Software Installation Administrator's Guide

Chapter 8
Tailoring Inst Operation

Various features of Inst operation can be tailored using the set command on the Administrative Commands menu. Using set, you can assign values to arguments known as preferences, which control aspects of the Inst interface. This chapter explains how to use set to adjust menus and information displays, control space calculations, and modify other Inst operating defaults. A table of available set preferences is included at the end of the chapter (a complete list is also available from Inst online help).

This chapter contains the following sections:

"Checking the Current Settings"
"Controlling Menu Displays"
"Controlling Disk Space Checks and Reports"
"Controlling the Display of Filenames"
"Displaying the Current Distribution Source"
"Turning Off Initial Selection of Subsystems"
"Checking and Setting the System Date"
"Changing the Network Timeout Value"
"A Closer Look at Preferences"

Note: The procedures in this chapter assume that set commands are entered at the Admin> prompt; however, except where noted, set commands can also be entered at the Inst> and View> prompts.

Checking the Current Settings

To see your current preferences settings, enter the set command with no arguments:

Inst> set

The output contains a line showing the name, the current setting, and a brief description of each preference.

For help on a particular preference, specify the preference in your entry:

Inst> set preference

The output contains a paragraph description of the preference, its name, type, and current value.

Controlling Menu Displays

By default, Inst displays the Main menu when it is invoked; menus show only a subset of the commands that can be entered at the Inst> and Admin> prompts. The following sections tell you how to change this default behavior.

Turning Off Menu Displays

To suppress the menu display when Inst is invoked, give this command:

Admin> set menus off

When menus is set off, only the Inst> prompt is displayed when Inst is invoked. To return to the default behavior, enter this command:

Admin> set menus on

The value of menus is saved in the installation history database; its value is maintained for subsequent Inst sessions.

Displaying Hidden Commands

At each menu, several commands are available but not normally displayed. On the Inst Main menu, the hidden commands are set, sh, and shroot . On the Administrative Commands menu, the hidden commands are help and quit. On the View Commands menu, the hidden commands are set , help, and quit. The Interrupt menu contains no hidden commands; the retry command appears when Inst displays the Interrupt menu on errors, but retry is not available when you display the Interrupt menu manually.

Use this entry to set hidden commands on:

Inst> set fullmenu on

The value of fullmenu is is saved in the installation history database; its value is maintained for subsequent Inst sessions.

Redisplaying the Menu

Since Inst does not redisplay the current menu after each command entry, you must request that the menu be redisplayed when you need it. The current menu is displayed if you press <Enter> (when the menus preference is set on), or if you enter a question mark (?). The question mark is considered a pseudo-command because it never appears on menus.)

Controlling Disk Space Checks and Reports

Disk space checking enables Inst to make accurate estimates of whether disk space on a system is sufficient for the software selected for installation. The estimates help you determine which software to install or remove if disk space is limited.

Space calculations determine the amount of free disk space in the / and /usr filesystems (and any other mounted filesystems), the disk space required for each subsystem, and also the net change in disk space if a subsystem is installed or removed. If a detailed space check is requested, Inst also checks the disk for any deleted files, and for any local modifications to the installed software.

You see this message when Inst performs space checking:

Calculating sizes:

The space checks performed during list and step processing calculate the net amount of space that your selections will require after installation. The space checks performed during go processing calculate the net space requirement and the additional space that will be required during the installation process.

Estimated and Detail Space Checks

Inst performs two types of disk space calculations: estimated space checks, which are based on the information in the Inst history file; and detailed space checks, in which Inst accesses file size information on the disk to perform its calculations. By default, estimated space checks are performed when you use the from command to change the distribution source and when you use the list or step command to make selections. Detailed space checking is always performed after you issue the go command to initiate installation. You can change these defaults using set command preferences.

Note: You can disable all space checking with the space_check preference, but disabling space checking is not advised (see Inst help for details).

