From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Miles Fidelman Subject: question re. packaging, build, init and shepherd Date: Thu, 9 May 2019 12:07:41 -0400 Message-ID: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Return-path: Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([209.51.188.92]:59559) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1hOlal-0005qz-Ko for help-guix@gnu.org; Thu, 09 May 2019 12:08:20 -0400 Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1hOlah-0002Se-14 for help-guix@gnu.org; Thu, 09 May 2019 12:08:17 -0400 Received: from server1.neighborhoods.net ([207.154.13.48]:44233) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1hOlad-0002Mg-8a for help-guix@gnu.org; Thu, 09 May 2019 12:08:12 -0400 Received: from localhost (localhost.localdomain [127.0.0.1]) by server1.neighborhoods.net (Postfix) with ESMTP id A6D604D95CE for ; Thu, 9 May 2019 12:07:43 -0400 (EDT) Received: from server1.neighborhoods.net ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (server1.neighborhoods.net [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with LMTP id b8fWErKq3c1y for ; Thu, 9 May 2019 12:07:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from Miless-MBP.fios-router.home (pool-96-237-100-57.bstnma.fios.verizon.net [96.237.100.57]) by server1.neighborhoods.net (Postfix) with ESMTPSA id 07A70CC45E for ; Thu, 9 May 2019 12:07:42 -0400 (EDT) Content-Language: en-US List-Id: List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: help-guix-bounces+gcggh-help-guix=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Sender: "Help-Guix" To: help-guix The GUIX documentation is great when it comes to installing GUIX, and=20 then installing packaged software. It's not so clear on how do install software that isn't in the package=20 repository - whether by creating a package, or via the classic=20 ./configure;make;make install, or if there are tools that can bring=20 classically installed software under package management (e.g., the=20 Debian alien tool). And then there's the question of init systems:=C2=A0 Until systemd came=20 along, ./configure;make;make install generally just works - leaving init=20 files in the right places, starting up daemons, etc. Which leads to the question of, if I want to install something=20 complicated in GUIX - say the Sympa list manager (to pick a non-random=20 example), which comes with standard sysvinit scripts - can I just=20 ./configure;make;make install?=C2=A0 Does Shepherd do the right thing wit= h=20 sysvinit scripts?=C2=A0 Can I invoke them through Shepherd (e.g, after a=20 config change)?=C2=A0 Can I still edit & invoke the init scripts in the=20 classic ways (vi, /etc/init.d/ restart). --- I'm sure I'm not the only one looking at GUIX as an alternative to the=20 various distributions that have gone down the systemd rathole -=20 particularly those of us who run Linux in production server environments=20 that have been heavily customized over the years.=C2=A0 GUIX seems to be=20 reaching a maturity level where it can be considered for production use=20 - but there's an awful paucity of information that might let us evaluate = it. Miles Fidelman --=20 In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice, there is. .... Yogi Berra Theory is when you know everything but nothing works. Practice is when everything works but no one knows why. In our lab, theory and practice are combined: nothing works and no one knows why. ... unknown