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NAME

       zshtcpsys - zsh tcp system

DESCRIPTION

       A  module  zsh/net/tcp  is  provided  to  provide  network I/O over TCP/IP from within the shell; see its
       description in zshmodules(1).  This manual page describes a function suite based on the module.   If  the
       module  is  installed,  the  functions are usually installed at the same time, in which case they will be
       available for autoloading in the default function search path.  In addition to  the  zsh/net/tcp  module,
       the  zsh/zselect  module  is  used  to  implement timeouts on read operations.  For troubleshooting tips,
       consult the corresponding advice for the zftp functions described in zshzftpsys(1).

       There are functions corresponding to the basic I/O operations open, close, read and send, named  tcp_open
       etc.,  as  well  as  a  function tcp_expect for pattern match analysis of data read as input.  The system
       makes it easy to receive data from and send data to multiple named sessions at once.  In addition, it can
       be  linked  with  the  shell's  line  editor  in such a way that input data is automatically shown at the
       terminal.  Other facilities available including logging, filtering and configurable output prompts.

       To use the system where it is available, it should be enough to `autoload -U tcp_open' and  run  tcp_open
       as documented below to start a session.  The tcp_open function will autoload the remaining functions.

TCP USER FUNCTIONS

   Basic I/O
       tcp_open [ -qz ] host port [ sess ]
       tcp_open [ -qz ] [ -s sess | -l sess[,...] ] ...
       tcp_open [ -qz ] [ -a fd | -f fd ] [ sess ]
              Open  a  new  session.  In the first and simplest form, open a TCP connection to host host at port
              port; numeric and symbolic forms are understood for both.

              If sess is given, this becomes the name of the session which can be  used  to  refer  to  multiple
              different  TCP  connections.   If sess is not given, the function will invent a numeric name value
              (note this is not the same as the file descriptor to  which  the  session  is  attached).   It  is
              recommended  that  session  names  not  include `funny' characters, where funny characters are not
              well-defined but certainly do not include alphanumerics or underscores, and certainly  do  include
              whitespace.

              In the second case, one or more sessions to be opened are given by name.  A single session name is
              given after -s and a comma-separated list after -l; both options may be repeated as many times  as
              necessary.   A  failure  to open any session causes tcp_open to abort.  The host and port are read
              from the file .ztcp_sessions in the same directory as the user's zsh  initialisation  files,  i.e.
              usually the home directory, but $ZDOTDIR if that is set.  The file consists of lines each giving a
              session name and the corresponding host and port, in that  order  (note  the  session  name  comes
              first, not last), separated by whitespace.

              The third form allows passive and fake TCP connections.  If the option -a is used, its argument is
              a file descriptor open for listening for connections.  No function front-end is provided  to  open
              such  a  file  descriptor,  but  a call to `ztcp -l port' will create one with the file descriptor
              stored in the parameter $REPLY.  The listening port can be closed with `ztcp -c fd'.   A  call  to
              `tcp_open  -a  fd'  will block until a remote TCP connection is made to port on the local machine.
              At this point, a session is created in the usual way and  is  largely  indistinguishable  from  an
              active connection created with one of the first two forms.

              If the option -f is used, its argument is a file descriptor which is used directly as if it were a
              TCP session.  How well the remainder of the TCP function system copes with this  depends  on  what
              actually  underlies  this file descriptor.  A regular file is likely to be unusable; a FIFO (pipe)
              of some sort will work better, but note that it is not a good idea for two different  sessions  to
              attempt to read from the same FIFO at once.

              If  the  option  -q  is  given  with any of the three forms, tcp_open will not print informational
              messages, although it will in any case exit with an appropriate status.

              If the line editor (zle) is in use, which is typically the  case  if  the  shell  is  interactive,
              tcp_open installs a handler inside zle which will check for new data at the same time as it checks
              for keyboard input.  This is convenient as the shell consumes no CPU time while waiting; the  test
              is  performed  by  the  operating  system.   Giving  the option -z to any of the forms of tcp_open
              prevents the handler from being installed, so data must be read explicitly.  Note,  however,  this
              is  not necessary for executing complete sets of send and read commands from a function, as zle is
              not active at this point.  Generally speaking, the handler  is  only  active  when  the  shell  is
              waiting for input at a command prompt or in the vared builtin.  The option has no effect if zle is
              not active; `[[ -o zle]]' will test for this.