Changing Detail Space Checking

There may be times when you need very accurate disk space calculations throughout an installation session when a target has limited disk space, for example). In this case, you can use the detailspacecheck preference of the set command to force detailed space checking to be performed during list and step processing as well as during go processing. To force additional detail space checking, issue this set command before you issue the list or step command in the session:

Admin> set detailspacecheck on

Inst saves the value of detailspacecheck in the installation history, so it is not necessary to reset this preference if you wish to maintain this level of checking in subsequent sessions. However, increasing the number of detail space checks also increases the amount of time required for the interactive portion of an installation session (the amount of time required for go processing remains the same, regardless of the detailspacecheck setting).

To return to the default space checking behavior, issue this command:

Admin> set detailspacecheck off

Delaying Disk Space Checking

The delayspacecheck preference of the set command allows you to postpone disk space checking until after you enter the go command. Delaying space checking reduces the amount of time needed for the interactive portion of an installation session. However, when you delaying space checking, disk space information is not displayed in the output of list and step commands - subsystem sizes are listed as zero.

To postpone disk space checking until you enter the go command, issue this command before entering the first list or step command:

Admin> set delayspacecheck on

Inst saves the value of delayspacecheck in the installation history database, so it is not necessary to reset this preference if you wish to delay space checking in subsequent installations.

To return to the default space checking behavior, issue this command:

Admin> set delayspacecheck off

Minimizing Disk Space Checking Time

When you want to install only one product and the distribution source contains many products, you can reduce the amount of space checking time by including the product name when specifying the distribution source. When you specify a product in the distribution source, checking is limited to the disk space requirements of the individual product rather than the entire distribution.

These entries illustrate how to specify an individual product as the distribution source:

# inst -f source/product 
Inst> from source/product 
Inst> from $dist/product

The from command must be entered before a list or step command that triggers disk space checking (the source, product, and $dist arguments are described in "Alternative Ways to Specify a Distribution" ).

Forcing Disk Space Recalculation

If you modify files on the target system while working in an IRIX shell (using sh or shroot), Inst automatically updates disk space calculations. You can also issue the recalculate command from the Administrative Commands menu to request a new space check:

Admin> recalculate

This command always performs a detail space check, even when the detailspacecheck preference is off.

Displaying the Disk Space Summary

Disk space summaries are displayed at the end of the output from list and step commands. You can also display a disk space summary at other times in the session by issuing the space command, as shown in this example:

Admin> space
Disk space summary (Kbytes):
                                /
Selections net change        2853
Space available            547421

The space command does not force a recalculation of disk space, so if you issue the space command before space calculation are performed, the net change amount is shown as 0 blocks, even if you have made installation or removal selections.

Displaying Absolute Sizes

By default, the list command displays relative disk space information: the increase or decrease in disk usage that occurs if a subsystem is installed or removed. The amount is displayed in kilobytes and is followed by a plus sign (when additional space is required) or minus sign (when space is freed). Using the show_absolute_sizes preference, you can set list to show absolute rather than relative size information.

This example illustrates how to display absolute subsystem sizes:

Admin> set show_absolute_sizes on
Admin> return
Inst> list sizes motif_dev
...
    Subsystem                              Description
    motif_dev.man.dev *              2377  IRIX IM Dev Manual Pages
    motif_dev.man.relnotes *           17  IRIX IM Technical Notes
    motif_dev.sw.demo                3721  IRIX IM Demos & Examples
    motif_dev.sw.dev *               7037  IRIX IM Libraries & Headers
...
Inst>

Example 8-1 : Sample Display of Absolute Sizes

The delayspacecheck preference must be off to display absolute sizes in list output.

Controlling the Display of Filenames

By default, Inst does not report the names of files as it installs and removes them. The set preferences described below allow you to modify this behavior and control the way that file names are displayed.

To display file names as they are installed, give this command before you enter the go command:

Admin> set show_files on

To return to no display of filenames as they are installed, give this command at any prompt:

Admin> set show_files off

The value of show_files is saved in your installation history database, so it has the same value from one installation session to the next until you change it.

By default, when filenames are displayed during installation and removal, each filename replaces the one that was displayed before it. To change the display so that each name is displayed on a new line, give this command:

Admin> set overprint off

To return to the default behavior, give this command:

Inst> set overprint on

The value of overprint is saved in the installation history database, so it is not necessary to reset it in subsequent installation sessions.

