Re: Version & Distribution identification
On Tue, 25 Apr 2000 gk4@us.ibm.com wrote:
> If /etc/*-release is going to become a trend, then perhaps we should
> consider placing them in a subdirectory called /etc/release/
Not sure why a subdir would be needed, since each distro has only one file
of this type currently and I can't see it growing much. If a distro
contains more than one such file (ie, /etc/turbolinux-release *and*
/etc/redhat-release) that would be IMO a bit scary.
As has been suggested, a standard file, perhaps named /etc/linux-release,
using a standard format,should be defined so that it may be used by any
app that wanted to query the system for its distro and release info.
Therefore any compliant distro would have at least /etc/linux-release (and
optionally /etc/[distro]-release for backwards compatibility).
> We should standardized the internal format of the file ie., (name colon
> value) and/or an API to the data.
Yes.
> > About the first question: what about /etc/FHS-Release? This could be part
> > of the LSB-compatibility package.
If the format is extensible this could be added on later if desired. It's
probably not useful for too many release numbers since so much release
info for specific components is already contained within the packing
system. No need to re-invent that wheel.
--
evan leibovitch <evan@starnix.com> starnix inc.
tollfree: 1-87-pro-linux brampton, ontario, canada
http://www.starnix.com professional linux services & products
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