The test:

   test tools/launcher/MultipleJRE.sh

was modified recently for the 1.4.2_17 test run.

jqa 5.10 # sccs diffs -r1.4 /net/jdk.sfbay/export/jpse04/Regression/1.4.2/test/tools/launcher/MultipleJRE.sh

------- MultipleJRE.sh -------
1,2c1,2
< # @test @(#)MultipleJRE.sh 1.4
< # @bug 4811102 4953711 4955505 4956301 4991229 4998210 5018605 5036211
---
> # @test @(#)MultipleJRE.sh 1.5 07/09/11
> # @bug 4811102 4953711 4955505 4956301 4991229 4998210 5018605 5036211 6431847
225a226,239
> TestHomePath() {
> i=0
> TESTHOME=/
> while [ $i -lt 40 ] ; do
> HOME=$TESTHOME $JAVA -version:1.4+ -version > /dev/null 2>&1
> if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
> echo "Error: when HOME=%s len=%s\n" $HOME `echo $HOME | wc -c`
> exit 1
> fi
> TESTHOME=${TESTHOME}Z
> i=`expr $i + 1`
> done
> }
>
319a334
> # Test to make sure long HOME variables dont cause buffer overruns
320a336,338
> TestHomePath
>
> #
jqa 5.10 #


The line:
 HOME=$TESTHOME $JAVA -version:1.4+ -version > /dev/null 2>&1
should probably be two lines:
 HOME=$TESTHOME
 $JAVA -version:1.4+ -version > /dev/null 2>&1

The error message:

  echo "Error: when HOME=%s len=%s\n" $HOME `echo $HOME | wc -c`

provides no clear information.
HOME=%s should be HOME=$HOME
len=%s should be len=$i

Also, this new change will result in more unrelated test failures on Linix.
On RHEL 4 for example:

balboa # uname -a
Linux balboa 2.6.9-55.EL #1 Fri Apr 20 16:35:59 EDT 2007 i686 athlon i386 GNU/Linux
balboa # cat /etc/redhat-release
Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS release 4 (Nahant Update 5)
balboa #
balboa # /export/home/JDK/fcs/142u15b02-update_installed_2007_09_21_00-41-19/j2sdk1.4.2_15/bin/java -version:1.4+ -version
Unable to locate JRE meeting specification "1.4+"
balboa #
balboa # echo $?
1
balboa #

So the test falls over as there is no other Sun java currently installed on this
server and not because of a problem with length of $HOME
There is no guarantee that there is a well known java available to satisfy $JAVA -version:1.4+ -version
on any given test Linux server.

Note: Windows exits before the new function is run so is not a problem.