Comment 57 for bug 14660

Message-ID: <email address hidden>
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 2005 14:59:50 +0200
From: Marc Haber <email address hidden>
To: Vincent Lefevre <email address hidden>, <email address hidden>
Cc: Marc Haber <email address hidden>
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Bug#301906: exim4: Mail messages sent to local addresses are lost

On Sat, Apr 02, 2005 at 01:33:57PM +0200, Vincent Lefevre wrote:
> If this is an exceptional change (like here),
> then a dialog box should be displayed during the dpkg-reconfigure.
> Other packages do this.

This is frequently condemned as Debconf abuse, and for exim 4, it is a
non-option at this time of release - it would invalidate translation
to currently 40 languages.

I won't do this.

> > > > but having multiple versions of the file replacing each other
> > > > depending on environment is pretty exotic.
> > >
> > > It's pretty common for those who use netenv.
> >
> > But done wrong.
>
> This is often done like this (often with symbolic links, which I used
> to use... until some broken software incorrectly overwrote my config
> file following the symlink).

So, the exim 4 packages are "broken software" from your point of view?
If so, please take the issue to the tech ctte, as we agree to disagree
here ;)

> > > Comments should be clear about who can modify the files and how.
> >
> > Anybody can modify update-exim4.conf.conf, and changes done locally
> > are respected. And you have proven that this works.
>
> OK, so the real problem was that the change hadn't been announced.

We have catched up in that regard.

> > > and /etc/fonts/fonts.conf begins with:
> > >
> > > <!--
> > > DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE.
> > > IT WILL BE REPLACED WHEN FONTCONFIG IS UPDATED.
> > > LOCAL CHANGES BELONG IN 'local.conf'.
> >
> > So that file doesn't belong in /etc, it should be in /var. It is the
> > equivalent to our /var/lib/exim4/config.autogenerated
>
> Is there a policy for config files (concerning this and also the
> various problems above)?

This is described pretty extensively in chapter 10.7 of Debian policy.

> Also, when there is a change, a dialog box at dpkg-reconfigure time
> would be nice (to warn the user and to describe the change), since
> the change is done at this time precisely.

Impossible for sarge, and condemned Debconf abuse for etch.

Greetinhs
Marc

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