinetd.

You need to add

     support		1529/tcp		# GNATS

to /etc/services (it may be necessary to use tabulator characters to separate the fields), and to tell xinetd to reread its configuration (kill -HUP pid-of-xinetd).

Gnatsd Messages
---------------

You are not on the host access list: stdin (stdin)
..................................................

Q: When starting gnatsd manually (on the command line), I get 520 You are not on the host access list: stdin (stdin).

A: (GNATS 3.1xx) Gnatsd is not intended to be started manually, but via inetd, xinetd, or a similar "super server".  When gnatsd is started this way, its stdin and stdout (standard input and standard output streams) are connected to a so called "TCP socket" (one end of the network connection), and from this socket gnatsd learns the IP address of the remote end (and from this it derives the remote host name).  When you start gnatsd from the command line, its stdin and stdout are connected to the terminal, and thus gnatsd gets a nonsense value.

You usually need root privileges in order to change the configuration of your "super server".  If you don't have them, contact your system administrator.

See Starting gnatsd for inetd and xinetd configuration.

A: (GNATS 4.0) This error message should not occur with gnatsd 4.0 anymore, because gnatsd can be started from the command line. However, this probably only makes sense for debugging and diagnosing problems.  Furthermore, you need to play the part of the client program yourself (i.e., you must "speak" the gnatsd client protocol).

You are not on the host access list
...................................

Q: Gnatsd rejects connections from a remote host with the error message 520 You are not on the host access list.

A: Check the file gnatsd.conf (GNATS 3.xxx) or gnatsd.host_access (GNATS 4.x).  With GNATS 3, this is usually /usr/local/etc/gnatsd.host_access; with GNATS 4, it is usually /usr/local/etc/gnats/gnatsd.host_access.

Each line of the file names a host and its access level, separated by colons.  Gnatsd tries the lines in turn to match the remote host, and the first line that matches wins.

The first field specifies the host(s); it may be a host name (like goedel.example.com), a partial domain (like *.example.com), an IP address (like 192.168.1.5), or a partial IP address (like 192.168.*).  If it is only *, it matches all hosts.

Depending on how IP addresses are mapped to hostnames on your gnatsd machine, you may be able to omit the domain (like in goedel). You may even need to omit the domain for some hosts.

The second field is the access level granted to the remote host.  This is usually increased by the access level granted to the user as soon as (s)he logs in.

The third field is currently not used; just leave it empty (but supply the colon between the second and the third field).

Example:

     #
     # This is a comment
     #
     # Grant view access to all hosts with IP adresses
     # ranging from 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255:
     192.168.*:view:
     # Users on host goedel.example.com get (at least) edit access:
     goedel.example.com:edit:
     # Users from escher.example.com may view all reports, even
     # confidential ones:
     escher.example.com:viewconf:
     # Users from bach.example.com may only view all non-confidential
     # reports:
     bach.example.com:view:
     # Users from other example.com hosts
     # only get the access specified for them in gnatsd.access:
     *.example.com:none:
     # Same for domain our-users.example:
     *.our-users.example:none:
     # All other hosts are rejected
     # without even asking for username and password:
     *:deny:

The format is described in detail in the comments at the beginning of the file.

E-Mail Issues
=============

queue-pr not available for sendmail programs
............................................

Your sendmail installation uses smrsh to check programs that are invoked from a mail alias.  smrsh only allows the execution of programs of which it is told that they are save.  To tell it that queue-pr is save, create a symbolic link in the directory /etc/smrsh to queue-pr, like this:

     mkdir /etc/smrsh	# if it does not yet exist
     cd /etc/smrsh
     ln -s /usr/local/libexec/gnats/queue-pr queue-pr

Replace /usr/local/libexec/gnats/queue-pr by the real path to queue-pr.

Miscellaneous Configuration Issues
==================================

New reports do not show up in the database
..........................................

 1. Make sure you have set up the mail aliases for your database(s).  (See Add a database and Adding another database (Keeping Track).)

 2. Try to send a PR using send-pr.  If you get error replies, investigate the causes.  See E-Mail.

 3. Does a new file show up in the gnats-queue directory of your database, with the report as its contents? If it does, make sure you have created the cron job for this database.

 4. If the report does not show up in the gnats-queue of the desired database, does it show up in the gnats-queue directory of another database? In this case, make sure your mail aliases are set up correctly; especially, make sure that you have specified the correct --directory option (--database for GNATS 4.x) for each queue-pr.

Assigning responsible etc. when entering a report
.................................................

