Re: Hurd FS hierarchy (was Re: LD_LIBRARY_PATH troubles)

[Thomas Bushnell, BSG]

Richard Kreuter <kreuter@ausar.rutgers.edu> writes:

> +++The following utilities may be placed in /bin:
> 
> devprobe <or is this useful only to sysadmins?>

Yeah, devprobe belongs in /sbin.

> The /com hierarchy should contain the following directories:
> 
> /com/mail
> /com/spool/news
> <...what else?>

Note that this is true *only* if the relevant software actually
supports reliable updating by multiple machines at once.  This is not
usually true for /com/spool/news, and is often not true for
/com/mail. 

> 6.2.x  /hurd : The Hurd servers
> 
> /hurd contains the Hurd server binaries. Servers with .static appended
> to their name must be statically linked servers, servers without
> .static appended should be dynamically linked servers.

The last "should" should be "may".

> 6.2.x  /libexec : Executables only run by other programs
> 
> The directory for installing executable programs to be run by other
> programs rather than by users.
> 
> <Should networking daemons go here?>

If they are not normally runnable from the command line, yes.  Most
inetd daemons are in this category, but not all.

(Some allow for execution as a command in a special debugging mode;
that's not enough to warrant putting something in {s,}bin.  Such
things usually belong in libexec.)

> 6.2.x  /servers : Standard location where Hurd servers translate
> 
> This is the directory Hurd servers translate rendezvous filesystem
> nodes in standard locations, so that other programs can easily find
> them and use server-specific interfaces.
> 
> /servers/exec      The node where the exec sever translates.
> /servers/password  The node where the password server translates.
> /servers/socket/1  The node where the pflocal server translates.
> /servers/socket/2  The node where the pfinet server translates.

There are more than these.  Check out paths.h.  Reserve all digit
strings in /servers/socket.  Also note that symbolic names should work
in /servers/socket too (/servers/socket/pfinet, etc).

> 6.2.x  /usr : Secondary Hierarchy
> 
> In the GNU system the current practice is to have /usr a symbolic link
> to /. The / and /usr directory have thus the namesame and names of
> files and directories within must not conflict. It's recommended to
> have the symbolink link.

I would change this to "In the GNU system, /usr is a symbolic link to
/.  The / and /usr directories thus have the same name and names of
files and directories within them must not conflict."

> +++6.2.x  /usr/info
> 
> This directory required as the primary GNU Info system directory.
> +++This is an exception to the use of /usr/share for shareable, static
> data files.
> 
> We also might add a subsection describing the info dir layout.

Drop this at present.  We are probably going to move /usr/info into
/usr/share/info as the canonical GNU Coding Standards location.

> 6.2.x  /usr/X11R6 : X Window System, Version 11 Release 6
> 
> This directory should not be used. Instead the X Window System should
> be placed in /usr.

No, it should be placed in /.  We have no /usr.

> +++6.2.x  /var : Mutable, machine-specific data files
> 
> +++The /var hierarchy may not contain files that can be shared among
> host systems.  These files should instead be found in /com.

Change "may not" to "should normally not".

Thomas