warning: cannot make directory CVS

[Hugh Blackburn]

Hi there,

I've been using CVS for a few years now. I just had an error I can't
recognise or fix. I tried updating CVS on both the client and server to
1.11.1p1: that didn't change things. What I wanted to do was to delete a
directory tree on the non-repository machine, and checkout a new (clean)
version of the code to start again.  When I try to do this I get:

pascal[52] cd develop
pascal[53] cvs checkout les-dyn
cvs checkout: warning: cannot make directory CVS in .: Operation not
permitted
cvs checkout: in directory les-dyn:
cvs checkout: cannot open CVS/Entries for reading: No such file or
directory
cvs server: Updating les-dyn
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/Makefile: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/drive.C: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/filter.C: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/integrate.C: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/les.h: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/lesanalysis.C: Operation not
permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/nonlinear.C: Operation not permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/sumintegrator.C: Operation not
permitted
cvs checkout: cannot write les-dyn/testsuite: Operation not permitted
pascal[54] cvs -n -t checkout les-dyn
 -> main loop with
CVSROOT=hmb@gauss.mel.dbce.csiro.au:/home/hmb/Repository
 -> Starting server: ssh gauss.mel.dbce.csiro.au -l hmb cvs server 
S-> do_module (les-dyn, Updating, , )
protocol error:  is not absolute

Yet if I get out of my development directory, I *can* do the checkout,
just fine:

pascal[58] cd ..
pascal[59] cvs checkout les-dyn
cvs server: Updating les-dyn
U les-dyn/Makefile
U les-dyn/drive.C
U les-dyn/filter.C
U les-dyn/integrate.C
U les-dyn/les.h
U les-dyn/lesanalysis.C
U les-dyn/nonlinear.C
U les-dyn/sumintegrator.C
U les-dyn/testsuite

I can also delete and re-establish other development trees in the
original directory:

pascal[60] cd develop
pascal[61] rm -rf les-smag
pascal[62] cvs checkout les-smag
cvs server: Updating les-smag
U les-smag/Makefile
U les-smag/NS.C
U les-smag/drive.C
U les-smag/eddyvis.C
U les-smag/les.h
U les-smag/lesanalysis.C
U les-smag/testsuite

It seems as though, most likely, something on the server machine is out
of whack. What? And how do I fix it?

Other info: the server machine is SGI-IRIX-6.5 the client machine is
Compaq-Alpha-Redhat-6.0. I can also checkout the source on another
client machine without problem (it is HP-i586-Linux-Redhat-7.0); this on
the other hand suggests the problem may be on the client.

        Thanks very much for your help,
        Hugh
-- 
Dr Hugh Blackburn             CSIRO  Building Construction & Engineering
                                     PO Box 56, Highett 3190, AUSTRALIA
tel:   (61+3) 9252 6330              fax: (61+3) 9252 6240
mailto:hugh.blackburn@dbce.csiro.au  http://fluids.csiro.au/~hmb/