======= # update-smart-drivedb --help smartmontools 5.40 drive database update script Usage: /usr/sbin/update-smart-drivedb [-v] [DESTFILE] -v verbose output Updates /usr/share/smartmontools/drivedb.h or DESTFILE from smartmontools SVN repository. Tries to download first from branch RELEASE_5_40_DRIVEDB and then from trunk. ======= Smart{d,ctl} use database placed in dir /usr/share/smartmontools/ , it's ok. IMHO problem appears when we run script update-smart-drivedb. First, /usr is often mounted with RO, second thought, databases, which can by automatically updated are placed (usually in gentoo) in /var/lib (for example: clamav, spamassassin). FHS states: /usr/ - Secondary hierarchy for read-only user data; contains the majority of (multi-)user utilities and applications. /var/lib/ - State information. Persistent data modified by programs as they run, e.g., databases, packaging system metadata, etc. The same problem is with pciutils and usbutils. They keep database in /usr/share/misc Reproducible: Always
You will probably be asked to take this issue upstream.
other packages do this as well. like pciutils and pci.ids usbutils and usb.ids. if you dont like this behavior, dont update your db.
I didn't say pciutils and usbuitls keep database in correct place. But with them it's another problem: hal is using their files. But mayby this can be configured in hal ./configure script. But changing location in smartmontools isn't very hard. Upstream did it, we have got: ./configure --help [...] --with-drivedbdir=DIR Location of drive database file (implies --enable-drivedb) [DATADIR/smartmontools] No patch is needed.