              The first session to be opened becomes the current session and subsequent calls to tcp_open do not
              change  it.   The  current session is stored in the parameter $TCP_SESS; see below for more detail
              about the parameters used by the system.

              The function tcp_on_open, if defined, is called when a session is  opened.   See  the  description
              below.

       tcp_close [ -qn ] [ -a | -l sess[,...] | sess ... ]
              Close  the  named sessions, or the current session if none is given, or all open sessions if -a is
              given.  The options -l and -s are both handled for consistency with tcp_open, although the  latter
              is redundant.

              If  the  session  being closed is the current one, $TCP_SESS is unset, leaving no current session,
              even if there are other sessions still open.

              If the session was opened with tcp_open -f, the file descriptor is closed so long as it is in  the
              range  0  to  9  accessible directly from the command line.  If the option -n is given, no attempt
              will be made to close file descriptors in this case.  The -n option is not used for  genuine  ztcp
              session; the file descriptors are always closed with the session.

              If the option -q is given, no informational messages will be printed.

       tcp_read [ -bdq ] [ -t TO ] [ -T TO ]
                [ -a | -u fd[,...] | -l sess[,...] | -s sess ... ]
              Perform  a  read  operation on the current session, or on a list of sessions if any are given with
              -u, -l or -s, or all open sessions if the option -a is given.  Any of the -u, -l or -s options may
              be  repeated  or  mixed  together.  The -u option specifies a file descriptor directly (only those
              managed by this system are useful), the other two  specify  sessions  as  described  for  tcp_open
              above.

              The  function  checks  for new data available on all the sessions listed.  Unless the -b option is
              given, it will not block waiting for new data.  Any one line of data from  any  of  the  available
              sessions  will be read, stored in the parameter $TCP_LINE, and displayed to standard output unless
              $TCP_SILENT contains a non-empty string.  When printed to standard output the  string  $TCP_PROMPT
              will be shown at the start of the line; the default form for this includes the name of the session
              being read.  See below for more information on these parameters.  In this mode,  tcp_read  can  be
              called  repeatedly  until it returns status 2 which indicates all pending input from all specified
              sessions has been handled.

              With the option -b, equivalent to an infinite timeout, the function will block  until  a  line  is
              available to read from one of the specified sessions.  However, only a single line is returned.

              The  option  -d  indicates  that  all  pending input should be drained.  In this case tcp_read may
              process multiple lines in the manner given above; only the last is stored in  $TCP_LINE,  but  the
              complete  set  is  stored  in  the array $tcp_lines.  This is cleared at the start of each call to
              tcp_read.

              The options -t and -T specify a timeout in seconds, which may  be  a  floating  point  number  for
              increased  accuracy.   With -t the timeout is applied before each line read.  With -T, the timeout
              applies to the overall operation, possibly including multiple read operations if the option -d  is
              present; without this option, there is no distinction between -t and -T.

              The  function  does  not  print  informational  messages,  but if the option -q is given, no error
              message is printed for a non-existent session.

              A return status of 2 indicates a timeout or no data to read.  Any  other  non-zero  return  status
              indicates some error condition.

              See tcp_log for how to control where data is sent by tcp_read.

       tcp_send [ -cnq ] [ -s sess | -l sess[,...] ] data ...
       tcp_send [ -cnq ] -a data ...
              Send  the  supplied  data strings to all the specified sessions in turn.  The underlying operation
              differs little from a `print -r' to the session's file descriptor, although it attempts to prevent
              the shell from dying owing to a SIGPIPE caused by an attempt to write to a defunct session.

              The option -c causes tcp_send to behave like cat.  It reads lines from standard input until end of
              input and sends them in turn to the specified session(s) exactly as if they  were  given  as  data
              arguments to individual tcp_send commands.

              The option -n prevents tcp_send from putting a newline at the end of the data strings.

              The remaining options all behave as for tcp_read.

              The  data  arguments  are  not  further processed once they have been passed to tcp_send; they are
              simply passed down to print -r.

              If the parameter $TCP_OUTPUT is a non-empty string and logging is enabled then the  data  sent  to
              each  session  will be echoed to the log file(s) with $TCP_OUTPUT in front where appropriate, much
              in the manner of $TCP_PROMPT.

