On Thu, 6 Feb 2003, Richard Hitt wrote:
> Hi, William
>
> The rpm database is nominally in /var/lib/rpm, if I'm not mistaken. An
> unprivileged user should trivially be able to change this to his own
> directory, by making a ~/.rpmmacros file and adding to it a %_dbpath
> value. See /usr/lib/rpm/macros, in which you'll find:
> %_dbpath ${_var}/lib/rpm
>
> That said, I don't at all see that the two rpm databases (the system's
> and an unprivileged user's) could possibly share information, but at
> least now you know where rpm configuration parameters reside and how you
> can override them.
>
You cannot share the rpm database between different systems. Picture
this:
Install your One True Server. Everyone gets a clone of this.
Accounts wants to install its accounting software, in rpm format, using
the rpm database.
Okay, let's say you copy the rpm database to somewhere local so rpm can
check dependancies, and reconfigure rpm so as to use it. You get it
installed and all goes well.
Your Vendor of Choice (VoC) announces that Crucial-Package has this
serious flaw, and you agree you must update OTS.
Depending on your cloning procedure, Accounts will get the update and
its rpm database will be screwed because it doesn't have the latest
updates recorded, or it won't and you have to update Accounts
separately.
Of course, Finance, Ecommerce, you-name-it all have their modified
clones too.
Until rpm is modified for your VoC so it can consult two (or more)
databases to check dependancies, and it can also do an audit so you can
verify dependencies are still met when Crucial-Package is updated, then
I don't see that rpm is going to do a lot to help.
You could install all your special-purpose packages on all (or a large
subset of) clones, but that introduces the prospect of someone running
(or abusing) software they ought not have access to.
--
Cheers
John.
Join the "Linux Support by Small Businesses" list at
http://mail.computerdatasafe.com.au/mailman/listinfo/lssb
