flexfax: Sendfax doesn't work when in startup script

[Rob Embry <Rob.Embry@emctest.com>]

I have Hylafax working just fine on a RH Linux box as my network based fax
server.

I have a proprietary database running on an HP-UX box from which I need to
fax purchase orders (POs).  

I have solved this problem as follows:
1.  The database program prints a PO to a print queue called pofax which
parks a text copy of the PO in a directory on the Linux fax server via NFS.
2.  A fax monitor program (written in perl) on the Linux box monitors the
pofax queue directory.
3.  When a PO text file shows up, the monitor program spawns (using a
"system" call) another perl  process called faxit which reads the text PO
file, does some fancy merging with a PS-based forms mask, and calls sendfax
(using backquote function call, to capture return code) to fax the merged PS
file.

The problem:  When I start the monitor program manually from the command
line logged in as root ("/usr/bin/perl monitor_pgm &"), everything works OK.
When the monitor program is started from rc.local at system start after a
reboot, and after hfaxd starts, the sendfax command in faxit fails and
returns a blank error messages.

I have tried tweaking every permission and parameter I am aware of to no
avail.  Clearly the monitor process and its descendants are not getting
something they need when run from startup.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance,

Rob Embry
EMC Test Systems
Austin, TX