Date: Sun, 9 Feb 2020 17:24:50 -0500 From: Josh Aas <josh@kflag.net> To: Cy Schubert <Cy.Schubert@cschubert.com> Cc: freebsd-arch@freebsd.org, Poul-Henning Kamp <phk@phk.freebsd.dk>, "N.J. Mann" <njm@njm.me.uk> Subject: Re: updating cron and atrun Message-ID: <CAJzSF_77peGakgSQXKoVF3x03ZaSRND2tAkaJNe-TG1TC8Fr1Q@mail.gmail.com> In-Reply-To: <202002091605.019G5Csj051412@slippy.cwsent.com> References: <CAJzSF_7N4A-_6LfjivWRirNkTHv3ANWu%2BBX6g1UOKqdYmDZZNA@mail.gmail.com> <6701.1581190231@critter.freebsd.dk> <97A66670F59C9C626B5090E3@triton.njm.me.uk> <8967.1581243035@critter.freebsd.dk> <55C50689-6DA8-4D44-92BB-72C38B54AC96@cschubert.com> <202002091350.019DoZrf084564@slippy.cwsent.com> <CAJzSF_5dEhnEx5wKGyJ6NrjyJtSiscH9EDrZH-y9EFnE1kN25w@mail.gmail.com> <202002091605.019G5Csj051412@slippy.cwsent.com>
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I understand that some other operating systems have integrated atrun into cron, but that's not, in and of itself, a reason for FreeBSD to do it. Other operating systems do lots of things not worth copying in FreeBSD. I'm curious to hear if there are actual technical reasons that it's worthwhile for FreeBSD to do it. Even if such integration advantages do exist, they might rest on the assumption that at/atrun is worth keeping in base in the first place. >From what you and others have said, maybe at/atrun doesn't deserve "basic functionality" status you're ascribing to it. I don't know, I'm not an expert on this, but it's a perspective that seems worth considering. In an earlier email you said "People generally have no idea what they do and people are unwilling to chance using them or learning something new..." That doesn't sound like a description of "basic functionality" that necessarily needs to be a part of a base operating system. Vi is a very heavily used program, which many people appreciate being available in base. That is not the case for "at." It's something a small minority of people appreciate, but nonetheless, I agree that they should have access to it. Sounds to me like a great candidate for inclusion in ports. I imagine the default position should be that things are not in base unless there's a strong argument for it, not the other way around. Does FreeBSD have a set of written guidelines for what makes something appropriate for inclusion in the base system? On Sun, Feb 9, 2020 at 11:05 AM Cy Schubert <Cy.Schubert@cschubert.com> wrote: > > In message <CAJzSF_5dEhnEx5wKGyJ6NrjyJtSiscH9EDrZH-y9EFnE1kN25w@mail.gmail.c > om> > , Josh Aas writes: > > There seems to be a real question here about the value of at/atrun. > > Maybe a good compromise is to move that functionality to ports instead > > of the base system. If we integrate the functionality into cron then > > we're basically stuck with it in core. All functionality adds > > complexity, and complexity adds maintenance cost and risk. Sometimes > > that's totally worth it, but I don't think it's clear that saddling > > FreeBSD base with at/atrun because we integrated it with cron for > > unclear reasons is necessarily a good idea. > > That is not a compromise. The functionality has been in cron in Solaris, > AIX, HP-UX, DG/UX, Tru64, and now NetBSD for years, in some cases decades. > Why such a reluctance to maintain basic functionality because it is either > not understood or you never use it? > > Atrun should be integrated into cron, where all other major UNIX and > UNIX-like systems have the function. However when we implement pkgbase > crond(8), crontab(1), and at(1)/batch(1) should be three separate packages, > like Linux distros do. crond(8) could be installed by default whereas > crontab(1) and at(1)/batch(1) would not. > > Moving at(1) and batch(1) to ports would be tantamount to putting vi in > ports because, well, nano is an easier to use editor. (Yes, we did that at > $JOB on our RHEL servers for a while because vi is too hard for most people > to use, it used up valuable space, and only installed it if a customer > specifically requested it. That policy is no more but that it was makes my > point. We now install vim and nano.) You get my point. The fact that some > people don't understand a utility and don't have the time or patience to > learn it (yes, we're all busy, like at $JOB, and taking time out to learn > something, like at $JOB, has a cost) doesn't mean it's not useful. > > Coming from a SunOS, Solaris, HP-UX, DG/UX, Tru64 background, at(1) and > batch(1) are a basic function of cron, even if some in the Linux community > feel they're not. > > > -- > Cheers, > Cy Schubert <Cy.Schubert@cschubert.com> > FreeBSD UNIX: <cy@FreeBSD.org> Web: http://www.FreeBSD.org > > The need of the many outweighs the greed of the few. > > > > > > > > -- Josh Aas (215) 206-2020
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