[gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Song Ma]

[-- Attachment #1.1: Type: text/plain, Size: 780 bytes --]

Hi,

With Gentoo if the user runs "emerge --update --newuse --deep world", the
config file under "/etc" may be updated and get the new config file named as
"._cfg0000_xxxx", for example,  "._cfg0000_ntp.conf". Normally I will
compare this newly updated config file with my existing one, then decide if
I am going to override the existing one with new one or discard the new one
since I must keep my existing setting. It is not very efficient to do these
actions with command lines such as "diff", "cp" or "mv" one by one. I wrote
a tool with text menu to help Gentoo user compare and copy new the new
config file conveniently. Does anyone have interest about it? What should I
do if I want to make it open source and maintain it for Gentoo users?

A screen shot for the tool use:

[-- Attachment #1.2: Type: text/html, Size: 876 bytes --]

[-- Attachment #2: do_new_etc_cfg.gif --]
[-- Type: image/gif, Size: 11139 bytes --]

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Daniel Pielmeier]

2008/12/4 Song Ma <songmash@gmail.com>:
> Hi,
>
> With Gentoo if the user runs "emerge --update --newuse --deep world", the
> config file under "/etc" may be updated and get the new config file named as
> "._cfg0000_xxxx", for example,  "._cfg0000_ntp.conf". Normally I will
> compare this newly updated config file with my existing one, then decide if
> I am going to override the existing one with new one or discard the new one
> since I must keep my existing setting. It is not very efficient to do these
> actions with command lines such as "diff", "cp" or "mv" one by one. I wrote
> a tool with text menu to help Gentoo user compare and copy new the new
> config file conveniently. Does anyone have interest about it? What should I
> do if I want to make it open source and maintain it for Gentoo users?
>
> A screen shot for the tool use:
>
>

Why reinventing the wheel?

What about using existing tools with much more functionality like
etc-update, dispatch-conf, cfg-update or etc-proposals?

-- 
Regards,
Daniel

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Cheng Renquan]

On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 4:34 PM, Song Ma <songmash@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> With Gentoo if the user runs "emerge --update --newuse --deep world", the
> config file under "/etc" may be updated and get the new config file named as
> "._cfg0000_xxxx", for example,  "._cfg0000_ntp.conf". Normally I will
> compare this newly updated config file with my existing one, then decide if
> I am going to override the existing one with new one or discard the new one
> since I must keep my existing setting. It is not very efficient to do these
> actions with command lines such as "diff", "cp" or "mv" one by one. I wrote
> a tool with text menu to help Gentoo user compare and copy new the new
> config file conveniently. Does anyone have interest about it? What should I
> do if I want to make it open source and maintain it for Gentoo users?

Why not use dispatch-conf ?

>
> A screen shot for the tool use:
>
>



-- 
Cheng Renquan, Shenzhen, China
Bob Dole  - "The internet is a great way to get on the net."

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Song Ma]

[-- Attachment #1: Type: text/plain, Size: 1182 bytes --]

Thanks guys. I didn't realize there are such tools existed already.

2008/12/4 Cheng Renquan <crquan@gmail.com>

> On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 4:34 PM, Song Ma <songmash@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > With Gentoo if the user runs "emerge --update --newuse --deep world", the
> > config file under "/etc" may be updated and get the new config file named
> as
> > "._cfg0000_xxxx", for example,  "._cfg0000_ntp.conf". Normally I will
> > compare this newly updated config file with my existing one, then decide
> if
> > I am going to override the existing one with new one or discard the new
> one
> > since I must keep my existing setting. It is not very efficient to do
> these
> > actions with command lines such as "diff", "cp" or "mv" one by one. I
> wrote
> > a tool with text menu to help Gentoo user compare and copy new the new
> > config file conveniently. Does anyone have interest about it? What should
> I
> > do if I want to make it open source and maintain it for Gentoo users?
>
> Why not use dispatch-conf ?
>
> >
> > A screen shot for the tool use:
> >
> >
>
>
>
> --
> Cheng Renquan, Shenzhen, China
> Bob Dole  - "The internet is a great way to get on the net."
>
>

[-- Attachment #2: Type: text/html, Size: 1795 bytes --]

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Song Ma]

[-- Attachment #1: Type: text/plain, Size: 1739 bytes --]

I tried "dispatch-conf" and "etc-update". Here are two major differences
from my tool:

1. For desktop user, my tool will invoke GUI based "kdiff3" to do diff and
merge files if the user installed the "kdiff3". And for remote login user or
the user without "kdiff3",  the tool will just get the normal text-base
diff.

