[Date Prev][Date Next] [Thread Prev][Thread Next] [Date Index] [Thread Index]

Re: Proposal: /etc /usr/etc /usr/local/etc



Vadim Vygonets writes:
 > On Tue, 1 Jul 1997, Yann Dirson wrote:
 > 
 > > Then I guess that having some sort of "search path" for config files,
 > > that is looking first if /etc contains a conffile, and only if not,
 > > taking the one installed in /usr/etc. This could even be made to use
 > > conffiles for groups (sub-sites) of computers, by using
 > > /etc:/nfs/mygroup/etc:/usr/etc as a search path.
 > 
 > Cool.  I agree it's cool.  It will take more work than my simple
 > standard solution, but it's nice.
 > 
 > > You probably spotted the problem: this would probably require to
 > > change individual programs to conform to this, and it would be quite
 > > difficult to have all programs work like that. We could probably speed
 > > up the conversion process by providing a library to handle that.
 > 
 > Not a shared lib, tho.  Statically linked one.  I can write it (after
 > all, this mess was my idea).

Why not a shared lib ?

 > > Another solution, probably needingless work, would be to implement
 > > some mechanism in the filesystem driver (yes, I do seem to like this
 > > kind of ideas :) to make all reference to an inexistant file under
 > > /etc be handled as a link to a file of the same name under
 > > /usr/etc. That would be some sort of "default link" associated with a
 > > directory. Such a mechanism, when properly detected by autoconf and
 > > handled by user-programs, might help other programs too (though I
 > > hardly see which ones for now :)
 > 
 > Nah.  It's too hairy for this simple thing.  I think the first
 > solution is better. 

It'd be available more quickly than if you had to hack all
packages... and at least it'd be a good exercise implementing that!
Maybe I could find some time to do that ?

 > > Any comments on this ?
 > 
 > I repeat: look at other Unices.  Their solution is as simple as it can
 > be: a config file in /usr, that's all.  But your first solution is
 > acceptable, too.

Yes, these other unices' solution seems far less general...

Regards,
-- 
Yann Dirson <dirson@univ-mlv.fr>
http://monge.univ-mlv.fr/~dirson


--
TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS MAILING LIST: e-mail the word "unsubscribe" to
debian-devel-request@lists.debian.org . 
Trouble?  e-mail to templin@bucknell.edu .


Reply to: