Bug#761387: debian-installer: Please allow selection of alternate init system at install time.

[Steven Chamberlain <steven@pyro.eu.org>]

Hi.

On 13/09/14 14:42, Matt Miller wrote:
> Is it possible to add either a prompt for init system selection in the expert mode install (similar to the kernel choice) or a tasksel option that installs an alternate init?

I think many people would like this, including myself.  Other people
don't want to be bothered with this, which I can understand.  (Yet other
people are violently opposed to it and I've seen them be rude and
derisive to anyone asking for this or doing actual work on it).

It is probably a matter of whether someone can do the necessary work,
and making it non-intrusive.  I'll do whatever I can, after more urgent
matters for jessie are taken care of.  See:
https://lists.debian.org/debian-devel/2014/08/msg00977.html

To begin with I think there ought to be a canonical (little "c")
metapackage for a particular alternative init system, keeping maximum
compatibility with anything expecting systemd, e.g.
  * altinit-sysv could install sysvinit-core, systemd-shim, etc. and
perhaps have Conflicts: or Breaks: on some things known to not work.

There are still things to think about such as making sure a package
upgrade doesn't replace the init system later.

Something like this could be installed easily via preseed late_command,
or if we're really lucky, from an appropriate dialog in d-i.  Spinning
off unofficial install media could be a last resort.

Regards,
-- 
Steven Chamberlain
steven@pyro.eu.org