Displaying the Current Distribution Source

The current distribution source is displayed in a message above the Main menu when Inst is invoked. The message has one of these forms:

Default distribution to install from: source 
Default distribution to install from: source/product

Depending on your situation, source includes one or more of these items: a user ID, a remote target name, and a directory or tape device. If you specified a product name when you invoked Inst (inst-f), product is the name of the software product that you specified (for live installations only). The complete syntax of source and source/product is given in "Step 2: Specifying the Source" and "Alternative Ways to Specify a Distribution" .

Each time you issue the from command, the current distribution source changes. You can display the current distribution source by issuing this command from any menu:

Inst> set dist 
Preference         Type          Value
...
dist               String         last_source 
Inst>

The value of dist is last_source, which is a character string (string). The value of last_source is always the same as source (the current distribution), with one exception: After Inst is invoked, but before product descriptors are read for the first time, the value of dist is the distribution source that was specified in the previous installation session. If you use a distribution source of the form source/product, product is not included in the value of dist.

Turning Off Initial Selection of Subsystems

Each time you invoke Inst or issue a from command, Inst ignores any installation or removal selections that were not performed; it uses its own algorithms to select subsystems for installation. You can override this selection of subsystems, but any pending installation or removal selections are still erased.

To prevent Inst from making selections after you issue the from command, give this command:

Inst> set autoselect off

Turning autoselect off means that the only i characters in the first column of list output are selections that you made yourself. To turn automatic selection back on, use this command:

Inst> set autoselect on

The value of autoselect is saved in the installation history database; if you set it off, it remains off in future Inst sessions until you change its value.

Checking and Setting the System Date

The correct date and time of installations is important since portions of the installation process use make(1), which relies on dates to determine whether certain commands should be given. The correct date and time ensure that the actions that are sensitive to the dates of files are performed correctly.

The date command on the Administrative Command menu is identical to date(1). This command prints the date:

Admin> date

This command sets the date:

Admin> date mmddhhmmyy

The mmddhhmmyy argument is two characters each for month, day, hour (on the 24-hour clock), minutes, and year (optional).

Changing the Network Timeout Value

Inst allows you to specify a network timeout value. This value specifies the length of time that Inst waits for responses from a remote system before giving up.

Use the set command to display and set the timeout value:

Admin> set 
     Preference  Value      Description
     ...
     timeout     180       Network timeout, in seconds
     ...
Inst> set timeout 120

A minimum value of 120 seconds is recommended. The value of timeout is saved in the installation history database; when you find a value of timeout that works for your site, you can leave it permanently set (unless network conditions change and timeout errors begin to occur).

A Closer Look at Preferences

Preferences allow you to tailor the installation utility so that it operates suitably for a single user or user group. In most cases, preference settings apply to both Inst and Software Manager (exceptions are tty preferences, which apply exclusively to Inst, and gui preferences, which apply exclusively to Software Manager).

Some preferences, known as permanent preferences, retain their settings until they are reset. Other preferences, known as transient preferences, revert to a default setting at the start of a new session. A group of preferences have potential to cause installation errors when set arbitrarily; these preferences are classified as expert.

Most preferences are assigned simple boolean values; that is, you use the set command to turn them on or off. You can also substitute true (for on) and false (for off) when setting these preferences. These examples illustrate equivalent command pairs:

Admin> set beep on
Admin> set beep true
Admin> set short_names off
Admin> set short_name false

The Preferences List

Table 8-1 describes the preferences that you can specify with the set command (or from the Customize Installation menus in Software Manager). It lists the name of the preference, describes the function that the preference performs, and lists the default setting for the preference. Expert preferences are identified in the first column. The fourth column, Value Saved?, indicates whether the preference remains in effect for subsequent installation sessions (yes) or reverts to a default value at the start of a new session (no).