   Session Management
       tcp_alias [ -q ] alias=sess ...
       tcp_alias [ -q ] [ alias ... ]
       tcp_alias -d [ -q ] alias ...
              This function is not particularly well tested.

              The first form creates an alias for a session name; alias  can  then  be  used  to  refer  to  the
              existing session sess.  As many aliases may be listed as required.

              The second form lists any aliases specified, or all aliases if none.

              The third form deletes all the aliases listed.  The underlying sessions are not affected.

              The option -q suppresses an inconsistently chosen subset of error messages.

       tcp_log [ -asc ] [ -n | -N ] [ logfile ]
              With an argument logfile, all future input from tcp_read will be logged to the named file.  Unless
              -a (append) is given, this file will first be truncated or created empty.  With no arguments, show
              the current status of logging.

              With  the  option  -s,  per-session logging is enabled.  Input from tcp_read is output to the file
              logfile.sess.  As the session is automatically discriminated by the filename, the contents are raw
              (no  $TCP_PROMPT).   The option  -a applies as above.  Per-session logging and logging of all data
              in one file are not mutually exclusive.

              The option -c closes all logging, both complete and per-session logs.

              The options -n and -N respectively turn off or restore output of data read by tcp_read to standard
              output; hence `tcp_log -cn' turns off all output by tcp_read.

              The  function  is purely a convenient front end to setting the parameters $TCP_LOG, $TCP_LOG_SESS,
              $TCP_SILENT, which are described below.

       tcp_rename old new
              Rename session old to session new.  The old name becomes invalid.

       tcp_sess [ sess [ command [ arg ... ] ] ]
              With no arguments, list all the open  sessions  and  associated  file  descriptors.   The  current
              session  is  marked  with  a  star.   For  use  in  functions,  direct  access  to  the parameters
              $tcp_by_name, $tcp_by_fd and $TCP_SESS is probably more convenient; see below.

              With a sess argument, set the current session to sess.  This is equivalent to  changing  $TCP_SESS
              directly.

              With  additional arguments, temporarily set the current session while executing `command arg ...'.
              command is re-evaluated so as to expand aliases etc., but the remaining args are passed through as
              that appear to tcp_sess.  The original session is restored when tcp_sess exits.

   Advanced I/O
       tcp_command send-option ... send-argument ...
              This  is  a  convenient  front-end  to  tcp_send.   All arguments are passed to tcp_send, then the
              function pauses waiting for data.  While data is arriving at  least  every  $TCP_TIMEOUT  (default
              0.3)  seconds,  data  is  handled  and printed out according to the current settings.  Status 0 is
              always returned.

              This is generally only useful for interactive use, to prevent the display becoming  fragmented  by
              output  returned  from  the  connection.  Within a programme or function it is generally better to
              handle reading data by a more explicit method.

       tcp_expect [ -q ] [ -p var | -P var ] [ -t TO | -T TO ]
                  [ -a | -s sess | -l sess[,...] ] pattern ...
              Wait for input matching any of the given patterns from any of the specified  sessions.   Input  is
              ignored  until  an  input  line  matches  one  of the given patterns; at this point status zero is
              returned, the matching line is stored in $TCP_LINE, and the full set of lines read during the call
              to tcp_expect is stored in the array $tcp_expect_lines.

              Sessions  are  specified  in  the same way as tcp_read: the default is to use the current session,
              otherwise the sessions specified by -a, -s, or -l are used.

              Each pattern is a standard zsh extended-globbing pattern; note that it needs to be quoted to avoid
              it  being expanded immediately by filename generation.  It must match the full line, so to match a
              substring there must be a `*' at the start  and  end.   The  line  matched  against  includes  the
              $TCP_PROMPT  added  by tcp_read.  It is possible to include the globbing flags `#b' or `#m' in the
              patterns to make backreferences available in the parameters $MATCH, $match, etc., as described  in
              the base zsh documentation on pattern matching.

              Unlike  tcp_read,  the default behaviour of tcp_expect is to block indefinitely until the required
              input is found.  This can be modified by specifying a timeout with -t or -T; these function as  in
              tcp_read,  specifying  a  per-read  or overall timeout, respectively, in seconds, as an integer or
              floating-point number.  As tcp_read, the function returns status 2 if a timeout occurs.

