MySQL Bugs: #43153: Version comment is too long

Bug #43153	Version comment is too long
Submitted:	24 Feb 2009 15:24	Modified:	13 Apr 2009 19:26
Reporter:	Elena Stepanova	Email Updates:
Status:	Closed	Impact on me:	None
Category:	MySQL Server: Packaging	Severity:	S3 (Non-critical)
Version:	5.1.31, 5.1.32	OS:	Linux
Assigned to:	Tatiana Azundris Nuernberg	CPU Architecture:	Any

Description:
MySQL-client-5.1.31-0.glibc23.i386.rpm and alike

version_comment value in generic server package is too long:

MySQL Community Server (Copyright 2000-2008 MySQL AB, 2008 Sun Microsystems, Inc.  All rights reserved.  Use is subject to license terms.  Under GPL license as shown in the Description field.)

As a result, it does not fit into the welcome line when a client connects, and the sentence breaks in the middle:

Welcome to the MySQL monitor.  Commands end with ; or \g.
Your MySQL connection id is 4
Server version: 5.1.32 MySQL Community Server (Copyright 2000-2008 MySQL AB, 2008 Sun Microsystems, Inc.  All rights reserved.  Use is subject

Type 'help;' or '\h' for help. Type '\c' to clear the buffer.

Also, the year in copyright probably needs to be updated.

How to repeat:
- Install MySQL-server-5.1.32-0.glibc23.x86_64.rpm (or 32 bit, or 5.1.31)
- connect to the server
- see the welcome text
- show variables like 'version_comment'

Suggested fix:
Modify the line

Note: the line looks all right in 5.1.30

A patch for this bug has been committed. After review, it may
be pushed to the relevant source trees for release in the next
version. You can access the patch from:

  http://lists.mysql.com/commits/69854

2757 Tatiana A. Nurnberg	2009-03-19
      Bug#43153: Version comment is too long
      
      mysql-client used static buffer to concatenate server-
      version and version_comment. Sufficiently long comments
      could get cut off. This was harmless, but looked daft.
      
      Now using a dynamic buffer instead.
     @ client/mysql.cc
        Use dynamic rather than static buffer for server
        information. If we can get both version and comment,
        concat them and use that. Otherwise, try to use just
        version. If that fails too, return empty string so
        overly trusting callers do not crash. Release memory
        as needed.

So the complete assessment is this:

- current packages should not show this issue thanks to fixed spec-file

- older packages should not show this issue thanks to shorter string

- some packages in between have this issue, but only in mysql command-line client. This is because mysql shows version+version_comment and uses a static buffer to concatenate them; everybody else just uses version as-is.

- so for now, patch mostly affects the scenario of, "new mysql command-line client connecting to semi-old mysqld". Almost doesn't seem worth the effort, but at least now we're doing The Right Thing, plus, it's future proof in case we have a regression, or some distributor sets a really long string. I think this last bit, not knowing what distributors may come up with, is what makes putting the CS in all the same worthwhile.

queued for 5.1.34, 6.0.11 in -bugteam

Pushed into 5.1.34 (revid:joro@sun.com-20090327143448-wuuuycetc562ty6o) (version source revid:azundris@mysql.com-20090320181012-j7uuft90860yjc3i) (merge vers: 5.1.34) (pib:6)

Noted in 5.1.34 changelog.

If the value of the version_comment system variable was too long, the
mysql client displayed a truncated startup message.

Setting report to NDI pending push into 6.0.x.

Pushed into 6.0.11-alpha (revid:alik@sun.com-20090413084402-snnrocwzktcl88ny) (version source revid:azundris@mysql.com-20090320181129-9d3e6ljbzeu4qx3n) (merge vers: 6.0.11-alpha) (pib:6)

Noted in 6.0.11 changelog.

Pushed into 5.1.34-ndb-6.2.18 (revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090508185236-p9b3as7qyauybefl) (version source revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090508185236-p9b3as7qyauybefl) (merge vers: 5.1.34-ndb-6.2.18) (pib:6)

Pushed into 5.1.34-ndb-6.3.25 (revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090509063138-1u3q3v09wnn2txyt) (version source revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090509063138-1u3q3v09wnn2txyt) (merge vers: 5.1.34-ndb-6.3.25) (pib:6)

Pushed into 5.1.34-ndb-7.0.6 (revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090509154927-im9a7g846c6u1hzc) (version source revid:jonas@mysql.com-20090509154927-im9a7g846c6u1hzc) (merge vers: 5.1.34-ndb-7.0.6) (pib:6)