Table 8-1 : Preferences and Their FunctionsPreference Name FunctionDefault SettingValue Saved?Comments

abort_on_error

(Expert)

Controls whether an automatic installation is aborted if an error occurs. If true (default), an error cancels the installation; if false, the installation continues after the error occurs. Regardless of setting, errors are reported in /var/inst/INSTLOG.

true

yes

N/A

always_confirm_quit

Controls whether the user is always asked to confirm a quit command. If true, user must confirm a quit; if false (default), no user confirmation is needed after quit.

false

yes

N/A

always_page_inst

Controls whether requested information, such as progress messages during go processing, are displayed in page segments or scrolled off the screen. If true, requested information is displayed in page segments; if false (default), information that is longer than a page scrolls off the screen.

false

no

Applies only to Inst.

auto_inst_new

Controls whether new products are selected for installation when installation is automatic. If true, all new products are installed during an automatic installation. If false (default), new products are omitted from automatic installations.

false

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

auto_inst_upgrades

Controls whether upgrade products are selected for installation when installation is automatic. If true (default), all upgrade products are installed during an automatic installation. If false, upgrade products are omitted from automatic installations.

true

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

autoselect

Controls whether inst does an automatic selection of subsystems during initialization and when a new distribution source is specified. If true (default), inst automatically selects subsystems at these events in the session; if false, no subsystems are automatically selected.

true

yes

N/A

background
(Expert)

Controls whether Software Manager is run as a background or foreground task when invoked from an IRIX shell. If true (default), Software Manager runs as a background task; if false, Software Manager runs as a foreground task.

true

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

beep
(Expert)

Controls whether an audible signal is given after go processing is complete. If true (default), audible signal rings when go processing finishes; if false, no signal is given

true

yes

N/A

busy_check
(Expert)

Controls whether files that are currently in use by active processes are included in the pre-installation space calculations. If true (default), the amount of space required by busy files is included in calculations; if false, busy files are omitted from calculations.

true

no

Always false for miniroot installations.

checkpoint_restart
(Expert)

Set during a session recovery, when the user selects the action to take after an abnormal exit. If true, the user chose to retry the interrupted installation using the selections made during the session; if false (default), the user chose to either return to the previous session without attempting to install selected software or to ignore the previous session completely.

false

no

N/A

checkpoint_selections
(Expert)

Controls whether installation and removal selections are saved in the checkpoint file so they can be used in a session recovery. If true, user selections are saved in the file as soon as they are made; if false (default), pending selections are saved when the user enters the go command.

false

yes

N/A

clearprompt

Controls how throw-away prompts are displayed. If true (default), these prompts are cleared from a line by overwriting with blank spaces; if false , the original prompts remain on the line and a new line is generated to display a new prompt.

true

yes

Applies only to Inst; set to false on terminals that do not perform line clearing.

confirm_quit

Controls the confirmation prompt for quit commands when selections are pending. If true (default), users are notified if install or removal selections are pending when they enter quit; if false, users are allowed to quit the session without a reminder of pending selections.

true

yes

N/A

confirm_nfs_installs

Controls whether user is prompted to confirm installation on NFS mounted filesystems. If on (default), user is prompted for confirmation; if off, files are installed in the NFS filesystem if the user has proper permissions.

on

yes

N/A

custom_startup_mode
(Expert)

Controls how Software Manager is initially presented. If off (default), Software Manager always starts in Automatic Installation mode (selections are automatically made at initialization). If distribution, it starts in Customize Installation mode (the user makes selections) if a distribution was specified; if no distribution was specified, it starts in Automatic Installation mode. If always, Inst starts in Customize Installation mode if a distribution was specified; if no distribution was specified, it starts in Manage Installed Software mode (actions apply to target software only).

off

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

default_config
(Expert)

Controls handling of configuration files. If true, all configuration files that are in the distribution are installed; if the target version was modified, it is saved in a file with a .O extension. If false (default) and the target version was modified, install the distribution version of the configuration files, appending a .N extension; if the target version was not modified, overwrite it with the new file.

false

yes

N/A

default_sharedirs
(Expert)

Controls the location of directories that are shared by diskless clients. The default location is /usr.

