setup, fedora-release updates needed

[Matthew Woehlke]

Ondřej Vašík wrote:
> AFAIK there is no option to ignore files
> completely in update, so .rpmnew are created although is always
> completely useless (unless you have some script to add missing
> users/groups from that .rpmnew file).

I am confused, shouldn't the .rpmnew only get created if the version in 
the rpm has changed from what was in the last "successfully installed" 
rpm? IOW I should be able to install 1000 updates to the rpm with 
/etc/passwd, but as long as the /etc/passwd in the rpm is the same I 
should never see a .rpmnew.

(Okay, the changed hashes throw a wrench in this, but that's another 
discussion that has already happened.)

> I guess we can't expect user to run some merge tool after transaction.

Why not? We already expect them to do something with the .rpmnew. Why 
not make "something" easier to do?

> It has to be automated somehow.

Automated, unreviewed updates of config files are dangerous :-). It's 
technically possible (you could run the merge tool automatically) but I 
don't think it's a good idea.

> Maybe some separate file with default
> users/groups (like existing uidgid file) and something (?cron job) to
> periodically check it, if those users/groups do exist on system?

/etc/passwd is actually a case where automatic merge is probably fine 
for additions (removal is more dangerous, of course), but I'm thinking 
to apply this to config files in general.

-- 
Matthew
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