Re: Config files

On 4/9/07, Tim Jackson <lists@timj.co.uk> wrote: > This probably isn't an issue that arises so much when using the PEAR > Installer for libraries, but when using it for whole apps it does. > > I'm kind of thinking that we should have a role="cfg" here. > role="data" > is OK, but if you install a (working) sample file into its final > location (so the app is "ready to use") the files get silently > overwritten/removed on upgrades/uninstalls. The only obvious way I can > see is to either install the file as a doc and get the user to copy it > manually, or do something funky with post-install tasks (which is > overcomplicated). > > Looking at other packaging systems, the need for a "config" role is > supported by the fact that RPM has a separate file "role" (or the > equivalent) for exactly this situation. Not only that, but it has two > variants: replace and noreplace. In the former (less common) case, > config files *are* overwritten on upgrade, but are backed up on > upgrade > or removal of the package (myfile.conf => myfile.conf.rpmsave). In the > latter case, which suits most config files, config files are *not* > overwritten on package upgrade, but instead the new config file is > installed with the ".rpmnew" extension and a warning is issued at > install time. Then, the user can (at their leisure) diff the two files > and decide what to do (e.g. merge changes from .rpmnew into the main > file, or just ignore the new one if nothing needs to be changed). > > Should I put this on the list for PEAR2? Hey Tim, Sounds like an excellent idea to me : ) Why wait for PEAR2, perhaps you could already create the role in a seperate package, similar to pearified.com's Role_Web ? Greetings, Tias