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Date:      Sun, 17 Oct 1999 11:55:21 -0400
From:      "Patrick Bihan-Faou" <patrick@mindstep.com>
To:        "Cy Schubert - ITSD Open Systems Group" <Cy.Schubert@uumail.gov.bc.ca>, <freebsd-current@FreeBSD.ORG>, <freebsd-ports@freebsd.org>
Subject:   Re: make.conf options (was Re: package-like feature for the base distrib (was Re: FreeSSH))
Message-ID:  <001101bf18b8$049e5e40$190aa8c0@local.mindstep.com>
References:  <011801bf159c$f80630e0$190aa8c0@local.mindstep.com> <199910161454.HAA46310@cwsys.cwsent.com>

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Hi,
From: Cy Schubert - ITSD Open Systems Group <Cy.Schubert@uumail.gov.bc.ca>

> > I was not talking about things that constitute the "real" core of the
> > distribution (kernel, basic libraries etc.). I was more thinking about
> > "userland" stuff that is included in the distribution but might not be
> > required by everybody. Sendmail for example is something I don't want
since
> > I user qmail. However I have to remove it by hand... Other examples are
bind
> > or perl.
>
> You don't need to install them.  Just put these in make.conf.
>
> NO_SENDMAIL=   true
> NOPERL=        true
> NOGAMES=       true
>
> It might be a good idea to support NONAMED, NOUUCP, and NONFS,
> defines in make.conf.  Since some like to use Qmail, Postfix, SSH, and
> Kerberos V, like BUILD_PORTS='postfix ssh krb5 XFree86' in make.conf
> would fetch new copies of distfiles (if you don't have them), de-install
> old versions, build and install the listed ports each time a make world
> is performed.

This is going in the right direction, but here is a question (and I don't
have the answer). Is it so much more easier to create new compile time
directive than to go the extra step and use packages where they are
available ? For example "bind8" is available as a package. Why not have the
base install process use that instead of using its own source ?

After all the package system is good, and we should capitalize on it. For
things that don't have an equivalent (yet) in the ports, then there are 2
approaches:
- the component is "optional enough" that it could be made as a package
- or it is really required, in which case it belongs to the core
installation.

By optional enough, I mean something that: (this is likely not complete)
a/ is not required by everybody (UUCP, YP) nore by the kernel to run
properly
b/ does not rely on other kernel components to be built properly
c/ ...

Again, I think that "sendmail" definitelly falls in that category as well as
"bind".


As far as the BUILD_PORTS variable. This is a great idea... Again why not
take it to the next level which could be to have a new "target" in the
ports' makefile: something like "make pkg_update" which would go and
build/install the new version of all the installed packages/ports ?


If I can help moving things in that direction, I will hapily land a hand...


Patrick.




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