From owner-freebsd-hackers  Thu Sep 28 07:27:09 1995
Return-Path: owner-hackers
Received: (from root@localhost)
          by freefall.freebsd.org (8.6.12/8.6.6) id HAA15273
          for hackers-outgoing; Thu, 28 Sep 1995 07:27:09 -0700
Received: from healer.com (healer-gw.Empire.Net [205.164.80.204])
          by freefall.freebsd.org (8.6.12/8.6.6) with ESMTP id HAA15268
          for <hackers@freebsd.org>; Thu, 28 Sep 1995 07:27:01 -0700
Received: (from gryphon@localhost) by healer.com (8.6.11/8.6.9.1) id KAA24354; Thu, 28 Sep 1995 10:31:31 -0400
Date: Thu, 28 Sep 1995 10:31:31 -0400
From: Coranth Gryphon <gryphon@healer.com>
Message-Id: <199509281431.KAA24354@healer.com>
To: hackers@freebsd.org, peter@taronga.com
Subject: Re: ports startup scripts
Sender: owner-hackers@freebsd.org
Precedence: bulk

From: peter@taronga.com (Peter da Silva)
> One possibility is to abstract the dependencies in the makefile, so that you
> have your package set up like so (I say, use command syntax to make

Definately abstract as much as possible. For example, almost all of the
standard unix sub-systems (nfs-client, nfs-server, mount-remote, mount-local,
mail-agent, name-service, routes, ...) can be abstracted.

>			config
>				depends-on smtp-server nfs-client
>				satisfies sql-server
>				name oracle
>
> This also allows the config tool to do a static dependency analysis and
> tell you "snmp-manager requires snmp-service, aborting".

This is an interesting concept. A little more work, but you verify at
config time (rather than boot time) if it is a valid dependency chain.

I don't know how much outside of standard services could really be
abstracted though - except in the case if interdependent packages,
which could come up with abstractions names within that group.
Which is most of what you need to worry about anyway...

I like it.

-coranth

------------------------------------------+------------------------+
Coranth Gryphon <gryphon@healer.com>      |  "Faith Manages."      |
                                          |        - Satai Delenn  |
Phone: 603-598-3440   Fax: 603-598-3430   +------------------------+
USMail: 3 Hansom Drive, Merrimack, NH  03054
Disclaimer: All these words are yours, except Europa...