/usr

no

N/A

delayspacecheck

Controls the timing of disk space calculations. If on, disk space calculations are deferred until the go or space commands are issued, and no space information is provided when list or step commands are entered; if off (default), space calculations are performed at the first list, step, or space command, unless disk space checking was done previously.

off

yes

N/A

detailspacecheck

Controls the source of the data used in space checking. If on, space requirements for files is determined by checking their sizes on the disk; if off (default), file sizes are assumed to be the value that is recorded in the installation history database.

off

yes

Set on for slower, more accurate, calculations.

display_legend

Controls the legend for list displays. If true, the output of list contains an explanation of the mnemonic tags that appear in the listing; if false, the legend is not posted.

true

yes

Applies only to Inst.

display_size

Controls the unit of measure for subsystem sizes. Valid settings are kbytes (default), kilobytes, bytes, or 512-byte blocks.

kbytes

no

Applies only to Inst.

dist

Specifies the value of the current distribution source. For live installations, the default value is the previously specified source. For miniroot installations, dist must be specified.

source

yes

Product names are not saved as part of the value.

error.display_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in errors that are displayed on the screen. If 2, the display contains the maximum level of detail; if 1 (default), the display contains moderate level of detail; if 0, no details are displayed.

1

yes

N/A

error.log_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in errors that are recorded in the log file. If 2 (default), the log contains the maximum level of detail; if 1, the log contains moderate level of detail; if 0, no details are logged.

2

yes

N/A

fullmenu

Controls the display of hidden commands (but not their availability) on the Main menu, Administrative Commands menu, and View Commands menu. If on, hidden commands appear on these menus; if off (default), hidden commands do not appear.

off

yes

Applies only to Inst.

hide_image_products
(Expert)

Controls whether the image components of each product are displayed when the product list is displayed. If true (default), listings of products do not include their component images. If false, the image components of a product are displayed in product listings.

true

yes

N/A

info.display_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in informational messages that are displayed on the screen. If 2, screen messages contain the maximum level of detail; if 1, screen messages contain a moderate level of detail; if 0, screen messages contain no details.

0

yes

N/A

info.log_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in informational messages that are recorded in the log file. If 2, logged messages contain the maximum level of detail; if 1 (default), logged messages contain a moderate level of detail; if 0, logged messages contain no details.

1

yes

N/A

inst_initial_level
(Expert)

Controls the initial setting of the view command. If subsystem (default), the output of list displays the subsystems in each product that appears in the listing; if image, the output of list displays the images for each product that appears in the listing; if product, the output of list displays product names without product components.

subsystem

yes

N/A

inst_visible_resources

Controls the list of preferences that are displayed when the set command is issued with no arguments (see also swmgr_visible_resources). This preference takes multiple values: tty (default) specifies that the displayed list should contain all preferences that apply to the Inst interface; permanent (default) specifies that the displayed list should contain all preferences whose value is maintained in subsequent sessions (until the value is reset); transient specifies that the displayed list should contain all whose value reverts to a default at the end of a session; beginner (default) limits the displayed list to all preferences that are not designated expert; expert specifies that the displayed list contain all preferences whose settings have potentially adverse effects on installation.

tty permanent transient beginner

yes

Applies only to Inst. In your entry, separate values with a comma (no spaces are allowed).

install_identical_files
(Expert)

Controls whether files are installed if the distribution version appears identical to the version installed on the target. If true, identical distribution files are installed. If false, distribution files are not installed when they appear identical.

true

yes

Set to false for faster installations.

install_sites
(Expert)

Contains the list of previous distribution sources (also see the install_site_size preference).

N/A

yes

N/A

install_site_size

Specifies the number of items that are displayed in the list of previous distribution sources. Valid settings are integers.

10

yes

N/A

menus

Controls whether menus are displayed automatically. If on (default), Main menu is displayed at startup and all menus are displayed when they are invoked; if off, menus are not displayed at startup or invocation, but users can display them manually by entering ? at the menu prompt.

on

yes

Applies only to Inst; set off for experienced Inst users.

network_retry

Specifies the number of network timeouts that will be allowed before connection attempts are abandoned.

