Re: Cross posting per request
Bruce,
> >> If /usr/local is really for local configuration then it >shouldn't be in
> >> /usr.
>
> >Yes. It should probably be a symlink to somewhere else out >of the box
> >on a freshly-installed Debian system. The installation >scripts can do
> >that. Please submit a bug report on the "boot-floppies" >package about
> >this so I won't forget it. The info on how to use the bug >system is
> >on our web page www.debian.org .
If it is suppose to be empty...Then why should it be at all?
> >> /local/etc would be configuration files typically found >/etc.
>
> >/etc is by definition local - however I have done it exactly >as you
> describe on my system (before upgrading with dpkg >became so easy) in
> order to tell what I had changed. I've >actually thought about using a
> source control system
> >(like RCS) on /etc . "dpkg" doesn't currently know how to >check
> control files in and out of RCS - is this a good idea? >Currently, it
> will leave a "filename.dpkg-new" file around >for you to hand-edit if
> you decline to over-write a control >file.
The difference between local configuration and global configuration is
vague. A good way to determine this would be: If I NFS mount /etc
read-only from a server on a client (of course you can't do this). What
would I find necessary to change to make the client work besides account
based stuff?
Off the top of my head...here are some pretty big candidates:
sendmail.cf
yp.conf
syslog.conf
securetty
printcap
Questionable:
hosts.*
shells
resolv.conf
If one wanted to give the installer a choice (wonderful!) then shell
script could be lifted out of the kernel configuration utility. The type
of choice code that could be used has already been written.
> There should also be a dpkg flag to ask it if you have altered a control
> file from the version in the package. Since it keeps the md5 checksum
> around, that is possible.
> >> The wisdom of put the contents of /etc/X11/xdm and >/etc/X11/xinit
> >> where they are needs to be re-evaluated.
> >> Most of the files in these directories are shell scripts not
> >> configuration files.
>
> >/etc/X11/xinit only has one script on my system, and that's >one I can
> see reasons to edit. About 3 files in "xdm" could >be elsewhere, but
> they are small. You might want do discuss >this with the "xdm"
> maintainer.
The fact you find need to edit this script suggest problems (to be
distinuish from /etc/X11/xdm/xdm-config which is a genuine configuration
file). One should be able to get away with only editing these scripts
once or twice in a blue moon. The rests of this work should be done in
~/.Xsession as a regular user.
It should be the perogative of any Unix system to keep users out of root
as much as possible.
Reply to: