how to cleanly get rid of exim 3 for etch?
Hi,
currently, Debian etch still contains a package of exim 3, an outdated
version of our Default MTA which is still in wide use, but has been
unsupported by upstream for years. Even its maintainer has stopped
using it in the mean time, so exim 3 users _really_ _really_ should
upgrade.
Unfortunately, there is no clear upgrade path from exim 3 to exim4.
In coordination with the exim 3 and the exim4 team, in June 2006 I
NMUed exim3 in sid with a new description that strongly discourages
using exim 3 and strongly _en_courages updating to exim4. This package
has migrated to etch in the mean time. The exim3 packages have been
displaying a similiar warning on installation and/or upgrade since
March 2005.
My communications with the release team in early 2006 have outlined
the following steps.
(1) Get exim3 with the warning description into etch
(2) Update exim3 with the warning message in sarge via s-p-u and a
point release.
(3) Get the "exim 3 is unsupported, update to exim4 manually ASAP"
message inluded in the etch release notes.
(4) Get exim 3 removed from etch and sid.
Step (1) is done, I am now ready to proceed with (2). Unfortunately,
the release team seems to have changed their mind in the mean time,
and have indicated that exim 3.36-16sarge1 would not be accepted for
the next sarge point release with the changed description.
I happen to strongly disagree with that assessment. It is a clear RC
bug to have no support at all - there is no upstream, no active
maintainer, no nothing. Uploading the changed description to sarge is
one step towards having this RC bug fixed by having exim 3 removed
from Debian. I find it very unfair towards our users and the release
team to still have exim 3 in etch, and/or to not encourage them
appropriately to upgrade to exim4.
I would like to strongly ask the release team to agree - again - to
what we agreed in early 2006, to prevent etch from releasing with exim
3 in a clean way. I am ready to NMU exim 3.36-16sarge1 to s-p-u on
short notice. About a week after exim 3.36-16sarge1 being in a sarge
point release, exim 3 can be removed from etch and sid.
Please not that this procedere might set a precedent for other,
similiar transitions, apache => apache2 probably being the most
prominent of them.
Greetings
Marc
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