J. Estes writes:
> I would have them be completely divorced from the core O/S, such
> that core utilities like pkgadd/pkgrm are not dependent on 3rd party
> software, such as libopenssl.so, nor libgcc_s.so. Both /opt/sfw
> _and_ /usr/sfw should be configurable to be not installed at all, if
> the person installing it so desires. If they are absolutely
> required (and in my estimation, there should be no reason for them
> to be required), then the core O/S utilities should be statically
> linked so that they do not conflict with other versions that may be
> installed at a later by the user. This gives the user the freedom
> of choice to use /usr/sfw or /opt/sfw, or not.
The reason they are required is that pkgadd natively supports
installing software via http: and https: with the "-d device" option.
You can download and install signed packages over the web. This is
part of the functionality required by the existing Solaris 10 "WAN
boot" feature.
The architectural issue is that we do not want to have multiple copies
of the same software in the system. Thus, static linking for this
sort of thing is just not allowed, and that can't be one of the
solutions. Besides just the software-bloat problem, static linking is
bad engineering: it forces users to patch the same bug (or
vulnerability) multiple times, and opens the door for divergence.
Indeed, static linking provides you with *NO* freedom at all. You're
forced to take the statically-linked software, even if you've somehow
decided you don't want it. It'd be a step in the opposite direction.
The design issue is how to have a feature like this ("optional"
web-based package install) without making pkgadd depend directly on
the OpenSSL libraries. I think that there's room for useful work in
this area. It may be possible to decouple these two components in
such a way that the web features are present only when the optional
SFW components are installed, rather than just simply requiring them
to be installed at all times.
Static linking, though, isn't the answer.
--
James Carlson, KISS Network <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sun Microsystems / 1 Network Drive 71.232W Vox +1 781 442 2084
MS UBUR02-212 / Burlington MA 01803-2757 42.496N Fax +1 781 442 1677
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