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Date: Thu, 24 Jan 2008 08:55:20 -0500
From: "Jerry D. Hedden" <jdhedden AT cpan DOT org>
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Subject: Re: what's the difference between /dev/tty1 and /dev/console
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Yue Chen wrote:
> I have two hosts installed with cygwin. When I click the cygwin icon
> on host1, the prompt CLI window's tty is /dev/console. However, when I
> click the icon on host2, the CLI window's tty turns to be /dev/tty1.
> In the first window, all windows applications run very well. But in
> the /dev/tty1 window, some windows application can not run
> successfully. Does any one know why?

Brian Dessent wrote:
> /dev/console means that the session is running in a real Windows
> console.
>
> /dev/tty1 means that the session is running attached to a pty
> (pseudoterminal) which is emuated by Cygwin.
>
> Since ptys are an emulated concept that don't exist in Windows,
> non-Cygwin programs get confused by them because they think their output
> is a pipe and not an interactive session.
>
> If you use any terminal but the stock Windows console (i.e. rxvt, xterm,
> ssh connection) or you have "tty" in your CYGWIN environment variable
> you always get  a pty.  The only time you get a console is when you
> don't have "tty" set and you invoke bash from a real Windows console.

I'm not so knowledgable on this subject, so forgive my ignorance.

I run bash from rxvt:

> ps
      PID    PPID    PGID     WINPID  TTY  UID    STIME COMMAND
    19992       1   19992      19992  con 78809 08:22:53 /usr/bin/rxvt
    32960   19992   32960      61760    0 78809 08:22:53 /usr/bin/bash
    19292   32960   19292      33136    0 78809 08:43:42 /usr/bin/ps

It's started using via a shell shortcut using the target:
    "C:\cygwin\bin\rxvt.exe -e bash --login"
Doesn't this show that the rxvt window is a console?

I also noted in 'man rxvt':
       -C     Capture system console messages.
When I add it to the above, every window opened is also a console.

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