              The function returns as soon as any one of the patterns given match.  If the caller needs to  know
              which of the patterns matched, the option -p var can be used; on return, $var is set to the number
              of the pattern using ordinary zsh indexing, i.e. the first is 1, and so on.  Note the absence of a
              `$'  in  front of var.  To avoid clashes, the parameter cannot begin with `_expect'.  The index -1
              is used if there is a timeout and 0 if there is no match.

              The option -P var works similarly to -p, but instead of numerical indexes  the  regular  arguments
              must  begin  with  a prefix followed by a colon: that prefix is then used as a tag to which var is
              set when the argument matches.  The tag timeout is used if there is a timeout and the empty string
              if there is no match.  Note it is acceptable for different arguments to start with the same prefix
              if the matches do not need to be distinguished.

              The option -q is passed directly down to tcp_read.

              As all input is done via tcp_read, all the usual rules about output  of  lines  read  apply.   One
              exception  is  that  the  parameter  $tcp_lines  will  only  reflect  the line actually matched by
              tcp_expect; use $tcp_expect_lines for the full set of lines read during the function call.

       tcp_proxy
              This is a simple-minded function to accept a  TCP  connection  and  execute  a  command  with  I/O
              redirected  to the connection.  Extreme caution should be taken as there is no security whatsoever
              and this can leave your computer open to the world.  Ideally, it should  only  be  used  behind  a
              firewall.

              The first argument is a TCP port on which the function will listen.

              The  remaining arguments give a command and its arguments to execute with standard input, standard
              output and standard error redirected to the file descriptor on which  the  TCP  session  has  been
              accepted.   If  no  command  is  given, a new zsh is started.  This gives everyone on your network
              direct access to your account, which in many cases will be a bad thing.

              The command is run in the background, so tcp_proxy can then accept new connections.  It  continues
              to accept new connections until interrupted.

       tcp_spam [ -ertv ] [ -a | -s sess | -l sess[,...] ] cmd [ arg ... ]
              Execute `cmd [ arg ... ]' for each session in turn.  Note this executes the command and arguments;
              it does not send the command line as data unless the -t (transmit) option is given.

              The sessions may be selected explicitly with the standard -a, -s or -l options, or may  be  chosen
              implicitly.   If  none  of  the  three  options  is  given  the  rules  are:  first,  if the array
              $tcp_spam_list is set, this is taken as the list of sessions, otherwise all  sessions  are  taken.
              Second, any sessions given in the array $tcp_no_spam_list are removed from the list of sessions.

              Normally,  any  sessions  added  by  the  `-a' flag or when all sessions are chosen implicitly are
              spammed in alphabetic order; sessions given by the $tcp_spam_list array or on the command line are
              spammed in the order given.  The -r flag reverses the order however it was arrived it.

              The -v flag specifies that a $TCP_PROMPT will be output before each session.  This is output after
              any modification to TCP_SESS by the user-defined tcp_on_spam function described below.  (Obviously
              that function is able to generate its own output.)

              If the option -e is present, the line given as `cmd [ arg ... ]' is executed using eval, otherwise
              it is executed without any further processing.

       tcp_talk
              This is a fairly simple-minded attempt to force input to the line editor to  go  straight  to  the
              default TCP_SESS.

              An  escape  string,  $TCP_TALK_ESCAPE,  default  `:',  is  used  to  allow  access to normal shell
              operation.  If it is on its own at the start of the line, or followed only by whitespace, the line
              editor  returns  to  normal  operation.   Otherwise,  the  string and any following whitespace are
              skipped and the remainder of the line executed as shell input  without  any  change  of  the  line
              editor's operating mode.

              The current implementation is somewhat deficient in terms of use of the command history.  For this
              reason, many users will prefer to use some form of alternative approach for sending data easily to
              the  current  session.   One  simple  approach is to alias some special character (such as `%') to
              `tcp_command --'.

       tcp_wait
              The sole argument is an integer or floating point number which gives the seconds  to  delay.   The
              shell  will  do  nothing  for  that  period  except  wait for input on all TCP sessions by calling
              tcp_read -a.  This is similar to the interactive behaviour at the command prompt when zle handlers
              are installed.

