Re: /var/lib/dpkg on diskless Linux

["Gero Kuhlmann" <gero@gkminix.han.de>]

>From gkminix.han.de!gero Sat Mar 27 15:41:04 1999
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Subject: BOUNCE netboot@baghira.han.de: Non-member submission from [Hamish Moffatt <hamish@debian.org>]

>From netboot-owner  Wed Mar 24 11:09:27 1999
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Date: Wed, 24 Mar 1999 21:05:35 +1100
From: Hamish Moffatt <hamish@debian.org>
To: Heinrich Rebehn <rebehn@comm.uni-bremen.de>, debian-user@lists.debian.org
Cc: netboot@baghira.han.de
Subject: Re: /var/lib/dpkg on diskless linux
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Sender: Hamish Moffatt <hamish@rising.com.au>

On Mon, Mar 22, 1999 at 10:12:20AM +0100, Heinrich Rebehn wrote:
> However i was wondering about /var/lib/dpkg. Normally, in a diskless cluster,
> every client gets its own copy of /etc, /dev and /var, while /bin, /sbin, /lib
> and /usr are there only once.
> /var/lib/dpkg, however, which is NOT specifc for each client, occupies some
> 10 to 20 MB of disk space. Also, if i install or upgrade packages on the server,
> the change is not reflected in the client's copy of /var/lib/dpkg.
> 
> My questions:
>  1) Why is this stuff in /var? Shouldn't it rather go to /usr?

Interesting question. The files in /var/lib/dpkg/info are mostly constant;
the scripts in particular, so those could/should possibly go in /usr.
However, /var/lib/dpkg/available and status are databases, which puts
them in /var.

>  2) Can i replace /var/lib/dpkg on the clients with a link to the server's 
>     /var/lib/dpkg?
>  3) Is /var/lib/dpkg only used at install/upgrade time?

Only dpkg and dselect and apt usr /var/lib/dpkg. Your clients might not
need it at all; if you do all package installation/maintainence on the server,
it won't matter if it doesn't exist on the clients or is out of date.

I experimented with remote booting and NFSROOT here a while back.
My template /var/lib for each client machine was empty.

Hamish
-- 
Hamish Moffatt VK3TYD              hamish@debian.org, hamish@rising.com.au
Latest Debian packages at ftp://ftp.rising.com.au/pub/hamish. PGP#EFA6B9D5
CCs of replies from mailing lists are welcome.   http://hamish.home.ml.org


-- 
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--
Gero Kuhlmann, Hannover     0511/6497525 (Voice)        gero@gkminix.han.de
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