From owner-freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.ORG Wed Aug 2 01:27:34 2006 Return-Path: X-Original-To: freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.org Delivered-To: freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id A368216A4DF for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2006 01:27:34 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from gad@FreeBSD.org) Received: from smtp8.server.rpi.edu (smtp8.server.rpi.edu [128.113.2.228]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 2AD3543D6D for ; Wed, 2 Aug 2006 01:27:29 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from gad@FreeBSD.org) Received: from [128.113.24.47] (gilead.netel.rpi.edu [128.113.24.47]) by smtp8.server.rpi.edu (8.13.1/8.13.1) with ESMTP id k721RQdM024734; Tue, 1 Aug 2006 21:27:27 -0400 Mime-Version: 1.0 Message-Id: In-Reply-To: <20060802001756.GB6671@megan.kiwi-computer.com> References: <44CE199C.2020500@centtech.com> <17614.8289.134373.387558@bhuda.mired.org> <96b30c400607310847s1d2f845eo212b234d03f51e9a@mail.gmail.com> <17614.10982.499561.139268@bhuda.mired.org> <20060801072611.GA717@turion.vk2pj.dyndns.org> <20060801171912.GC3413@megan.kiwi-computer.com> <20060802001756.GB6671@megan.kiwi-computer.com> Date: Tue, 1 Aug 2006 21:27:25 -0400 To: rick-freebsd@kiwi-computer.com From: Garance A Drosehn Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" X-CanItPRO-Stream: default X-RPI-SA-Score: undef - spam-scanning disabled X-Scanned-By: CanIt (www . canit . ca) Cc: freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: [PATCH] adding two new options to 'cp' X-BeenThere: freebsd-hackers@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: Technical Discussions relating to FreeBSD List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 02 Aug 2006 01:27:34 -0000 At 7:17 PM -0500 8/1/06, Rick C. Petty wrote: >On Tue, Aug 01, 2006 at 08:09:08PM -0400, Garance A Drosehn wrote: >> >> I had understood this option as a request to "copy all the >> existing holes", which is not the same thing. I.e., I >> thought we wanted `cp' to create the new file such that it >> would take up exactly the same number of disk blocks, and >> have the same number of holes (in exactly the same places) >> as the original file. > >Which it currently doesn't, without any sparse option. Yes, but we know it doesn't, and we don't expect it to. I *thought* what this thread was asking was for someone to add some new option to `cp', where that new option would do the above. But I was wrong with that, and apparently people would be happy with a new option which says "sparse-ify the file". > > I agree that "sparse-ify" should be easy to implement, and >> could be useful. I'm not fond of the idea, but I can see >> how people might want it. I do would not like it, because >> the user will have to know whether it is appropriate to use >> on a file-by-file basis. You can't just 'cp -rp' an entire >> directory, and feel confident that the "Right Thing(TM)" >> will happen for each file that is being copied. So, if I >> am copying directories, I'll still have to resort to some >> other tool to get the job done "Right(TM)". > >I don't see why not. I don't care if you don't see it. I am just stating my personal opinion, and apparently I am not even doing a good job at that. I will stop now.