[ On Saturday, August 12, 2000 at 09:02:20 (+0900), itojun@iijlab.net wrote: ]
> Subject: Re: /etc/*.conf reorg (was Re: `rc.local.conf': bad nam )
>
> 	could we have all the default values copied into the last part
> 	(do not leave rc.conf almots empty?)  I find it troublesome when the
> 	default value in /etc/default/rc.conf is changed without my intention
> 	on upgrade or whatever (like foo=NO is changed into YES in
> 	/etc/default/rc.conf, and foo starts out of blue).

No, because then you simply re-create the merging problem again.

it would be better to simply not have a separate defaults file in the
first place, but that would be rather silly since there are implicit
defaults that affect operations spread all amongst everything in the
entire system, even compiled right into some things.  I doubt you really
want to have a M$-like registry database that everything system-wide,
including add-on packages, must reference to retrieve its configurable
parameters (though perhaps some people would vote for that!  :-)

The same thing you worry about happens with /etc/rc.conf and
/etc/rc.conf.local if you have only locally changed items in the later
file and if you upgrade /etc/rc.conf.

I'm still working on my wee install/upgrade helper that RCS's everything
and keeps a vendor branch to assist with three-way merges during
upgrades.  I think that such an approach is way and above superior to
any of this mess of having default config files and local config files
and so on.

I.e. I think we should all always just keep track of what we've done to
install, localise, and upgrade a system and make those localisation
changes directly in the real config files.

If my tool is successful enough for the majority of config files then
I'd even use it directly in /usr/src/etc/Makefile and then always
install all /etc things with every "make build"!

-- 
							Greg A. Woods

+1 416 218-0098      VE3TCP      <gwoods@acm.org>      <robohack!woods>
Planix, Inc. <woods@planix.com>; Secrets of the Weird <woods@weird.com>