Ubuntu 11.10, Introduce new top-level directory /run | Hacker News Reader

Ubuntu 11.10, Introduce new top-level directory /run

wiki.debian.org

90 pointsnexusz9930 comments

It's actually an alteration to the Linux Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS) that most distros are adopting (all likely will in the future). Nothing specifically to do with Ubuntu.

It was introduced in 3.0 of the standards: https://www.linux.com/learn/tutorials/476610-a-look-at-the-f...

It says that in the main article.

It's an interesting run-down of the new Debian and Fedora feature (and a very good change IMO), but the title is misleading - what does the linked article have to do with Ubuntu, 11.10 or otherwise?

Because it shipped in Ubuntu 11.10. (And, there was a bug that didn't fully transition some systems over that would cause a crash on boot).

Do you think you could you link to that bug? I just upgraded to 11.10, I don't have a /run directory, and I did have some boot problems that I worked around. (A google search didn't turn anything up.)

Edit: My mistake, after rebooting, this folder popped right up :)

hmm I upgraded and yes do have it..

did you upgrade from 11.04 or lower ?

Then why is the link to the description of the Debian feature rather than to Ubuntu's documentation of it?

Linkbait title. There a new ubuntu release out, and people expect ubuntu to make some radical change that will be controversial.

The submitter is trying to stir things up.

It kills me that these people "expect ubuntu" and are oblivious to debian...

Because when Debian does work, Ubuntu gets credit. Consistently.

The problem is that certain people (no comment) do not realize the value of debian and the same people's fanboyism for Ubuntu leads them to be Ubuntu is the greatest thing in the world.

  > Why do we need /run?
  > 
  > There is a need for a writable location to store data
  > during early boot, before / is made writable (and it
  > might be read only even during normal operation).
  > Currently, no cross-distribution standardized location
  > exists for this purpose. Debian uses /lib/init/rw; Ubuntu
  > apparently does some very complex stuff linking /var/run
  > to /lib/init/rw and using showthrough mounts. Other
  > distributions do their own thing. Several programs chose
  > not to use /lib/init/rw due to it being non-standard, and
  > continued to use /dev/.foo due to udev mounting a tmpfs
  > there which could be abused as a data store during early
  > boot. /run provides a standard place for these use cases.

So, this is one of those "no user-serviceable parts inside" changes. The purpose is only for developers during bootup.

Would be good, but, let me know if FHS actually accepts this. http://www.pathname.com/fhs/

IIRC, this was hashed out and accepted months ago, but is only now starting to see use in new releases.

I for one, was impressed by the decision. Unlike what often happens when multiple distros are involved, everyone seemed come to a consensus quickly, and said "let's make it happen".

Previous discussion:

Introducing /run (lwn.net) — http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2387495

/run has been in Debian unstable for quite a while now actually, at least 3-4 months. /var/run is just a symlink. I think this is related to the systemd stuff.

Personally, the first thing I do when I install a Linux is write a simple /etc/rc script which mounts filesystems and launches daemons. No /etc/init.d/* start stop stuff, no /run. The result is almost always simpler and faster. My thinkpad takes 3 seconds from bootloader to X11.

I have never understood the fixation on boot time.

It's easily measurable.

It made a lot more sense before hibernation and sleep matured and stabilised.

Simplicity was my main point. The fact that it was faster just followed. As a matter of fact I haven't rebooted this machine in about 3 weeks.

How do you handle dependencies? One of the slickest things about debian boot/init is resolvconf populating dnscache's list of dns servers with the dhcp reply. I love that. I'd wait a minute extra just for that.

Good stuff. Nice to see different the groups come together standardize this.

I am running Ubuntu 11.10, and it seems that manual pages for "hier" are not updated.

   man hier

This shit makes me wish Gobolinux could have a chance against a behemoth like Ubuntu.

Shit? What do you think is bad about the /run?

That it is an incremental fix for a terrible ad-hoc file-system design that has invaded almost all Linux distributions.

You still can't easily install 2 versions of a program in Debian. It's 2011.

    ./configure --prefix=/some/unique/place

His point is that dpkg is unable to support installation of multiple versions of a package. update-alternatives and having custom packaging (like with python2.6 and python2.7) solves some of this issue, but Gobolinux deals with it a lot better

My point is that it's very easy to do this, but that no real users of Debian want it enough to begin doing it.

"Real" users? What does that even mean?

Just had a look at gobolinux now - that filesystem change seems like a sledgehammer to counter the 'lack of ease' in tapping in the picture-hook problem of installing two programs.

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