[Freedombox-discuss] How do we handle package upgrades on the Freedombox?

[Jonas Smedegaard]

Quoting Petter Reinholdtsen (2014-04-16 10:54:56)
> can you add some details to the page on how the freedombox project can 
> use debconf to change the setup we apply to packages after 
> installation?  For example, if the tor package started using debconf 
> and we used debconf to configure tor during installation, and after 
> installation wanted to change the freedombox setup for tor, how would 
> that be done using debconf?  We already had that need when we enabled 
> SOCKS in tor a few weeks ago.

There's two parts to debconf:

 1) Implement debconf question(s) about SOCKS in tor package.
 2) Preseed all non-default answers, and seed them to tor package.

First is the hard one, but also the one most likely that we can all 
help out with by identifying needed tweaks and having a dialogue with 
package maintainers on how they might be persuaded to adopt debconf.

Second is specific to Plinth, and should be documented in manpages of 
debconf.  For an equivalent implemented in shell it would involve 
"debconf-set-selections" and "debconf" commands (not the common wrapper, 
"dpkg-reconfigure", as it forces use of an interactive frontend).

NB! Preseed _all_ wanted tweaks (not only newly applied changes): 
debconf must not be treated as a registry, because it knows only 
questions and answers for packages, not actual state of the package 
(administrators - e.g. a non-debconf-aware Plinth - may have "tampered" 
with configurations since debconf was last used).


> I skimmed the tutorial to try to find a solution there, but did not
> find it.  Did I read too quickly?

Tutorial covers only 1) above.

I find it unsuitable for that wiki page to cover details specific to 
Plinth.  Perhaps some of above could be basis for a separate generic 
page e.g. at https://wiki.debian.org/debconf/non-interactive - we could 
then update https://wiki.debian.org/FreedomBox/Build/DebconfConfig to 
refer to that instead of the "debconf" page which is for the more common 
interactive use.

Any volunteers?


 - Jonas

-- 
 * Jonas Smedegaard - idealist & Internet-arkitekt
 * Tlf.: +45 40843136  Website: http://dr.jones.dk/

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