Re: Explicit config patch 7.2B4

On Mon, 2001-12-17 at 12:22, mlw wrote:
> > That's been Mark's primary argument all along, and what it ignores is
> > that the standard behavior for daemons is designed around the assumption
> > that a system is running only one copy of any given daemon. That's a
> > fine assumption for most daemons but an unacceptable one for Postgres.
>
> It makes NO such argument at all! It allows an admin to explicitly share a
> configuration file (or not). I allows for one central place in which multiple
> configuration files can be stored and backed up. It allows for the explicit
> sharing of pg_hba.conf files. (It was noted that pg_ident.conf should be added,
> I am looking at it.)
>
> Most of all it does these things WITHOUT symlinks. Most admins I know like
> symlinks as a method of working around a short coming in a product, but would
> rather have the configurability designed into the product.
>
> I wrote this patch to make it easier for me to administer multiple databases on
> one machine. To make it easier for UNIX admins to follow the dba's trail. I
> wrote this so a system was a bit more self documenting without having to follow
> symlinks.

As Debian packager I would very much like to see a more convenient and
controllable configuration system.

Ross described last week the Debian method of symlinking the real config
files in /etc/postgresql to $PGDATA/; this method is forced on us by
Debian policy, which requires that all config files be in /etc. The
undesired result is that it is not convenient to run multiple servers on
a single machine using the Debian package.

I am currently considering a method of getting round this by creating a
subdirectory of /etc/postgresql for each server instance, but it would
be nice to be able to share global options in more convenient ways than
by multiplying symlinks.

--
Oliver Elphick Oliver(dot)Elphick(at)lfix(dot)co(dot)uk
Isle of Wight http://www.lfix.co.uk/oliver
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"For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every
man that is among you: Do not think of yourself more
highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself
with sober judgement, in accordance with the measure
of faith God has given you." Romans 12:3