[Debconf-devel] Bug#955605: debconf should support custom order for multiselect (or new entry type)

[Julian Andres Klode]

Package: debconf
Version: 1.5.73
Severity: wishlist

While working on adding support for installing grub to multiple ESPs in Ubuntu[1],
I noticed that while debconf's multiselect type stores an ordered list, the
selection screen does not provide the user the option to chose a custom order.

Now, in the use case of installing to multiple ESPs, this would be incredibly
useful, as it allows you to specify the order of the ESPs that will be set
in the bootorder (so that you can declare the order it falls back to different
ESPs should some be broken).

I'm sure there are other examples.

Note that we don't really need a new debconf type, as the storage already
is ordered, but like a flag to the frontend that gives the user the option
to re-order entries would be enough (and not break frontends).


[1] https://code.launchpad.net/~juliank/grub/+git/ubuntu/+merge/381462

-- System Information:
Debian Release: bullseye/sid
  APT prefers focal
  APT policy: (991, 'focal'), (500, 'focal')
Architecture: amd64 (x86_64)
Foreign Architectures: i386

Kernel: Linux 5.4.0-18-generic (SMP w/8 CPU cores)
Kernel taint flags: TAINT_PROPRIETARY_MODULE, TAINT_WARN, TAINT_OOT_MODULE, TAINT_UNSIGNED_MODULE
Locale: LANG=en_US.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=en_US.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8), LANGUAGE=en_US.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8)
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/dash
Init: systemd (via /run/systemd/system)
LSM: AppArmor: enabled

Versions of packages debconf depends on:
ii  perl-base  5.30.0-9build1

Versions of packages debconf recommends:
ii  apt-utils     2.0.1+0~202003270844~ubuntu20.04.1
ii  debconf-i18n  1.5.73

Versions of packages debconf suggests:
pn  debconf-doc                <none>
pn  debconf-kde-helper         <none>
ii  debconf-utils              1.5.73
ii  dialog                     1.3-20190808-1
ii  libgtk3-perl               0.037-1
pn  libnet-ldap-perl           <none>
pn  libterm-readline-gnu-perl  <none>
ii  perl                       5.30.0-9build1
ii  whiptail                   0.52.21-4ubuntu2

-- debconf information excluded

-- 
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