How to deploy custom set of configuration files?

[Varius Various <varius.study@gmail.com>]

  Intuitive way to implement that would be to create a custom
  package containing selected configuration files, and install it as a
  last package. However according to [Debian GNU/Linux FAQ], [section
  11.7], it is not as simple. The wording of the answer to this question
  is confusing, however:

        11.7 *How does the package management system deal with
        packages that contain configuration files for other
        packages?*

        Some users wish to create, for example, a new server by
        installing a group of Debian packages and a locally
        generated package consisting of configuration files. This
        is not generally a good idea, because dpkg will not know
        about those configuration files if they are in a different
        package, and may write conflicting configurations when one
        of the initial "group" of packages is upgraded.

        Instead, create a local package that modifies the
        configuration files of the "group" of Debian packages of
        interest. Then dpkg and the rest of the package management
        system will see that the files have been modified by the
        local "sysadmin" and will not try to overwrite them when
        those packages are upgraded.

  I don’t see how scenarios from paragraphs one and two are
  different. What is the difference between “package consisting of
  configuration files” and “pacakage that modifies the configuration
  files”?

  I’m aware of chef, puppet, and other configuration managment programs,
  but I thought for simple cases it is too much overhead.


[Debian GNU/Linux FAQ] https://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/debian-faq

[section 11.7]
https://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/debian-faq/ch-customizing.en.html#s-interconffiles