Execute command, show realtime output and get exit code

[afunix]

Hello!

I need to execute command, display it's output and get exit code.
open(X, '-|', 'cmd') is a good one, but it returns pid in this form and $? is zero, so I can't get a return code.
`cmd` can do everything, but it returns output after command was executed, and I need to display output and put it into log file, just like tee.
There is one more way, the most complicated:

my $pid = open(PIPE, '-|');
die "open(): $?" unless (defined $pid);
if ($pid) {
    while (<PIPE>) { print $_; }
    close(PIPE);
} else {
    die "system(): $!" unless (system($cmd));
    die "failed to execute: $!" if ($? == -1);
    die "signal: ". ($? & 127) if ($? & 127);
    die "exit code: ". ($? >> 8) if ($? >> 8);
}

There is just one problem. I need to deliver $? into parent process...

So, dear monks, is there any way to receive command output in a realtime and get it's exit code in some easy way?

[Eliya]

...and $? is zero, so I can't get a return code.

close waits for the subprocess and sets $?:

my $pid = open X, '-|', 'echo foo; exit 42' or die $!;
my $out = <X>;
my $ok = close X;

print  STDERR "out=$out";
printf STDERR "\$?=%s\n", $? >> 8 unless $ok;

__END__
out=foo
$?=42

See close for details.

[afunix]

Thanks! You really prevented me from inventing a wheel :)