From owner-freebsd-config Mon Feb 2 11:53:00 1998 Return-Path: Received: (from daemon@localhost) by hub.freebsd.org (8.8.8/8.8.8) id LAA27661 for config-outgoing; Mon, 2 Feb 1998 11:53:00 -0800 (PST) (envelope-from owner-config) Received: from cam.grad.kiev.ua (grad-UTC-28k8.ukrtel.net [195.5.25.54]) by hub.freebsd.org (8.8.8/8.8.8) with ESMTP id LAA27645; Mon, 2 Feb 1998 11:52:55 -0800 (PST) (envelope-from Ruslan@Shevchenko.kiev.ua) Received: from Shevchenko.kiev.ua (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by cam.grad.kiev.ua (8.8.8/8.8.5) with ESMTP id XAA14455; Sun, 1 Feb 1998 23:50:59 +0200 (EET) Message-ID: <34D4EE40.B4AEB283@Shevchenko.kiev.ua> Date: Sun, 01 Feb 1998 23:50:57 +0200 From: Ruslan Shevchenko X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.04 [en] (X11; I; FreeBSD 2.2.5-STABLE i386) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Adam Turoff CC: "'hackers@freebsd.org'" , "'config@freebsd.org'" , "'mike@smith.net.au'" Subject: Re: Multi-faced admin References: <34D6422A@smginc.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: owner-config@FreeBSD.ORG X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk At first, sorry if it is my second podt (I just crashed my Netscape, so re-reply message) Adam Turoff wrote: > Looking at Mikael Karpberg page on his architecture for admin'ing a > FreeBSD > Please, can you give URL ? > box, I came across a link to Caldera's COAS project: http://www.coas.org > > I'm rather sorry to say that I haven't looked deeply into some of the > broad > scope ideas that people have been posting to -hackers recently. (I feel > rather guilty that I haven't committed my big picture to bits and bytes > yet > either.) We all know what it means to be spread thin, I guess. :-) > > Anyway, skimming over COAS, (Caldera Open Adminstration System), > it looks like either it's something worth porting, or it's something > worth > improving upon. All of the standard knobs are there, like curses/X/Java > interfaces, etc. (Sorry, I can't post a summary right now. The code is > at v0.09, appears to use lots of python and is GPL'd.) > I look on it -- not very fine. > --- > > Reading the post about UMich's LDAP engine, it sounds rather radical. > So, as of the moment, here's a concise view of what I'm seeing/hearing > for a FreeBSD framework: > > - httpd type server (easy to plug any client into/write new clients) > - standardized CGI interface subset for admin modules > - LDAP for config managment by admin modules > > Five layers (three for glue) to have any random client reconfigure > any part of the system. The top glue is pretty dumb; it just > standardizes the interface. The middle glue layer is where all > the work is done. The bottom glue layer appears rather dumb, > but it should hide the complexity of a bazillion different config file > formats > (if I'm reading what Mike is saying about LDAP correctly). > > Sound good? I'll start a prototype in my copious free time before > the end of the month. :-) > I have the partial realization of the next system: C++ API -------- Command-Line -------- TCL-binding ------------ Tk interface ------------ CGI interface (feauture) --------- CORBA interface (future) ------------- TCL-binding ------------- Java binding for details, look at http://cam.grad.kiev.ua/~rssh/admin/admin.html In principle is good to use some generic Set-Get/Add-Delete interface under abstract classes, but glue must be, IMHO, not declarative "sheme" as in COAS, but have some real API (TCL or CORBA). Of course, we can use sheme-s on some level. > -- Adam. > > PS: Mike, where can I find some docs, etc. on the UMich LDAP server? Altavista. ;) -- @= //RSSH mailto://Ruslan@Shevchenko.Kiev.UA