Use of /opt [was: Re: Way to switch easily]
[going out of topic: I don't mention egcs here]
Bart Schuller wrote:
>
> Indeed. If /usr/local is not to be touched by Debian, the same holds
> even more for /opt. /opt is for the local sysadmin.
>
Absolutely NO.
/usr/local is reserved for the local sysadm.
/opt is free to be (or maybe _must_ be ) used by add-on packages (e.g.
packages coming from a source different than the OS vendor) which want
to have a _space_ not organized depending on the OS in which they are
installed (think of commercial packages that use a proprietary
installation scheme that works on unix, windows, vms, ...).
(but there could be also other reasons to put a package there)
What is left to the local sysadm (but not reserved to him) is the
possibility to put wrappers and/or symlinks pointing from some well
known locations (/etc/opt, /var/opt, /opt/bin, /opt/man, /opt/lib, ...)
to files which are located inside the package's own _space_ (usually
with the purpose to not proliferate the users' paths, or to let utility
find data in known places).
Therefore, if Debian wants to package a program not organized in the
unix way, it can put it under /opt/xxx and use the debian's installation
system to put all the symlinks and wrappers that are needed.
I think that this would be a good way to build a package like netscape's
installer, or other packages that we (debian) doesn't want to put under
/usr (because they are too big, or too ugly, or ... why not, because
they are non-free ...)
This, obviously, waiting for Daniel Quinlan to release FHS 2
[Dan, please!]
heartily,
Fabrizio
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