#6470 NORM Never A: olpc-update doesn't let users manage their software builds

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#6470: olpc-update doesn't let users manage their software builds
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  Reporter:  gnu              |       Owner:  cscott                           
      Type:  defect           |      Status:  new                              
  Priority:  normal           |   Milestone:  Never Assigned                   
 Component:  upgrade utility  |     Version:  Development build as of this date
Resolution:                   |    Keywords:                                   
  Verified:  0                |    Blocking:                                   
 Blockedby:                   |  
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Changes (by mstone):

 * cc: cscott, mstone (added)
  * owner:  jg => cscott
  * component:  distro => upgrade utility


Comment:

 Your comments expose several confusions about how olpc-update operates
 that I'd like to try to resolve.

 First, olpc-update is a tool for manipulating builds and boot metadata
 stored in /versions. In most configurations, running olpc-update will
 download a new build, mark it as 'primary', and mark the running build as
 'alternate'. (Depending on invocation parameters, it may also force a
 reboot after successfully installing the new boot configuration.) The
 effect of the 'O' key is to swap the 'primary' and 'alternate' marks in
 the current boot configuration. OFW will always boot the 'primary' build
 (unless you type your own boot words at the 'ok' prompt or modify
 /boot/olpc.fth).

 Second, olpc-update and its associated on-disk data structures are
 designed to allow multiple builds to coexist. However, because space for
 user documents is at a premium for most of our users, olpc-update is
 designed to aggressively garbage-collect unreferenced builds. Builds can
 be referenced both from 'boot configuration' structures in
 /versions/configs and with 'sticky' marks in /versions/sticky. Please file
 bugs if you ever observe olpc-update garbage-collecting referenced builds.

 Finally, to give larger context, the default behavior of olpc-update was
 selected in order to allow OLPC and its clients to remotely manage the
 software that is installed on laptops in standard configurations, not to
 'allow users to manage their software builds'. Consequently, some user
 intervention will always be required in order to change this choice of
 default behaviors.

-- 
Ticket URL: <http://dev.laptop.org/ticket/6470#comment:1>
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