Wrong exit status from expect script - linux

Question

I developed this expect script, TELNET_TEST.expect to test a TELNET connection on a remote machine.
This script should connect via telnet on a target machine, wait for the login prompt, send the password and then exit.
This script does work and you can see in example 1 that the script does successfully login via telnet then exit, but something very confusing is going on, (to me).
Why do I get an exit status 1? I believe I should be getting an exit of status 0...
Please let me know why I am getting an exit of status 1? Also, what would I need to change in my script in order to get the exit code I am anticipating?
My expect script:
more TELNET_TEST.expect
#!/usr/bin/expect --
set LOGIN [lindex $argv 0]
set PASSWORD [lindex $argv 1]
set IP [lindex $argv 2]
set timeout 20
spawn telnet -l $LOGIN $IP
expect -re "(Password:|word:)"
send $PASSWORD\r
expect -re "(#|>)"
send exit\r
expect {
timeout {error "incorrect password"; exit 1}
eof
}
catch wait result
set STATUS [ lindex $result 3 ]
exit $STATUS
EXAMPLE1
Running the expect script from my Linux machine I get an exit status 1 even though the telnet login is ok.
./var/TELNET_TEST.expect root pass123 198.23.234.12
.
spawn telnet -l root pass123
Trying 198.23.234.12...
Connected to 198.23.234.12.
Escape character is '^]'.
Digital UNIX (machine1001) (ttyp0)
login: root
Password:
Last login: Mon Jul 14 16:40:15 from 198.23.234.12
Digital UNIX V4.0F (Rev. 1229); Wed Nov 23 15:08:48 IST 2005
****************************************************************************
Wide Area Networking Support V3.0-2 (ECO 3) for Digital UNIX is installed.
You have new mail.
machine1001> Connection closed by foreign host.
[root#LINUX_XOR]# echo $?
1

Answer 1

I see that in the transcript of you session:
machine1001> Connection closed by foreign host.
Exit code 1 is the exit code for "Connection closed by foreign host". That is the "correct" code when the connection is closed by the "other side" (in that case, in response to your exit command).
As far as I can tell, if you want an exit code of 0, you need to enter command mode in your telnet client and send the quit command. That way, the connection is closed by the client not by the foreign host. But is this really more "normal" than the other way?
From the sources of GNU telnet (inetutils-1.9), in the file commands.c:
int
tn (int argc, char *argv[])
{
....
.... many many lines of code here
....
close (net);
ExitString ("Connection closed by foreign host.\n", 1);
return 0;
}
and (utilities.c):
void
ExitString (char *string, int returnCode)
{
SetForExit ();
fwrite (string, 1, strlen (string), stderr);
exit (returnCode);
}