X-Spam-Check-By: sourceware.org In-Reply-To: <20051213154024.GB11174@trixie.casa.cgf.cx> To: cygwin AT cygwin DOT com Subject: Re: setup.exe - un-attended installation support MIME-Version: 1.0 Message-ID: From: Duane Ellis Date: Tue, 13 Dec 2005 12:19:14 -0500 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Mailing-List: contact cygwin-help AT cygwin DOT com; run by ezmlm Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: List-Subscribe: List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: , Sender: cygwin-owner AT cygwin DOT com Mail-Followup-To: cygwin AT cygwin DOT com Delivered-To: mailing list cygwin AT cygwin DOT com Christopher Faylor wrote on 12/13/2005 10:40:24 AM: > assuming that it was more than just frustrated venting about possible > cockpit problems, in a perfect world, people who report bugs would also > provide details about the bugs rather than just making assertions of > problems: Thanks for responding. I think I worded my problem poorly. I'm not reporting a bug. I'm asking for suggestions on how to solve a problem I have. My problems are simular to these SETUP wish list items: * Incremental/recoverable download capability. * Downloading from the internet should be _able_ to list based on what is present in the cache, as opposed to what is installed. (To help building a complete install set for a different machine). * Save all options. If needed, I might be able to spend some time and may be able to contribute a fix/enhancment to the setup.exe program that would help with these issues, and my issues. I don't know. I build internal SDKs for people here to use [I support multiple development sites world wide], it is my responsiblity to make sure these developers can use the packages that I produce with little error or problems. The SDKs I produce are non-trivial - the Binary releases tend to be around 200MEG to 300MEG, they include multiple scripts, source code cross compilers, debuggers, etc. The problem is I support the "pilots with cockpit problems" and I'm trying to make it easier for them *not* to crash their development airplanes. These pilots of course like to say it another way: My instructions are lacking :-) > - What packages were missing? > - What was the "wrong version" installed and what was the mechanism via > which a wrong version was installed? Was it specifically selected? > - What newer versions caused problems and what were the problems? > - What package was not present on a mirror? It's more of this: By default - CYGWIN installs some "core" set of features. In order to use the SDKS that I produce, our developers need to install the CYGWIN CORE - that part is easy! But - I also need "the pilots with cockpit problems" to install around 20 to 30 additional CYGWIN packages that my SDK packages require in addition to the core set. I don't know of a reliable way to get CYGWIN installed the way I need it installed {on other machines} for these reasons: a) Cockpit Error - Clicking on the wrong thing - etc. I wish "setup.exe" would read a script I could supply. This way the development sites I support don't have cockpit problems. b) External Network Connections Go Down - in mid setup. Sometimes - the mirror you started with times out. Sometimes - there are too many connections. Sometimes - your connection to the internet has problems. Like it or not, I have to deal with this issues. The solution I have always found that always works is to supply either a CD image with all the files on it or host the data on a local internal mirror server. c) At some point - if you must stop and restart the installation Network stopped responding. Laptop battery died You picked too much stuff to install your hard disk is full. You have to go home, and setup is only 25% complete after 3 hours. I found this setup WISH LIST item sort of funny: "Some way to download *all* the source." I have people who do that by accident. d) Sometimes - not always - a new CYGWIN package is introduced and I have to fix my stuff. And I don't have the time to right now... but due to various other package dependancies I am pushed into a corner. There is no way to tell SETUP.EXE to re-use the same set of options I choose last time - and continue where it left off. It is at times, an iterative process :-( with mixed results. CYGWIN is like the Debian network install. Works great, if that is what you want. If you compare this process to a Linux (from CD install) Linux is very simple - (a) get a big enough hard disk, (b) select install everything and (c) feed it CD-ROMS until it is done. It's not easy to do that with CYGWIN. Or perhaps its not clear to me how to do exactly that with CYGWIN. -Duane. -- 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/