sysf
sysf
is an administration tools which can modify important
system files
across an entire network. Configuring or using sysf
without a detailed understanding of how it works can seriously damage
vital files on many hosts on the network. Although sysf
has been
thoroughly tested
by its author there is no guarantee that it is entirely bug free. It is thus
recommended that every users test new configurations on dummy files before
deploying then on a real system.
When used properly sysf
is a very convenient tool, but it can cause
serious damage when used carelessly. In particular here are the major points
sysf
users must bear in mind.
C
, I
or U
set execute
an auxiliary command which run as root. One must double check what these
commands do, especially when they create or remove files. install
, first_install
and OS_install
modify
the system files
directly. When sysf
is not configured properly
this can result in erasing a file or replacing it with the wrong one.install
erases the files that are not listed in the
config file
. One must thus be very careful to use the correct
config file
and to configure it properly. One way to avoid problems
is to check the differences between the config
and the system
files by running the command sysf -check
or sysf -diff
before
any modification is implemented. One should also create the
config files
by using one of the sysf
commands
(new
, archive
, makegroup
or makedef
)config file
directly, check that it is up to
date. If the system file
was changed without updating its config
file
, the changes would be lost.Config files
should not be symbolic links to other files (except
when they point to NONE
) as sysf
always remove such symbolic link
when doing an archive and creates the new config file
as a regular
file.