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Re: It's Huntin' Season



>>"Nicolas" == Nicolas Boullis <Boullis.Nicolas@libertysurf.fr> writes:

 Nicolas> On Fri, Feb 01, 2002 at 11:53:38PM -0600, Manoj Srivastava wrote:
 >> FUD. Asking a question to recover from a broken package does
 >> not mean an unsmooth upgrade. Indeed, merely treating the transition
 >> from a package theat over writes user changes to one that preserves
 >> them, while noticing that the users current file is different from
 >> the one shipped, and asking them what to do about it, is a _smoooth_
 >> transition. 

 Nicolas> Of course, if the user has changed the config file, we
 Nicolas> should ask the question. But, if he/she did not change it, I
 Nicolas> think it is smoother not to ask. Do you really disagree?

	You realize that you are asking more of this script that you
 ask of dpkg? What happens if you try making a non-conffile into a
 conffile? You think dpkg is going to check md5sums of old files
 before asking? You think dpkg even preserves user changes?

	However, I have put in checking historical md5sums if the
 maintainer chooses to provide any. From the new man page:
======================================================================
SYNOPSIS
       updateConfFile [options] <New file> <Destination>

DESCRIPTION
       This script attempts to provide conffile like handling for
       files  installed  under /etc not shipped in a Debian pack-
       age, but handled by the postinst instead.   Debian  policy
       states that files under /etc which are configuration files
       must preserve user changes, and this applies to files han-
       dled  by maintainer scripts as well. Using updateConfFile,
       one may ship a bunch of default cofiguration  files  some-
       where  in  /usr  ( /I/usr/share/<pkg> is a good location),
       and maintain files in /etc, presrving user changes and  in
       general  offering the same facilities while upgrading that
       dpkg normally provides for "conffiles"

       Additionally, this script provides facilities for  transi-
       tioning  a  file  that had not been provided conffile like
       protection to come under this schema, and attempts to min-
       imize questions asked at install time. Indeed, the transi-
       tioning facility is better than the one  offered  by  dpkg
       while transitioning a file from a non-conffile to conffile
       status.

======================================================================

	Read the man page or the source on the details on how this works.

        In accordance to "release often, release early", attached are
 the file and the manual page.  The script has not yet been tested;
 and this incarnation may not work at all.

	manoj

Attachment: updateConfFile
Description: updateConfFile

Attachment: updateConfFile.1
Description: manual page

-- 
 Lake Erie died for your sins.
Manoj Srivastava   <srivasta@debian.org>  <http://www.debian.org/%7Esrivasta/>
1024R/C7261095 print CB D9 F4 12 68 07 E4 05  CC 2D 27 12 1D F5 E8 6E
1024D/BF24424C print 4966 F272 D093 B493 410B  924B 21BA DABB BF24 424C

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