   `One-shot' file transfer
       tcp_point port
       tcp_shoot host port
              This pair of functions provide a simple way to transfer a file between two hosts within the shell.
              Note, however, that bulk data transfer is currently done using  cat.   tcp_point  reads  any  data
              arriving at port and sends it to standard output; tcp_shoot connects to port on host and sends its
              standard input.  Any unused port may be used; the standard mechanism for  picking  a  port  is  to
              think of a random four-digit number above 1024 until one works.

              To transfer a file from host woodcock to host springes, on springes:

                     tcp_point 8091 >output_file

              and on woodcock:

                     tcp_shoot springes 8091 <input_file

              As  these two functions do not require tcp_open to set up a TCP connection first, they may need to
              be autoloaded separately.

TCP USER-DEFINED FUNCTIONS

       Certain functions, if defined by the user, will be called by the function  system  in  certain  contexts.
       This  facility  depends  on the module zsh/parameter, which is usually available in interactive shells as
       the completion system depends on it.  None  of  the  functions  need  be  defined;  they  simply  provide
       convenient hooks when necessary.

       Typically,  these  are  called  after the requested action has been taken, so that the various parameters
       will reflect the new state.

       tcp_on_alias alias fd
              When an alias is defined, this function will be called with two arguments: the name of the  alias,
              and the file descriptor of the corresponding session.

       tcp_on_awol sess fd
              If  the  function  tcp_fd_handler is handling input from the line editor and detects that the file
              descriptor is no longer reusable, by default it removes it  from  the  list  of  file  descriptors
              handled  by this method and prints a message.  If the function tcp_on_awol is defined it is called
              immediately before this point.  It may return status 100, which indicates that the normal handling
              should  still  be  performed;  any  other return status indicates that no further action should be
              taken and the tcp_fd_handler should return immediately  with  the  given  status.   Typically  the
              action of tcp_on_awol will be to close the session.

              The  variable  TCP_INVALIDATE_ZLE  will be a non-empty string if it is necessary to invalidate the
              line editor display using `zle -I' before printing output from the function.

              (`AWOL' is military jargon for `absent without leave' or some variation.  It has  no  pre-existing
              technical meaning known to the author.)

       tcp_on_close sess fd
              This  is called with the name of a session being closed and the file descriptor which corresponded
              to that session.  Both will be invalid by the time the function is called.

       tcp_on_open sess fd
              This is called after a new session has been defined with the session name and file  descriptor  as
              arguments.   If  it  returns  a  non-zero  status,  opening the session is assumed to fail and the
              session is closed again; however, tcp_open will continue to attempt to open any remaining sessions
              given on the command line.

       tcp_on_rename oldsess fd newsess
              This  is  called  after a session has been renamed with the three arguments old session name, file
              descriptor, new session name.

       tcp_on_spam sess command ...
              This is called once for each session spammed, just before a command is executed for a  session  by
              tcp_spam.   The  arguments  are  the session name followed by the command list to be executed.  If
              tcp_spam was called with the option -t, the first command will be tcp_send.

              This function is called after $TCP_SESS is set to reflect the session to be  spammed,  but  before
              any use of it is made.  Hence it is possible to alter the value of $TCP_SESS within this function.
              For example, the session arguments to tcp_spam could include extra information to be stripped  off
              and processed in tcp_on_spam.

              If  the  function  sets  the  parameter  $REPLY  to  `done',  the command line is not executed; in
              addition, no prompt is printed for the -v option to tcp_spam.

       tcp_on_unalias alias fd
              This is called with the name of an alias and the corresponding session's file descriptor after  an
              alias has been deleted.

TCP UTILITY FUNCTIONS

       The  following  functions  are  used by the TCP function system but will rarely if ever need to be called
       directly.

       tcp_fd_handler
              This is the function installed by tcp_open for handling input from within the line editor, if that
              is required.  It is in the format documented for the builtin `zle -F' in zshzle(1) .

              While  active,  the  function  sets the parameter TCP_HANDLER_ACTIVE to 1.  This allows shell code
              called internally (for example, by setting tcp_on_read) to tell if is being called when the  shell
              is otherwise idle at the editor prompt.

       tcp_output [ -q ] -P prompt -F fd -S sess
              This  function  is  used  for  both  logging  and  handling output to standard output, from within
              tcp_read and (if $TCP_OUTPUT is set) tcp_send.

