Control: tags -1 - moreinfo Control: severity -1 wishlist
On Mon, 26 Feb 2024 11:08:29 +0000 ca...@allfreemail.net wrote: > Source: apt-listbugs > Followup-For: Bug #1064783 > > > The command 'apt-listbugs' is installed to /usr/bin and a symbolic link > > to it is installed to /usr/sbin . > > You are correct, and on a filesystem where those locations are the same > it causes unpacking errors. Yes, that's clear. > > > This layout is not currently supported by Debian, as far as I can tell. > > It is not yet supported on debian, but using debootstrap instead of > debian-installer makes it possible to create such a filesystem layout. > This is currently useful for testing how adding /usr/sbin to default > user $PATH would break, and how merging /usr/sbin and /usr/bin would > break. > > > Which distributions? > > Archlinux has had merged bin and sbin for a number of years. Fedora is > going in that direction soon and made a nice writeup on > https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Unify_bin_and_sbin An interesting read, although some of the considerations do not seem to apply to Debian. For instance, as far as I can see, in Debian the superuser (root) gets a different default $PATH (which includes sbin directories), with respect to regular users (who, by default, do not have sbin directories in their $PATH). Hence, I would say that the distinction between /bin and /sbin is not meaningless in Debian... > > > I am not aware of any plans in Debian to move in that direction. > > So far it has been briefly discussed in the -devel channel on IRC and > the idea has been received mostly well. There are bigger problems with > it, such as different packages having undeclared file conflicts if the > sbinmerge happenen, however it is a nice low-hanging fruit to first fix > the few packages where the one package unpacks the same file (or > symlink) to both bin and sbin. I see, but I am a bit worried of breaking scripts with hardcoded paths. > > > See the [usrmerge FAQ], which includes, in part: > > You are correct, this is not about the current usrmerge. It could be called > usrmerge2.0 or sbinmerge or some other term. OK, let's call it sbinmerge, then. > > > Could you please elaborate a bit more on why you think this feature of > > the apt-listbugs Debian package could be an issue? > > On a filesystem where bin and sbin are merged, it causes an unpacking > error during installation of the package, due to the symlink trying to > overwrite the real file, or the real file overwriting the symlink. It is > in a way a file conflict - it can be silenced by passing the right flags > to the commands, but it is better to fix it properly. Sorry, I wasn't clear: I understand why unpacking conflicting files across /sbin and /bin causes issues on a system where /sbin and /bin are the same directory. I was asking you to elaborate on why this could be an issue in Debian, which does not currently support a layout where /sbin and /bin are the same directory. And the answer (judging from the rest of your reply) is basically "because some people in Debian are considering the possibility to merge /sbin and /bin in some unspecified future, and it would be nice, if as few packages as possible hampered this possible transition". > > > Which other distributions (Debian-derivatives or otherwise) include > > apt-listbugs? > > I don't know of any. > > > I am a bit hesitant to do so (risking to break random custom scripts), > > unless there's a good reason. > > The idea of merging bin and sbin is exactly to help with random custom > scripts, because if bin and sbin are the same directory, then it doesn't > matter if only bin or only sbin is in $PATH, or if the executable is > called directly using hardcoded /usr/bin/apt-listbugs or /usr/sbin/listbugs, > because both ways will then work instead of giving "command not found" > errors. > > However I agree that in the meantime some random script somewhere could > break, and so such a change might warrant a NEWS entry. Exactly, I am a bit worried about the meantime. However, you replied to my questions (that's why I am dropping the 'moreinfo' tag). It's now clear to me, that you are not asking me to modify apt-listbugs for other distributions, but to simplify a possible future sbinmerge in Debian. That sounds like a legitimate feature request (hence severity 'wishlist'). I will think about it. Bye! -- http://www.inventati.org/frx/ There's not a second to spare! To the laboratory! ..................................................... Francesco Poli . GnuPG key fpr == CA01 1147 9CD2 EFDF FB82 3925 3E1C 27E1 1F69 BFFE
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