Bug#572376: linux-base: Please use UUID for swap, not LABEL
On Thu, Mar 04, 2010 at 01:01:02AM +0000, Ben Hutchings wrote:
> On Wed, 2010-03-03 at 11:41 -0800, Josh Triplett wrote:
> > Package: linux-base
> > Version: 2.6.33-1~experimental.2
> > Severity: normal
> >
> > The conversion script decided to use LABEL=myhostname-swap for my swap
> > partition. Swap partitions support UUIDs too; please consider using
> > those instead.
>
> I think labels are far more user-friendly since they are actually
> memorable. Therefore, for devices that have both a label and a UUID,
> the label will be used, and for devices that have neither, a label will
> be generated. You are free to reject the plan and edit files yourself.
> Unless you can give a very good reason why UUIDs are preferable, I will
> not implement this.
I can give several good reasons.
UUIDs generally can't collide; labels can. Bad Things could happen if
two different partitions end up with the same label.
Consider what would happen if you had a Linux install on a USB flash
drive. (I have several specialized Debian systems that run off USB
drives.) What happens if you plug a system with a partition labeled
"/" into a system which already has a partition labeled "/"?
UUIDs generally won't appear anywhere where "user-friendly" matters.
Users shouldn't fiddle with /etc/fstab or similar unless they have a
clue. Graphical tools will use a label if available, even if the actual
mount call doesn't.
Furthermore, filesystems won't necessarily already have labels, while
all filesystems *should* have UUIDs.
A few references I found:
http://www.mail-archive.com/debian-user@lists.debian.org/msg478822.html
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=364441
Does all of this provide sufficient reason, or should I provide more?
:)
- Josh Triplett
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