What's new?

Please see Shell 1.0 - What's new for more information.

Description

This extension provides support for applications written using UNIX shell languages.

In what situation should you install this extension?

If your application contains source code written using UNIX shells and you want to view these object types and their links with other objects, then you should install this extension.

Supported UNIX shells

This version of the extension provides partial support for:

UNIX shell	Supported
Korn shell (ksh)
Bourne shell (sh)
C shell (csh)

Function Point, Quality and Sizing support

This extension provides the following support:

• Function Points (transactions): a green tick indicates that OMG Function Point counting and Transaction Risk Index are supported
• Quality and Sizing: a green tick indicates that CAST can measure size and that a minimum set of Quality Rules exist

Function Points (transactions)
Quality and Sizing

CAST AIP compatibility

This extension is compatible with:

CAST AIP release	Extension release	Supported
8.3.x	≥ 1.0.1
8.2.x	≥ 1.0.1
8.1.x	≥ 1.0.1
8.0.x	≥ 1.0.1

Supported DBMS servers

This extension is compatible with the following DBMS servers:

DBMS	Supported
CSS
Oracle
Microsoft SQL Server

Prerequisites

An installation of any compatible release of CAST AIP (see table above)

The extension requires a Java JRE to be installed on the machine: only Java JRE 1.7 is currently supported. The extension requires that a JAVA_HOME system environment variable is also present on the machine, pointing to the Java JRE installation folder: Note that these prerequisites are only applicable if you are using version ≥ 1.0.5 of the Shell extension AND CAST AIP ≤ 8.2.0 Therefore, if you are using CAST AIP ≥ 8.2.1, you don't need to set a JAVA_HOME. The Shell extension will use the JRE provided with CAST AIP and located in the installation folder.

Download and installation instructions

Please see:

• Download an extension
• Install an extension

CAST Transaction Configuration Center (TCC) configuration

A set of Shell Transaction Entry/End Points for use in the CAST Transaction Configuration Center is delivered in the extension via a .TCCSetup file. Therefore If you are using Shell ≥ 1.0.7:

• with CAST AIP ≥ 8.3.x, there is nothing for you to do: these entry / end points will be automatically imported during the extension installation and will be available in the CAST Transaction Configuration Center under "Entry Points > Free Definition".
• with CAST AIP ≤ 8.2.x, you can manually import the file %PROGRAMDATA%\CAST\CAST\Extensions\com.castsoftware.shell.<version>\Configuration\TCC\<name>.TCCSetup to obtain your entry/end points in the "Free Definition" section (see instructions below).

Manual import action for CAST AIP ≤ 8.2.x

Prepare and deliver the source code

Once the extension is downloaded and installed, you can now package your source code and run an analysis. The process of preparing and delivering your source code is described below:

Source code preparation

Only files with following extensions will be analyzed:

• *.ksh
• *.sh
• *.ssh
• *.csh
• *.bsh
• *.shell

Source code preprocessing 

Shell source code needs to be preprocessed so that CAST can understand it and analyze it correctly. In previous releases of the extension, this preprocessing was a manual action that needed to be completed before the code was analyzed. However, in this release and all future releases, the code preprocessing is actioned automatically when an analysis is launched or a snapshot is generated (the code is preprocessed before the analysis starts). In other words you only need to package, deliver and launch an analysis/generate a snapshot for the preprocessing to be completed.

Deliver the source code

Using the CAST Delivery Manager Tool:

• create a new Version
• create a new Package for your source code using the Files on your file system option and choose the location of your source code:

Click to enlarge

• Run the Package action.
• Before delivering the source code, check the packaging results.

Analysis configuration and execution

Refer to Analysis Configuration and Execution for more information.

Logging mechanism

Analysis log files

Analysis logs are stored in the default locations used by the CAST Management Studio.

Shell Preprocessor

Shell Preprocessor log files (the preprocessor is launched automatically during an analysis) are stored in the following locations:

What results can you expect?

Objects

Links

Structural Rules

The following structural rules are provided:

You can also find a global list here:

https://technologies.castsoftware.com/rules?sec=t_1016000&ref=||

Limitations/known issues

Deployment folder path

The deployment folder path should contain only ASCII characters (due to the way the command line text is passed in a Windows operating system). Names of folders and files inside the deployment folder can contain non-ASCII characters.

Links to database objects

When your Shell scripts contain references to database objects in the server side element of an application and these references use fully qualified names for the database object, no links will be created between Shell and the database objects when you have used the SQL Analyzer extension to analyze the SQL if SQL Analyzer does not create database objects with same name. If you have used the SQL analyzers embedded in CAST AIP to analyze the SQL, then links will be created as normal. This is a known issue: https://jira.castsoftware.com/browse/SCRAIP-34208.

Metrics Assistant (embedded in CAST AIP) limitations

Searches not limited only to embedded SQL

The MA (Metric Assistant) which is used for metric search cannot search only in embedded SQL. Some Shell rules may be affected by this limitation and may produce false violations.

Cannot calculate metric excluding comments

The MA (Metric Assistant) which is used for metric search cannot search correctly while excluding comments especially if comments start or end adjacent to the keyword. If such a condition exists, random false violations may occur.

Shell embedded strings

Shell code allows string to be embedded in strings as shown in the code sample below. Currently, the Shell extension (and other Universal Analyzer type extensions) will consider this as one continuous string. Because we do not have any way to identify perfect end string patterns in this case, we cannot find the end of string and therefore the file will be skipped during the analysis.

echo '              
Outer string ;              
cat '$file03'             
Another outer string              
'$id'             
' | $command

KSH: guessing of ending single\double quote

KSH supports the guessing of ending single/double quotes. The Shell extension supports this when the string is in single line, however, it is not supported when the string is in a multiple line, for example:

export OUTPUT=`basename $SOME_VARIABLE | $AWK 'FS="-" {
  i=3
  tmpMachineName= "mach_"$2
  while ( i <= NF){
    tmpMachineName=tmpMachineName"-"$i;
    i++;
  }
  print(tmpMachineName);
}`

Multi-line document markers

When a document marker is in a multi-line string, the Shell extension will not be able detect that it is in a string, for example:

some_multiline_string="a;b;c;d;\
e;f;g;h;\
x;y;z<<;strong text"

In both of these cases, the file will be skipped and logs will contain the warning: "File Skipped".

Shell to Java links

The extension does not currently support links between Shell programs and Java objects (for example methods). No links will be created between these technologies.