              The prompt to use is specified by -P; the default is the empty string.  It can contain:
              %c     Expands to 1 if the session is  the  current  session,  otherwise  0.   Used  with  ternary
                     expressions such as `%(c.-.+)' to output `+' for the current session and `-' otherwise.

              %f     Replaced by the session's file descriptor.

              %s     Replaced by the session name.

              %%     Replaced by a single `%'.

              The option -q suppresses output to standard output, but not to any log files which are configured.

              The  -S  and  -F  options  are  used  to pass in the session name and file descriptor for possible
              replacement in the prompt.

TCP USER PARAMETERS

       Parameters follow the usual convention that uppercase is used for scalars and integers,  while  lowercase
       is  used  for  normal  and  associative array.  It is always safe for user code to read these parameters.
       Some parameters may also be set; these are noted explicitly.  Others are included in this group  as  they
       are  set  by the function system for the user's benefit, i.e. setting them is typically not useful but is
       benign.

       It is often also  useful  to  make  settable  parameters  local  to  a  function.   For  example,  `local
       TCP_SILENT=1'  specifies  that data read during the function call will not be printed to standard output,
       regardless of the setting outside the function.  Likewise, `local TCP_SESS=sess' sets a session  for  the
       duration  of  a  function,  and `local TCP_PROMPT=' specifies that no prompt is used for input during the
       function.

       tcp_expect_lines
              Array.  The set of lines read during the last call to tcp_expect, including the last ($TCP_LINE).

       tcp_filter
              Array. May be set directly.  A set of extended globbing patterns which, if matched in  tcp_output,
              will  cause  the  line  not  to  be printed to standard output.  The patterns should be defined as
              described for the arguments to tcp_expect.  Output of line to log files is not affected.

       TCP_HANDLER_ACTIVE
              Scalar.  Set to 1 within tcp_fd_handler to indicate to functions called recursively that they have
              been called during an editor session.  Otherwise unset.

       TCP_LINE
              The last line read by tcp_read, and hence also tcp_expect.

       TCP_LINE_FD
              The  file  descriptor  from  which  $TCP_LINE  was read.  ${tcp_by_fd[$TCP_LINE_FD]} will give the
              corresponding session name.

       tcp_lines
              Array. The set of lines read during the last call to tcp_read, including the last ($TCP_LINE).

       TCP_LOG
              May be set directly, although it is also controlled by tcp_log.  The  name  of  a  file  to  which
              output  from  all sessions will be sent.  The output is proceeded by the usual $TCP_PROMPT.  If it
              is not an absolute path name, it will follow the user's current directory.

       TCP_LOG_SESS
              May be set directly, although it is also controlled by tcp_log.  The prefix for a set of files  to
              which output from each session separately will be sent; the full filename is ${TCP_LOG_SESS}.sess.
              Output to each file is raw; no prompt is added.  If it is not  an  absolute  path  name,  it  will
              follow the user's current directory.

       tcp_no_spam_list
              Array.  May be set directly.  See tcp_spam for how this is used.

       TCP_OUTPUT
              May  be  set  directly.   If  a  non-empty  string, any data sent to a session by tcp_send will be
              logged.  This parameter gives the prompt to be used in a file specified by $TCP_LOG but not  in  a
              file  generated  from  $TCP_LOG_SESS.  The prompt string has the same format as TCP_PROMPT and the
              same rules for its use apply.

       TCP_PROMPT
              May be set directly.  Used as the prefix for data read by tcp_read which is  printed  to  standard
              output  or  to  the  log  file given by $TCP_LOG, if any.  Any `%s', `%f' or `%%' occurring in the
              string will be replaced by the name of the session, the session's underlying file descriptor, or a
              single  `%',  respectively.   The  expression  `%c'  expands to 1 if the session being read is the
              current session, else 0; this is most useful in  ternary  expressions  such  as  `%(c.-.+)'  which
              outputs `+' if the session is the current one, else `-'.

              If  the  prompt  starts with %P, this is stripped and the complete result of the previous stage is
              passed through standard prompt %-style formatting before being output.

       TCP_READ_DEBUG
              May be set directly.  If this has non-zero length, tcp_read will  give  some  limited  diagnostics
              about data being read.