Q: When entering a new PR, I want to assign a value to some field (e.g., Responsible) which is normally assigned by GNATS.

A: (GNATS 3.1xx) This is not possible in GNATS 3.1xx.

A: (GNATS 4.x) This is done by adding the field name (in this example, Responsible) to the initial-entry item at the very end of the dbconfig file.  Gnatsweb will pick this up and add a Responsible field to the Create PR form.

Client Software
***************

Several client applications can be found in the GNATS distribution. The most important are Gnatsweb (a WWW interface to GNATS), TkGnats (a Tcl/Tk based interface), a GNATS mode for Emacs and XEmacs, and send-pr (the traditional command line interface that sends a PR by e-mail).

Gnatsweb
========

General Gnatsweb Questions
--------------------------

Login Questions
---------------

What should be entered as login information?
............................................

A: If you get an HTML form asking you to enter username, password, and database, use what your gnats administrator has told you.  In this case, your authentication data is checked with gnatsd's own user database.

If your browser gives you a window asking for username and password (or for "credentials"), the authentication is done by the WWW server.  You should have got the necessary data either from your gnats administrator, or from the webmaster of the site offering Gnatsweb access.

Login data are not remembered
.............................

Q: After logging in via Gnatsweb, the main screen is displayed, but whatever action is selected (whatever button is clicked), the login screen gets displayed again.

A: This is usually a problem of cookies getting ignored.  Gnatsweb uses cookies to store the login information (see "Gnatsweb and Cookies" below).  Configure your web browser to allow the cookies Gnatsweb tries to set.

Q: There is not even the main screen, the user immediately gets the login screen when trying to log in.  The login data entered is correct.  It works fine on another machine and for other users.

A: This has actually been reported only once; but as the effect is similar to the prevoius one, it is included in the FAQ.  It apparently was related to very strict security settings, but has not been investigated in detail.

Gnatsweb and Cookies
....................

Q: Wait a moment!  Cookies?  Can I eat them?

A: No, not these.  The cookies about which we are talking here are little data packages that a webserver sends to your browser (in our case, on behalf of Gnatsweb) and your browser sends them back to the server next time.  Modern browsers give you the option to generally accept or reject cookies, or to be asked whenever a cookie arrives (some even can make this decision based on the webserver).  To learn more about cookies, visit, e.g., the Cookie Central (http://www.cookiecentral.com/).

Q: So, why does Gnatsweb send these cookies?

A: Gnatsweb uses a cookie gnatsweb-db-database_name to store your login information (username, password), and a cookie gnatsweb-global to store the GNATS database you are working on, your e-mail address (to fill it in for you when you create a new report or reply to an existing report), a default list of fields to display in search results, and defaults for Submitter-Id and Originator fields.

Gnatsweb also sets a cookie for each "saved query" (named gnatsweb-query-queryname).

It is therefore essential that you allow Gnatsweb to set its cookies.

TkGnats
=======

To be completed.

GNATS Mode for (X)Emacs
=======================

To be completed.

send-pr
=======

A simple command line tool that sends a report via electronic mail. This is not contributed software, but part of GNATS itself.

The 3.xxx versions do not support multiple databases.

To be completed.

Glossary
********

cookie
     A junk of data that a www server stores in your browser.  It is sent back to the server when you contact it again.  Gnatsweb (see Gnatsweb) uses cookies to store your login information, preferences, and named queries.

gnats.el
     GNATS mode for (X)Emacs.

gnatsd
     The GNATS daemon (server program).

Gnatsweb
     A WWW interface to GNATS.

port
     A communication endpoint of various IP based protocols, notably TCP and UDP.  A server program waits for connections ("listens") on a port, and a client program connects to this port. IANA (http://www.iana.org/) (the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority) maintains a list of port numbers (http://www.iana.org/assignments/port-numbers) registered for certain purposes.

PR
     Short for ``Problem Report''.  An entry in a GNATS database.

send-pr
     A command line tool that sends a new report by e-mail.

super server
     A super server (sometimes also called "super daemon") is a daemon (= UNIX server process) that waits for connections on the ports of various server programs and starts the corresponding server when a connection is made.  This way, there is only one server process for a set of services (instead of one for each service), but each service in the set is available to its clients.

     The most common super servers are inetd (the "InterNET Daemon" that comes with many UNIX installations) and xinetd (http://www.xinetd.org) (the "eXtended InterNET Daemon").

TkGnats
     A Tcl/Tk based interface to GNATS.