On Sun, Feb 09, 2003 at 10:26:58AM -0500, Peter Teichman wrote:
> I believe this is the correct solution, having worked in the packaging
> of Ximian GNOME for a few years. Files in /usr/local should not be
> package-managed. I don't think there should be any distinction between
> the distribution vendor and third-party packages like bincimap, and the
> vendor definitely can't put anything into /usr/local.
The distinction is that the OS vendor is free to re-arrange and restructure
and manage the configurations of files installed in /etc, /var and /usr.
More importantly, the vendor is *responsible* for managing those directories
correctly when the do upgrades and patches.
> I would probably go with the latter option, but I'm happy with the
> current solution. /opt doesn't leave any bad taste in my mouth. :)
I prefer packages that go into /usr/local because there exists all the other
directories etc/, var/, usr/, bin/ etc. with all of their well-defined and
expected behavior. As an administrator I know that /etc/<package>/<something>
is where I configure something. If *I* installed it, then everything else
is in /usr/local, if it was packaged by my vendor (RedHat, YellowDog, gentoo,
SuSe, etc.) I need to look in /*. Having do dig around in /opt/<package> and
figure out which of /opt/<package>/conf or /opt/<package>/etc or even the awful
/opt/<package>/control is the right place to manage something such is confusing
and a waste of the precious little time I have for administration tasks.
Assuming that the administrator will 'just remember' where package X likes
to keep its configuration flies in the face of the whole concept of the FHS.
The FHS is a standard, it's acquired huge amounts of support plus eased
many of the administration headaches that have nothing to do with actually
getting something to work. It shouldn't be necessary to use locate and find
to configure a package, and I know that the more FHS compliant a system I'm
managing, the less time I spend managing it. /opt is a historical throwback
that should be marked as a deprecated but documented part of the FHS.
/usr/local does everything /opt does, but better.
C=)
--
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Better the hard truth than the comforting fantasy. -- Carl Sagan
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Caskey <caskey*technocage.com> /// TechnoCage Inc.
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A presumption on your part does not constitute an obligation on my part.
