Re: Can we have a /etc/debian in base?
ian@chiark.chu.cam.ac.uk (Ian Jackson) wrote on 03.06.96 in <m0uQb1k-0002ZzC@chiark.chu.cam.ac.uk>:
> Bruce Perens writes ("Re: Can we have a /etc/debian in base?"):
> > I would prefer that programs that test for debian use /var/lib/dpkg/status
> > . The presence of this file implies that you can use the facilities of
> > "dpkg" to determine the versions of various packages. I prefer this
> > fine-granularity method to simply storing "1.1" in /etc/debian because
> > many systems will be updated in a piecemal fashion.
> >
> > Someone please put this Q&A in a FAQ.
>
> No, please don't use anything in /var/lib/dpkg without consulting with
> me. /var/lib/dpkg/status is a piece of dpkg's internals, and
> shouldn't be messed with.
>
> How about testing for /usr/bin/dpkg ?
Umm ... _can_ any of these things be used to differentiate between a
Debian system and, say, a Red Hat system that only has dpkg installed so
it can use some Debian packages?
MfG Kai
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