Subject: Re: bin/12876: NetBSD's INET6 patches to Postfix break non-INET6 features!
To: Andrew Brown <atatat@atatdot.net>
From: Greg A. Woods <woods@weird.com>
List: netbsd-bugs
Date: 05/09/2001 01:21:05
[ On Wednesday, May 9, 2001 at 00:10:58 (-0400), Andrew Brown wrote: ]
> Subject: Re: bin/12876: NetBSD's INET6 patches to Postfix break non-INET6 features!
>
> i did.  and the source.  netbsd says it's for storing the domainname,
> with no particular indication of why or wherefore.  other systems (eg
> solaris) use it for nis.

You're mixing up concepts here.  The SunOS kernel doesn't use these
values -- it merely holds them.  They can be used for anything.  The NIS
applications use them one way.  Other applications that might be
suitable for use when NIS isn't running can use them in any other way
they see fit.  In a sane configuration many un-related applications can
all use the same value too!  Not all the world runs NIS -- in fact
thankfully very little of the world runs NIS!  I've *always* stored the
default DNS domain name with setdomainname(3) when possible on all
systems I've managed, even when NIS was also in use, and I didn't invent
the idea either!  I've done so on many variants of SunOS, HP-UX, AIX,
SysVr4, DC/OSx, DYNIX/ptx, SCO, Amiga-UNIX, FreeBSD, NetBSD, BSD/OS,
etc., all with no problems, confusion, or other silly excuses.

>  i'm very much in favor of homogeneity, so
> i'm not about to go storing something in somewhere which some systems
> use for nix and some don't.

What the heck does that nonsense mean!?!?!?  It's not called setnisdomain!

>  i'll find a way that works the same way
> on all machines.  netbsd's nis was written "to be compatible with
> Sun's implementation".  i'd be surprised if it didn't use the kernel
> info (modulo it simply being told not to).

You're lost between levels here and stuck in some mode that may not
apply to half the rest of the world or more!

> under netbsd it doesn't have a special purpose.

EXACTLY!

>  saying it's for mail
> is just as wrong as anything else.

Wrong?  No, "just as right!"

-- 
							Greg A. Woods

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