X-Spam-Check-By: sourceware.org Message-ID: <4399A748.CA4107C7@dessent.net> Date: Fri, 09 Dec 2005 07:48:24 -0800 From: Brian Dessent MIME-Version: 1.0 To: cygwin@cygwin.com Subject: mingw path/mount handling code (Was: Re: Practical method for automatic Cygwin install?) References: <20051123035342.9E89913C1A1@cgf.cx> <20051123192106.GA757@trixie.casa.cgf.cx> <4384DF7D.142487C5@dessent.net> <20051123213551.GA2952@trixie.casa.cgf.cx> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-IsSubscribed: yes Reply-To: cygwin@cygwin.com Mailing-List: contact cygwin-help@cygwin.com; run by ezmlm List-Subscribe: List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: , Sender: cygwin-owner@cygwin.com Mail-Followup-To: cygwin@cygwin.com Delivered-To: mailing list cygwin@cygwin.com Christopher Faylor wrote: > >FWIW, this idea of creating a mingw "libcygpath" really appeals to me > >and it's been an idea I've been meaning to look at for a while. It > >would be a library that knows how to read the mount table, and do basic > >path conversions, without depending on cygwin1.dll. Then cygpath and > >setup.exe could both statically link to this library, and it would be > >available to other users as well. > > FWIW, Robert Collins and I talked about doing this years ago but it just > suffered due to SHTDI. I think that path.cc in the utils directory > should be a pretty good start towards a library for reading the mount > table. It is what is used by strace.cc and cygcheck.cc. I've been thinking about this a little more. The way I see it, in a perfect world, this library would be BSD/MIT licensed, or at the very least LGPL, so that "foreign" programs by 3PPs could use it unencumbered, so that they can function better with Cygwin. However, winsup/utils/path.cc is under the Cygwin license. I don't suppose there is any chance of getting Redhet to relicense parts of the utils directory? It seems small enough that it could be reimplemented without a lot of hassle, but it's still extra work. Has this topic already been discussed, or do I need to do more due diligence on this idea? I am considering putting some time into this but I think GPL is not the right way to go. Would the approximate path be a) create, test, and debug this free-standing libcygpath (libcygmount?), b) submit patches to cygpath and setup to use this library? Brian -- Unsubscribe info: http://cygwin.com/ml/#unsubscribe-simple Problem reports: http://cygwin.com/problems.html Documentation: http://cygwin.com/docs.html FAQ: http://cygwin.com/faq/