Red Hat Bugzilla – Bug 166431
ps returning UID & GID sometimes instead of username & group
Last modified: 2007-11-30 17:11:12 EST
Description of problem: example of ps -eo user,group,pid,args returns UID & or GID in place of real username & group rmhhco domain60 4874 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin so it is returning the username group pid and args as expected! after a few repeated ps -eo user,group,pid,args 788 11141 5364 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin 788 is eng-vill_leigh domain213 so ps is not always returning the username etc! Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable): procps version 3.2.3 How reproducible: very Steps to Reproduce: 1.just enter ps -eo user,group,pid,args from bash shell. 2. 3. Actual results: 788 11141 5364 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin expected eng-vill_leigh domain213 5364 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin Expected results: ps -eo user,group,pid,args rmhhco domain60 4874 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin so it is returning the username group pid and args as expected this time! Additional info: 647 11100 1705 procmail -f glyceride@talk21.com -t -Y -a -d adstead_00 647 11100 1706 procmail -f glyceride@talk21.com -t -Y -a -d adstead_00 647 11100 1707 /usr/bin/perl -T -w /usr/bin/spamassassin root root 1708 ps -eo user,group,pid,args as you see UID & GID not username & group.
procps FAQ: Why do long usernames get printed as numbers? The UNIX and POSIX standards require that user names and group names be printed as decimal integers when there is not enough room in the column. Truncating the names, besides being a violation of the standard, would lead to confusion between names like MichelleRichards and MichelleRichardson. The UNIX and POSIX way to change column width is to rename the column: ps -o pid,user=CumbersomeUserNames -o comm The easy way is to directly specify the desired width: ps -o pid,user:19,comm ^^^^^^^ You have to use: ps -eo user:20,group,pid,args