Date: Fri, 24 Apr 1998 11:07:25 -0600 (MDT) From: Wes Peters - Softweyr LLC <softweyr@xmission.com> To: jkh@time.cdrom.com (Jordan K. Hubbard) Cc: config@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Config Databases Message-ID: <199804241707.LAA04969@xmission.xmission.com> In-Reply-To: <4474.893404047@time.cdrom.com> from "Jordan K. Hubbard" at Apr 24, 98 00:47:27 am
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
> Right. I'm not saying that this behavior is ideal, far from it, I'm
> simply saying that this is the lowest-impact approach and will require
> the least programming headache.
And, please note, it *is* consistent with current practice. If you
enter a bogus password entry with vipw, it gets put in the file,
but the user *still* won't be able to login.
> Unless we're all just discussing this
> as an intellectual exercise, of course, and there's no intention of
> actually implementing it in which case by all means let's discuss all
> the errors one might pass back on close() in hopes that the
> application will even check the return value. :-)
Well, vi will at least. That saves us in the 'viconfig' case. ;^)
The only granularity you really *need* is 'OK, it worked' vs. 'ERROR,
something was wrong.'
> Succeeding silently and using secret knowledge of the file format to
> tack in comments also strikes me as a cute but ultimately untenable
> workaround, so I really do vote for the simpler approach.
The 'odm database' in AIX uses the approach, and it is helpful, but it
costs them a lot of programmer time to develop and maintain their
import programs. Bleh. Jordan's right (as usual): get it working,
then embellish it later.
I suggest starting off with one simple database, something simple like
/etc/services, and getting IT working, then adding other databases.
This has the advantage of being able to dole out addition of various
databases to a fairly wide range of people once the initial framework
is in place.
--
"Where am I, and what am I doing in this handbasket?"
Wes Peters Softweyr LLC
http://www.xmission.com/~softweyr softweyr@xmission.com
To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org
with "unsubscribe freebsd-config" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199804241707.LAA04969>