       TCP_SECONDS_START
              This value is created and initialised to zero by tcp_open.

              The  functions  tcp_read  and  tcp_expect  use  the shell's SECONDS parameter for their own timing
              purposes.  If that parameter is not of floating point type on entry to one of  the  functions,  it
              will   create   a  local  parameter  SECONDS  which  is  floating  point  and  set  the  parameter
              TCP_SECONDS_START to the previous value of $SECONDS.  If the parameter is already floating  point,
              it  is  used  without  a local copy being created and TCP_SECONDS_START is not set.  As the global
              value  is  zero,  the  shell  elapsed  time  is  guaranteed  to  be  the  sum  of   $SECONDS   and
              $TCP_SECONDS_START.

              This  can  be  avoided  by  setting  SECONDS  globally to a floating point value using `typeset -F
              SECONDS'; then the TCP functions will never make a local copy and never set TCP_SECONDS_START to a
              non-zero value.

       TCP_SESS
              May  be  set  directly.   The  current  session;  must refer to one of the sessions established by
              tcp_open.

       TCP_SILENT
              May be set directly, although it is also controlled by tcp_log.  If of non-zero length, data  read
              by tcp_read will not be written to standard output, though may still be written to a log file.

       tcp_spam_list
              Array.  May be set directly.  See the description of the function tcp_spam for how this is used.

       TCP_TALK_ESCAPE
              May be set directly.  See the description of the function tcp_talk for how this is used.

       TCP_TIMEOUT
              May be set directly.  Currently this is only used by the function tcp_command, see above.

TCP USER-DEFINED PARAMETERS

       The  following  parameters  are  not  set by the function system, but have a special effect if set by the
       user.

       tcp_on_read
              This should be an associative array; if it is not, the behaviour is undefined.  Each  key  is  the
              name  of  a shell function or other command, and the corresponding value is a shell pattern (using
              EXTENDED_GLOB).  Every line read from a TCP session directly or indirectly using  tcp_read  (which
              includes  lines  read  by  tcp_expect)  is compared against the pattern.  If the line matches, the
              command given in the key is called with two arguments: the name of the session from which the line
              was read, and the line itself.

              If any function called to handle a line returns a non-zero status, the line is not output.  Thus a
              tcp_on_read handler containing only the instruction `return 1' can be used to suppress  output  of
              particular  lines (see, however, tcp_filter above).  However, the line is still stored in TCP_LINE
              and tcp_lines; this occurs after all tcp_on_read processing.

TCP UTILITY PARAMETERS

       These parameters are controlled by the function system; they may be read directly, but should not usually
       be set by user code.

       tcp_aliases
              Associative  array.  The keys are the names of sessions established with tcp_open; each value is a
              space-separated list of aliases which refer to that session.

       tcp_by_fd
              Associative array.  The keys are session file descriptors; each value is the name of that session.

       tcp_by_name
              Associative array.  The keys are the  names  of  sessions;  each  value  is  the  file  descriptor
              associated with that session.

TCP EXAMPLES

       Here is a trivial example using a remote calculator.

       To  create  a  calculator  server  on  port  7337  (see  the dc manual page for quite how infuriating the
       underlying command is):

              tcp_proxy 7337 dc

       To connect to this from the same host with a session also named `dc':

              tcp_open localhost 7337 dc

       To send a command to the remote session and wait a short while for output (assuming  dc  is  the  current
       session):

              tcp_command 2 4 + p

       To close the session:

              tcp_close

       The  tcp_proxy  needs  to be killed to be stopped.  Note this will not usually kill any connections which
       have already been accepted, and also that the port is not immediately available for reuse.

       The following chunk of code puts a list of sessions into  an  xterm  header,  with  the  current  session
       followed by a star.

              print -n "\033]2;TCP:" ${(k)tcp_by_name:/$TCP_SESS/$TCP_SESS\*} "\a"

TCP BUGS

       The  function tcp_read uses the shell's normal read builtin.  As this reads a complete line at once, data
       arriving without a terminating newline can cause the function to block indefinitely.

       Though the function suite works well for interactive use and for data  arriving  in  small  amounts,  the
       performance when large amounts of data are being exchanged is likely to be extremely poor.