(not only) [custom]: (pre)configuring packages
As noted on the CDD wiki[1] many times there is a need to change or
manage configurations from a wide variety of apps from within
also a wide range of different config tools. ;-)
To ease and increase maintainability of configuring packages from
shell scipts, own apps, GUIs and so forth the config4gnu project[2]
started on writing a modular config manipulation and representation
framework to share functionality a while ago.
Config4gnu (or CFG for short) has several systax parsers.
Specifics about particular packages (semantics) however are maintained
in external meta-config-definition files (xml).
For example when a new package with its meta-config file gets installed
its configuration options and possible values are accessible in
GUI-frontends (including forms and wizards) as well as in command line
tools or with the bindings in your favorite language instantly.
CFG is not intended to replace debconf (CFG does not save any state),
however it may makes sense to let debconf use CFG to make changes to
config files in the future. The functionallity is shared and
collaboratively maintained (meta-config definitions even within their
own packages). Accesses though CFG are done based on single
options, respect comments and formatting and can be validated.
CFG has evolved into a functional state, and would need some people
to team up for first deployments. Custom Debian Distributions seem
to all have some kind of home-brew scipts and tools for configuration
that could benefit from CFG, we think.
We would like to welcome you to check out CFG cocept and code.
Best Regards,
-Peter
[1] http://wiki.debian.net/index.cgi?CustomDebian
[2] Links to relevant CFG info:
Homepage:
http://config4gnu.sourceforge.net (little out of date)
New FAQ:
http://linuxwiki.de/Config4Gnu/EnglishFAQ
Backup mail/news archive for recent messages:
http://news.gmane.org/gmane.comp.sysutils.cfg.devel
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