Hi folks, I'm sending this out to close the loop on some hallways discussion earlier today regarding how existing NWAM 0/.5 state will be handle when the system is upgraded to phase 1.
Prior to our discussion, the plan was that during an upgrade to NWAM 1.0, existing NWAM state would migrated into the User NCP, and the User NCP would be enabled after the upgrade. This differs from a newly installed system, which starts out with the Automatic NCP enabled. Thus, we end up with a set of users who's systems are running with the User NCP, just because they happened to get to NWAM 1.0 via upgrade rather than fresh install. AFAIK, this is independent of whether they ever customized their previous NWAM configuration through the GUI or by editing the llp files. This is a problem for a number of reasons, most importantly: * Users end up with non-default NWAM 1.0 behavior, having likely never expressed a desire for non-default behavior. * It is a significant, unnecessary difference in system state/behavior between freshly installed and upgraded systems. * If users might have either Automatic or User NCUs active for such an unrelated reason as install method, the line between the User and Automatic NCP becomes blurred to the point where the distinction is not helpful. With phase 1.0, I think we really, really want the Automatic NCP to work for most run-of the mill laptop/desktop use cases. Due to a variety of factors, it is not possible to reliably determine if a user ever modified the NWAM 0/.5 configuration, so we cannot base NCP selection or upgrade strategy on whether the old environment was customized. Having outlined the concerns with the current method, the solution we are now considering for upgrades is: 1. At upgrade time, migrate existing NWAM state into the User NCP. 2. Always activate the Automatic NCP after an upgrade. 3. At first interaction with the NWAM GUI, inform the user that the previous configuration has been saved in into the User profile, provide information about how to activate that NCP, but encourage trying/sticking with the Automatic profile. 4. Augment #3 with release notes/other documentation. The exact manner and wording of step 3. will be critical. Darren, I don't know if you have any suggestions for how best this can be handled through the GUI. -John
