xargs generates too long argument lists on i686

[Eric Paris]

On Mon, 2008-01-14 at 09:43 -0300, Horst H. von Brand wrote:
> For some time now, each time I try to build an RPM it fails with something
> like:
> 
>   + /usr/lib/rpm/check-rpaths /usr/lib/rpm/check-buildroot
>     xargs: /usr/lib/rpm/check-rpaths-worker: Argument list too long
>     error: Bad exit status from /var/tmp/rpm-tmp.39544 (%install)
> 
> This I have traced back to xargs(1) generating huge argument lists, which
> the called command can't handle. Doing a "make clean" in a self-built
> kernel gives the same type of grief (I tweaked the Makefile there to call
> xargs with "-L 2000" to get it to work).
> 
> I wonder how everybody else here is able to get anything done...
> 
> findutils-4.2.31-2.fc8 on rawhide, fully up to date.

well, if you aren't doing execve syscall argument logging with the audit
system feel free to up /proc/sys/kernel/audit_argv_kb.  If that fixes
your troubles wait until 2.6.25 when my patch to finish unlimiting this
stuff goes into kernel....

-Eric