Re: declarative (config file) way idea of handling the OS by way of the old system

[Dan Ritter <dsr@randomstring.org>]

Emanuel Berg wrote: 
> Dan Ritter wrote:
> 
> >>> That's just knowing what packages you want to install.
> >> 
> >> What do you mean, what else are you supposed to know?
> >
> > Examples:
> 
> Okay, right, no here we're only concerned with the state of
> the OS in terms of packages that are installed so that they
> can be used immediately by the user, I know that all software
> can be and is by some including me configured with no end in
> sight but I see no reason to bring _that_ into _this_, since
> that is already done with config files and that's the best way
> there is to do it IMO, and now it's here as well - well, not
> really, that's what I'm asking for - but when it is for me as
> well, that'd be then end of it for me and I see no reason to
> mix it all together, plus there are other ways to automate
> bringing a bunch of files together on a disk if it comes
> to that.


So, that is the difference between package installation and
a configuration management system. As long as all you want is
package installation, you have a dozen ways to do it and you
clearly know four or five of them.

Chef, Puppet, ansible, and so forth are configuration management
systems.

-dsr-