Date: Thu, 30 Apr 1998 23:23:18 -0400 (EDT) From: CyberPeasant <djv@bedford.net> To: hackers@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Writable /usr? Message-ID: <199805010323.XAA24487@pollux.loco.net> In-Reply-To: <19980501122603.D26691@freebie.lemis.com> from Greg Lehey at "May 1, 98 12:26:03 pm"
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
> On Mon, 27 April 1998 at 19:21:40 -0700, Jason C. Wells wrote:
> > On Mon, 27 Apr 1998, CyberPeasant wrote:
> >
> >> As a newcomer to FreeBSD but a greybeard in the unix world, can I
> >> politely ask why FreeBSD seems intent on making /usr a writable
> >> partition?
>
> You're probably on the wrong forum here. -questions is for problems.
I was trying to prevent a problem :)
> For philosophy, you could try -hackers. I'm copying -questions as
> well on this reply, mainly because of my comments on Jason's reply,
> but please follow up to -hackers.
>
> >> In another thread, someone reports that the user guide recommends
> >> locating /tmp and /var on /usr. I believe I've seen
> >> recommendations to supply users' home directories in the /usr
> >> partition, too. (The default installation script sets you up
> >> without a /home partition.) What's the rationale for this? Isn't
> >> readonly /usr (and /, if possible) a Good Thing anymore?
> >
> > You may have to place /tmp or /var on user if you have a prexisting file
> > system that starts running out of space. By default /var partition is
> > mounted on /var and /tmp directory is mounted on /.
>
> I think this is not so much the point. I haven't seen anybody
> recommend /tmp on /usr (and it's a problem if you need /tmp in
> single-user mode). I recommend /var on /usr to avoid fragmenting
> disks, but there's nothing holy about it.
Which disc? I suppose that /var under /usr would be the only really
active area of the partition, and any performance hit would be confined
to itself.
> To CyberPeasant's comments on /home: I'd suggest that this is an
> omission.
Right. It's always a question, though, of how much to snow a new
installer with. You maintain some of this stuff, right? If so, my
compliments on the very flexible install materials.
> > As a side note, IRIX puts home directories in /usr/people by
> > default.
>
> This doesn't win it many friends.
>
> Back to CP's questions (sorry this is so poorly structured): I don't
> really see that ther is a requirement for having /usr a writeable file
> system. We've discussed a number of varieties in the past, including
I was wondering if it was assumed to be writable in the "official
philosophy". I think I may have over-reacted. The default installation
seems to run fine with RO /usr.
> not having a /usr file system (put it on the root file system), and
> having an RO root and RW /var. Do you have a particular reason to
> want it RO?
Security primarily (not so much the cracker kind, but the damaged
fs from rogue program kind). Configuration control. No need to
backup more than once. Faster boots, since it never needs to be
fsck'ed. (Well, barring hardware problems.) If I could, I'd have
it on a dedicated drive, with the drive jumpered for RO operation.
It's probably a minor issue on a home machine or one with a few
friendly users.
> Greg
>
Hi, I'm content to let the thread die... so am responding off list.
Actually this is, IMHO, an issue that is probably only of interest to
the Unix-newbie, more experienced hands having their own well-founded
tastes and opinions. I don't think newbie issues have much place on
-hackers, and there doesn't seem to be a -config list (in linux, this
is called the linux-admin list).
The originator had been advised by the user guide to move /var to
/usr/var and /tmp to /usr/tmp, which one would do only if radically
desperate for some disk space.
Thanks for your interest and comments!
Dave
--
<----. mailto/pgpfinger: djv@bedford.net
<----|===================================
<----' Crathva fxrjre
To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org
with "unsubscribe freebsd-hackers" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199805010323.XAA24487>