RFC: 1.7.33 problem with user's home directory

[Andrey Repin]

Greetings, Corinna Vinschen!

>> > 1. Utilize the homeDirectory AD attribute (aka %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPATH%).
>> > 2. If homeDirectory is empty, fall back to /home/$USER.
>> 
>> This is just a subset of what I suggested, so I’m in favor of it.
>> (By subset I mean that I’d prefer you do essentially the same thing for the non-AD case, too.)

> This would be most easily implemented as well.

> The beauty here is that probably 99% of the home users don't set
> HOMEDRIVE/HOMEPATH in their SAM.

They are always set by default.

> So they get /home/$USER as fallback,

No.

> which is what they got with /etc/passwd as well.  And SAM users have the
> XML-like description field entry as well.

> For AD environments HOMEDRIVE/HOMEPATH are typically set, though.

HOMEDRIVE/HOMEPATH always set.

> Here the users get what they have to use as homedir anyway.

> It's simple, but it should work OOTB for most people.

Yes, it'll work. Just not as you expect it.

>> > 1. Always use /home/$USER and let the admins come up with a matching
>> >   mount point scheme.
>> 
>> That’s neglecting your responsibility as BDFL to set a sensible

> Heh.  I didn't see myself as BDFL yet.  Not sure if that's an honor.

That's a chore. But someone has to pull it.

>> default.  The consequence is that everyone will do it differently, and
>> then you’ll have to support everything on an equal basis, because you
>> chose not to endorse anything.
>> 
>> When you choose a sensible default, you get the option to criticize
>> and even deprecate wild alternative schemes.

> This is a philosophical argument.  You'd have to argue in how far
> always using /home/$USER is NOT a sensible default.

I can give you a whole list of reason, including quotes from Cygwin
documentation, why this is not a good idea.
And "cygwin is not an operating system" will be a red canvas through them.


--
WBR,
Andrey Repin (anrdaemon@yandex.ru) 14.11.2014, <00:49>

Sorry for my terrible english...