Re: make distcheck fails for simple Makefile.am

[Bob Friesenhahn]

On Sat, 2 Jul 2005, Roger Leigh wrote:
> Thanks.  I read this, but I still don't think this is the correct
> solution.  I can see this would work well for a user-extensible
> program, such as the GIMP, which has system and user plugin and module
> directories.
>
> For system-level programs, there is only one install location.  In the
> case of CUPS, the directories for data, backend binaries and filter
> binaries are fixed.  Being able to specify an alternate location with

In this case CUPS must be broken software.  Fixed at install time is 
considerably different than "hard coded" in the source code.

> In the case of programs using Linux-PAM (libpam), /etc/pam.d and
> /etc/security are the only places you could install authentication
> service configuration files.  It doesn't make sense to have any other
> place for e.g. SSH configuration, and it would be a security issue to
> boot.  Even if a user builds their own SSH, it will still need to look

Sorry, my SSH configuration files are not under /etc.  There were good 
reasons to put them somewhere else (besides the fact that OpenSSH 
defaults to elsewhere).  I don't see how relocating these files could 
be a security issue.  Putting sensitive files in non-default locations 
actually improves security.  If /bin/sh could be moved, then system 
security would improve immensely, but unfortunately, it is 
inconvenient to move.

There are very few programs on a Unix system that I would call 
"system-level programs".  Certainly the process with PID=0 and 
(possibly) 'init' fall into this category.  Everything else is just 
application software.  In fact, it should be possible to use an 
alternate program in the place of 'init'.  One person's "system-level 
program" is another person's relocatable/replaceable application.

It would be wrong to assume that the world is bound by Linux 
conventions.

Bob
======================================
Bob Friesenhahn
address@hidden, http://www.simplesystems.org/users/bfriesen/
GraphicsMagick Maintainer,    http://www.GraphicsMagick.org/