Re: no /etc/inittab
On Mon 14 Aug 2017 at 20:54:24 +1000, Erik Christiansen wrote:
> On 14.08.17 11:43, Pierre Frenkiel wrote:
> > hi everybody,
> > I discovered recently, after re-installing my system with the Debian 9.1 kde
> > live dvd, that the /etc/inittab is no more present, although
> > all the documentation I found still mentions it, For example, from the Debian wiki:
> >
> > The system initialization process is handled by the init daemon.
> > The ?/etc/inittab configuration tells init what to do. Especially it contains the lines :
> >
> > Nevertheless, the boot seems to work corectly without it, and without /etc/init.d/rc.
> > Does that means that the Debian wiki is out of date, or did I miss something?
>
> Yup, but it hasn't missed you. We no longer run Linux, but rather, Systemdix.
> In Debian, systemd is inexorably replacing swathes of traditional *nix
> functionality which we have over several decades learnt to use and rely
> on. With Systemdix, we not only acquire a M$-style impenetrable
> monolithic kitchen sink, but lose the interfaces with which we are
> familiar.
>
> My Debian 7.8 machine still has /etc/inittab, but the new 9.0 machine
> doesn't. AIUI, though, it is not necessary to go back to the old
> versions, as it is possible to replace systemd in stretch with a sysv package.
> In fact, the first hit for "debian stretch sysvinit" is "Debian Stretch
> - Without Systemd" Jackpot!
>
> http://without-systemd.org/wiki/index.php/Debian_Stretch
>
> Now, if that brings back ifconfig as well, I won't have to rummage about
> finding which package that might be in.
>
> It's fine to add new stuff to *nix, but the user interface for existing
> stuff has to remain, or it's not worth a biscuit. (c.f. postfix, which
> provides a sendmail-style interface for us old-timers.)
We bet you feel a lot better after getting that of your chest. In a
rather obtuse and log-winded way it seems you answered the OP's query
and acknowledged the wiki gives out-dated advice; init on a standard
system is systemd, not sysvinit.
So - what should be done about the wiki? Surely, that is the thrust of
the OP's question. Altering the wiki page is relatively straightforward.
A single user (or group of users) trying to alter the init system policy
is doomed to failure, no matter how vociferous they are.
Many complain about documentation. When control of it is put in their
hands they stand back and do nothing. Going for the "easy" targets is
more compelling.
--
Brian.
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