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Files above about 5kb fail to load in tramp mode, with the error:

tramp-file-name-handler: Invalid base64 data

Loading smaller files works fine:

Tramp: Inserting ‘/scp:server:small_file’...
Tramp: Encoding remote file ‘/scp:server:small_file’ with ‘base64 <%s’...done
Tramp: Decoding local file ‘/tmp/tramp.13491uQF.py’ with ‘base64-decode-region’...done
Tramp: Inserting ‘/scp:server:small_file’...done

But with larger files I get this:

Tramp: Inserting ‘/scp:server:larger_file’...
Tramp: Encoding remote file ‘/scp:server:larger_file’ with ‘(gzip <%s | base64)’...done
Tramp: Decoding local file ‘/tmp/tramp.13491iyp.py’ with ‘(lambda (beg end) (base64-decode-region beg end) (let ((coding-system-for-write (quote binary)) (coding-system-for-read (quote binary)) (default-directory (tramp-compat-temporary-file-directory))) (apply (quote tramp-call-process-region) [scp nil kronos larger_file nil] (point-min) (point-max) (car (split-string gzip -d)) t t nil (cdr (split-string gzip -d)))))’...failed
Tramp: Inserting ‘/scp:server:larger_file’...failed
tramp-file-name-handler: Invalid base64 data

I've checked the gzip command on the remote server, it seems to be working. Can I get tramp to keep the intermediate files around so I can inspect them? How else can I debug this?

1 Answer 1

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You can tell Tramp to print traces. Apply (setq tramp-verbose 6) prior your test. There will be a Tramp debug buffer, which you shall show, best in the tramp-devel@gnu.org mailing list.

If you inspect the debug buffer yourself, follow all trace lines marked with (6). These lines show sent commands, and their output.

4
  • Thanks for responding, Michael! I used that setting to find the transferred string, and I could decode it correctly using gzip and base64 on my local computer. It now appears that this problem only occurs when I open the file using neotree, not with helm. I will ask on tramp-devel.
    – mskel
    Apr 11, 2017 at 0:04
  • @mskel: do you have any updates on this? At the very least, if a fix was not yet done (I'm having the same problem with neotree right now), can you share how you mitigated the problem?
    – MB.
    Nov 30, 2019 at 1:54
  • 1
    @MB. : I switched to ranger for filesystem navigation for a while but now I run my editor on the remote host
    – mskel
    Nov 30, 2019 at 6:02
  • Thanks, @mskel: I'm resorting to do the same thing as well. Given how long this bug has been outstanding, I will try and figure out what it is when I get a few spare cycles...
    – MB.
    Nov 30, 2019 at 8:25

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