2. My tool can override multiple config files in batch mode. Although this
is dangerous, sometime it's useful and not so nagging.

Best Regards,
Song Ma

2008/12/4 Song Ma <songmash@gmail.com>

> Thanks guys. I didn't realize there are such tools existed already.
>
> 2008/12/4 Cheng Renquan <crquan@gmail.com>
>
> On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 4:34 PM, Song Ma <songmash@gmail.com> wrote:
>> > Hi,
>> >
>> > With Gentoo if the user runs "emerge --update --newuse --deep world",
>> the
>> > config file under "/etc" may be updated and get the new config file
>> named as
>> > "._cfg0000_xxxx", for example,  "._cfg0000_ntp.conf". Normally I will
>> > compare this newly updated config file with my existing one, then decide
>> if
>> > I am going to override the existing one with new one or discard the new
>> one
>> > since I must keep my existing setting. It is not very efficient to do
>> these
>> > actions with command lines such as "diff", "cp" or "mv" one by one. I
>> wrote
>> > a tool with text menu to help Gentoo user compare and copy new the new
>> > config file conveniently. Does anyone have interest about it? What
>> should I
>> > do if I want to make it open source and maintain it for Gentoo users?
>>
>> Why not use dispatch-conf ?
>>
>> >
>> > A screen shot for the tool use:
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Cheng Renquan, Shenzhen, China
>> Bob Dole  - "The internet is a great way to get on the net."
>>
>>
>

[-- Attachment #2: Type: text/html, Size: 2697 bytes --]

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Josh Saddler]

[-- Attachment #1: Type: text/plain, Size: 928 bytes --]

Song Ma wrote:
> I tried "dispatch-conf" and "etc-update". Here are two major differences
> from my tool:
> 
> 1. For desktop user, my tool will invoke GUI based "kdiff3" to do diff
> and merge files if the user installed the "kdiff3". And for remote login
> user or the user without "kdiff3",  the tool will just get the normal
> text-base diff.
> 
> 2. My tool can override multiple config files in batch mode. Although
> this is dangerous, sometime it's useful and not so nagging.

You need to look at cfg-update, which has gtk+ and qt+ interfaces. And
is arguably less dangerous.

Better yet, just look around in the app-portage category; there are lots
of config file update tools, in addition to the excellent ones already
present in Portage.

You also need to read the Portage handbook. It explains the built-in
update tools:
http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/handbook-x86.xml?part=3&chap=4



[-- Attachment #2: OpenPGP digital signature --]
[-- Type: application/pgp-signature, Size: 197 bytes --]

Re: [gentoo-dev] A tool helps to diff and override config files

[Song Ma]

[-- Attachment #1: Type: text/plain, Size: 1053 bytes --]

Thanks Josh. I will look at "cfg-update".  Best Regards.

2008/12/4 Josh Saddler <nightmorph@gentoo.org>

> Song Ma wrote:
> > I tried "dispatch-conf" and "etc-update". Here are two major differences
> > from my tool:
> >
> > 1. For desktop user, my tool will invoke GUI based "kdiff3" to do diff
> > and merge files if the user installed the "kdiff3". And for remote login
> > user or the user without "kdiff3",  the tool will just get the normal
> > text-base diff.
> >
> > 2. My tool can override multiple config files in batch mode. Although
> > this is dangerous, sometime it's useful and not so nagging.
>
> You need to look at cfg-update, which has gtk+ and qt+ interfaces. And
> is arguably less dangerous.
>
> Better yet, just look around in the app-portage category; there are lots
> of config file update tools, in addition to the excellent ones already
> present in Portage.
>
> You also need to read the Portage handbook. It explains the built-in
> update tools:
> http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/handbook-x86.xml?part=3&chap=4
>
>
>

[-- Attachment #2: Type: text/html, Size: 1600 bytes --]