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<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><title>secondary damage</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="../../jargon.css" type="text/css"/><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets V1.61.0"/><link rel="home" href="../index.html" title="The Jargon File"/><link rel="up" href="../S.html" title="S"/><link rel="previous" href="second-system-effect.html" title="second-system effect"/><link rel="next" href="security-through-obscurity.html" title="security through obscurity"/></head><body><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">secondary damage</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="second-system-effect.html">Prev</a> </td><th width="60%" align="center">S</th><td width="20%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="security-through-obscurity.html">Next</a></td></tr></table><hr/></div><dt><a id="secondary-damage"/><dt xmlns="" id="secondary-damage"><b>secondary damage</b>: <span xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="grammar">n.</span></dt></dt><dd><p> When a fatal error occurs (esp. a <a href="segfault.html"><i class="glossterm">segfault</i></a>)
the immediate cause may be that a pointer has been trashed due to a
previous <a href="../F/fandango-on-core.html"><i class="glossterm">fandango on core</i></a>. However, this fandango
may have been due to an <span class="emphasis"><em>earlier</em></span> fandango, so no amount
of analysis will reveal (directly) how the damage occurred. &#8220;<span class="quote">The
data structure was clobbered, but it was secondary damage.</span>&#8221; By
extension, the corruption resulting from <tt class="literal">N</tt> cascaded
fandangoes on core is &#8216;<tt class="literal">N</tt>th-level damage&#8217;.
There is at least one case on record in which 17 hours of
<a href="../G/grovel.html"><i class="glossterm">grovel</i></a>ling with <b class="command">adb</b>
actually dug up the underlying bug behind an instance of seventh-level
damage! The hacker who accomplished this near-superhuman feat was
presented with an award by his fellows.</p></dd><div class="navfooter"><hr/><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="second-system-effect.html">Prev</a> </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="u" href="../S.html">Up</a></td><td width="40%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="security-through-obscurity.html">Next</a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">second-system effect </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="../index.html">Home</a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top"> security through obscurity</td></tr></table></div></body></html>