2

yes

N/A

never_resize_pane
(Expert)

Controls whether pane is resized when switching the selection mode (see custom_startup_mode preference). If true (default), the pane size remains the same for all selection modes. If false, pane size is changed when the selection modes are changed.

true

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

neweroverride

Controls whether older products can replace newer ones. If on, users can install older products in place of new ones; if off (default), older products cannot be installed when a more recent version exists on the target.

off

no

N/A

overprint

Controls the display of the software listing during installation (or removed). If on (default), the same line is used to display the name of each software item as it is installed; the name is overwritten when the next item is installed. If off, a new line is used to display each name; the list scrolls down the screen.

on

yes

Applies only to Inst.

override_space_check
(Expert)

Controls whether space checking is performed. If true, no space checking is done during an installation, allowing disk overflows. If false (default), space checking is performed.

false

no

Setting true can cause serious installation problems.

page_output

Controls tty device output. If true (default), output is managed by paging that is similar to more(1M); if false, output scrolls off the screen.

true

no

Applies only to Inst.

post_install_dialog
(Expert)

Controls whether a completion notice is posted when an installation is completed. If true (default), a completion notice is posted. If false, the user sees a message only if a reboot is required.

true

yes

N/A

precious_files
(Expert)

Specifies the list of files that cannot be overwritten or removed during the installation. Value is one or more filenames that are specified as arguments.

None

no

In your entry, separate values with a comma (no spaces are allowed).

promptforid
(Expert)

Controls whether user is prompted to specify unknown user IDs (UIDs) and group IDs (GIDs). If true, user is prompted for a UID if one is not found in /etc/passwd and a GID if one is not found in /etc/group. If false (default), inst assigns a UID and GID based on the startid preference and writes them to /usr/adm/SYSLOG.

false

yes

N/A

rulesoverride

Controls whether conflicts can be overwritten. If on, incompatible subsystems and subsystems without prerequisites may be installed on the target. If off (default), incompatibilities and prerequisites must be resolved before installation is done.

off

no

Use on setting with caution.

selections_file
(Expert)

Specifies the name of the file that contains software selections during the session.

N/A

no

N/A

set_path
(Expert)

Specifies the value to use when setting the $PATH variable for exit operations. If default (default), set to a known path; if environment, set path to $PATH environment variable or use the default path if $PATH is not set; if specific, use the value in set_path_specific preference.

default

yes

N/A

set_path_specific
(Expert)

Specifies the path to use for exit operations. Value is a user-supplied string.

N/A

yes

N/A

shell

Specifies the program to use for the sh and shroot Administrative commands. Usually this value is either /bin/sh or /bin/csh.

/bin/csh

yes

N/A

short_names

Controls product names in listings. If true, only the shortname is displayed in listings; if false, product descriptions are displayed instead of their shortnames.

false

yes

N/A

show_absolute_sizes

Sets list and step displays to provide absolute subsystem sizes rather than relative sizes (a comparison between the size of the distribution subsystem and its corresponding subsystem on the target). If on, the absolute subsystem size is displayed; if off (default) the relative size is displayed.

off

no

Default unit of measure is kilobytes. See also display_size.

show_files
(Expert)

Controls whether filenames are displayed during installation. If true, each component file in a product is displayed as it is installed; if false (default), the product name is displayed as it is installed.

false

yes

N/A

show_lint
(Expert)

Determines whether inconsistencies in the distribution are displayed during reading (for debugging). If true, inconsistencies are displayed; if false (default), inconsistencies are not reported.

false

yes

N/A

space_check
(Expert)

Controls whether space checking is performed. If true (default), space checking is done at various points in the installation (see the delayspacecheck preference). If false, no space checking is performed.

true

no

Setting false can cause serious installation problems.

space_indicator

Controls format of space-checking information. Valid settings are pie, bar, and text.

pie

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

startid

Sets the starting value of UIDs and GIDs when this information is unknown to inst and promptforid preference is set off (also see promptforid preference). The value of startid is assigned to the first unknown UID and GID; subsequent unknown UIDs and GIDs are incrementa by 1.

