From owner-freebsd-stable Sat Jun 8 15:06:21 1996 Return-Path: owner-stable Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) id PAA25546 for stable-outgoing; Sat, 8 Jun 1996 15:06:21 -0700 (PDT) Received: from MindBender.HeadCandy.com (root@[199.238.225.168]) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.5/8.7.3) with ESMTP id PAA25534 for ; Sat, 8 Jun 1996 15:06:16 -0700 (PDT) Received: from localhost.HeadCandy.com (michaelv@localhost.HeadCandy.com [127.0.0.1]) by MindBender.HeadCandy.com (8.7.5/8.6.9) with SMTP id PAA19969; Sat, 8 Jun 1996 15:01:56 -0700 (PDT) Message-Id: <199606082201.PAA19969@MindBender.HeadCandy.com> X-Authentication-Warning: MindBender.HeadCandy.com: Host michaelv@localhost.HeadCandy.com [127.0.0.1] didn't use HELO protocol To: "Jordan K. Hubbard" cc: "Schwenk, Peter" , "freebsd-stable@freebsd.org" Subject: Re: Installing FreeBSD-stable In-reply-to: Your message of Fri, 07 Jun 96 16:30:02 -0700. <17017.834190202@time.cdrom.com> Date: Sat, 08 Jun 1996 15:01:12 -0700 From: "Michael L. VanLoon -- HeadCandy.com" Sender: owner-stable@freebsd.org X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk >> It means if you have changes in your /etc directory from the >> distribution (you have to have *some* changes), that you need to >> carefully merge them with updated /usr/src/etc/ files by hand. It's >> not a process that can be automated. >Though I've always felt that the files which were supposed to be >non-mutable files (like /etc/netstart) should probably get installed >by a make world. It would help narrow the number of custom files >which need to be revisited each time. > Jordan Yes, but who's to decide what is non-mutable. What if I decided to remove that one and install my own super-netstart script, and a heavily modified rc? I believe everything in /etc is fair game. I think it needs to remain a hands-on task. I mean, I've been running NetBSD-current for more than a couple years, and I've customized my /etc/ some over that time in incompatible ways. Yet, in spite of the fact that I don't pull in the current src/etc changes very often (if at all) my system continues to run. My point being: if you fail to merge in the latest etc stuff on your own system, very often it will make little-to-no difference. And, if there's been something important changed, I would expect big red (well, white and dark purple in my emacs anyway ;-) letters all around it, and in the README saying to not forget it. And, this doesn't even touch /dev/ changes. I think I've only had to *change* one device the entire time I've been running current (when Charles changed the lms base minor number from 1 to 0). There have been devices added I've occasionally had to make new device entries for, but only that one device ever changed, that I can remember. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Michael L. VanLoon michaelv@HeadCandy.com --< Free your mind and your machine -- NetBSD free un*x >-- NetBSD working ports: 386+PC, Mac 68k, Amiga, Atari 68k, HP300, Sun3, Sun4/4c/4m, DEC MIPS, DEC Alpha, PC532, VAX, MVME68k, arm32... NetBSD ports in progress: PICA, others... Roll your own Internet access -- Seattle People's Internet cooperative. If you're in the Seattle area, ask me how. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------