6000

yes

N/A

swmgr_initial_level
(Expert)

Controls the level of the product hierarchy that is displayed when Software Manager is invoked. Valid settings are product (default) and subsystem.

product

yes

N/A

swmgr_visible_resources

Controls the set of preferences that are visible in the Preferences dialog (see also inst_visible_resources). These settings are valid: if none, no preferences are displayed in the dialog; if permanent (default), the dialog contains all preferences whose values are retained for subsequent installation sessions (until the value is changed); if transient, the dialog contains preferences whose settings revert to a default at the end of a session; if beginner (default), the dialog contains all preferences that are not designated expert; if expert, the dialog contains preferences whose settings have potentially adverse effects on installation.

beginner permanent

yes

Applies only to Software Manager. In your entry, separate values with a comma (no spaces are allowed).

timeout

Specifies the amount of time, in seconds, that inst allows for a reply from a remote host before retrying the connection. Two retries are done after the initial attempt.

120 seconds

yes

Set to a value that is suitable for your network.

use_last_dist
(Expert)

Controls the contents of the Available Software field. If true, the last distribution source that was used is automatically entered in this field at startup. If false, this field is empty at startup.

false

yes

Applies only to Software Manager.

verify_checksum
(Expert)

Controls whether files are verified by checksum as they are uncompressed or read from the archives. If true, checksum verification is performed. If false (default), no checksum verification is made.

false

yes

N/A

warning.display_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in warning messages that are displayed. If 2 , warning messages contain the maximum level of detail; if 1, warning messages contain a moderate level of detail; if 0 (default), warning messages contain no details.

0

yes

N/A

warning.log_verbosity
(Expert)

Controls the level of detail in warning messages that are recorded in the log file. If 2, logged messages contain the maximum level of detail; if 1 (default), logged messages contain a moderate level of detail; if 0 , logged messages contain no details.

1

yes

N/A

wrapmode

Controls whether displayed lines will wrap or truncate at the screen width limit. If wrap (default), lines longer than the screen width wrap to the next line; if truncate, lines are truncated at the limit of the screen width.

wrap

yes

Applies only to Inst

The Preferences File

In the factory-shipped configuration of inst, preference settings are stored in the /var/inst/resources file. However, whenever the original setting for a permanent preference is changed, the new setting is recorded in the .swmgrrc file, which is automatically created at the first change. The automatically generated copy is stored in the root directory, $rbase , for the new software installation at $rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc.

Creating Additional Preferences Files

You can create and store additional copies of .swmgrrc to tailor preferences for a particular system or for individual users. When multiple copies of .swmgrrc exist, the settings that they contain are added to the settings in $rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc. If conflicting settings are recorded for a particular preference, the most user-specific setting takes precedence as explained below.

You or individual users can create additional .swmgrrc files in these locations, in order of highest to lowest precedence:

$HOME/ .swmgrrc: Contains preference settings for all installation sessions that the user initiates (except miniroot installations) and resides in the user's home directory on the target system. Takes precedence over settings in $rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc,/var/inst/.swmgrrc, and $rbase/$HOME/.swmgrrc.
$rbase/$HOME/.swmgrrc: Contains an individual user's preference settings for miniroot installations and resides in a special home directory for the installation (a subdirectory of the root directory for the newly installed software (such as $rbase/var/people/$HOME, for example). Takes precedence over settings in $rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc and /var/inst/.swmgrrc.
/var/inst/.swmgrrc: Contains preference settings that are used for all installations performed on the target by any user. Whereas the effects of the $rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc file are restricted to the root directory for the new software ($rbase ), /var/inst/.swmgrrc affects installations to any filesystem on the target.

When Inst or Software Manager is invoked, existing .swmgrrc files are read in this order:

/var/inst/.swmgrrc
$rbase/var/inst/.swmgrrc
$rbase/$HOME/.swmgrrc
$HOME/.swmgrrc

When preference settings are added to .swmgrr, the new values are recorded in the file that was opened last. As a result, preference settings are recorded in the most localized version of the .swgrrc file that is open during the installation session.

The Format of a Preferences File

Each line of the .swmgrrc file contains the name of a preference and its assigned values. Example 8-2 illustrates the format of .swmgrrc entries. It illustrates settings that are expressed as boolean, single choice, multi-value, and integer values.

auto__inst_new: true
display_size: blocks
inst_visible_resources: tty,transient,permanent,beginner,expert
network_retries: 4

Example 8-2 : Sample .swmgrrc File