BaseSystemConfiguration

Differences between revisions 1 and 4 (spanning 3 versions)
⇤ ← Revision 1 as of 2005-10-31 18:12:31 →
Size: 1165
Editor: 187_220_103_66-WIFI_HOTSPOTS
Comment: Added Page for Ubuntu Express Specification
← Revision 4 as of 2005-11-02 20:29:47 → ⇥
Size: 3149
Editor: 209
Comment: more drafting
Deletions are marked like this. Additions are marked like this.
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 * '''Contributors''': Fabianx
 * '''Packages affected''': 		 * '''Contributors''': Fabianx, ColinWatson, LaMontJones, StephanHermann, AndrewMitchell
 * '''Packages affected''': ubuntu-express, apt-setup, keymapper, cdebconf, kbd-chooser
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The Ubuntu Express Installer needs to configure the base system, to create a user and set a password. The ubuntu-installer already contains code to configure the base system, which we can reuse; in particular, OEMInstaller specifies a new firstboot component which can reconfigure just some parts of an installed system. The requirements of this component are very similar, so they should share code. The Ubuntu Express Installer needs to configure the base system, to create a user and set a password. The Ubuntu installer already contains code to configure the base system, which we can reuse under the oem-config framework.
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Possible things this component has to do: The base system configuration component(s) of UbuntuExpress needs to perform the following tasks (in cooperation with user interface code for each of GNOME and KDE):
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1. Create User/Password.
2. Possibly get language/i18n/timezone out of debconf (see UbuntuExpress/CopyFileSystem)		  * select language
 * select country
 * select timezone
 * select keymap
 * select username/password
 * configure apt

There has been some debate about whether hostname selection ought to be present; the consensus appears to be that, while it is useful in a server install, it can be skipped in a default desktop install.
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1. Users want to have their own username and password.
2. Users want the system in their language.		  0. Users want to have their own username and password.
 0. Users want the system in their language.
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In the GNOME user interface (see UbuntuExpress/GnomeUserInterface), we can borrow a city map widget from Evolution to choose a city for the timezone. This implies the country, and gives us a good guess for the language, in conjunction with the bootloader language.

For keymap configuration, we will factor out the "select keymap based on pressing keys" widget from our existing installer (it is already quite cleanly separated) and add appropriate user interface code to it. We will select the keymap default based on that configured in the live CD.

The Guadalinex implementation of UbuntuExpress already has username and password questions, which just need some polish (and replacement of the backend to remove duplicated and incorrect validation code, and just use that in passwd.config). We will need to remove the hostname question from that implementation.
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{{{
apt configuration:
 - need to regenerate by default so that we get local CC.archive.ubuntu.com mirrors
 - must honour customisations and not overwrite
  - ... including customisations made to the live CD filesystem before the user boots
 - nevertheless, may be useful for casper to use the new apt-setup udebs to generate a sample apt configuration as the live CD starts up, provided that the customiser doesn't forbid it from doing so (using some yet-to-be-invented mechanism)

how to get pieces only available as udebs? (unpack udebs somehow, or generate debs from each relevant source package)
 - in this case, the only things we care about are (I think) apt-setup and the keyboard configuration bits; apt-setup wants to generate a deb eventually anyway, and I can cope with building some for keymapper etc.
}}}

Summary

The Ubuntu Express Installer needs to configure the base system, to create a user and set a password. The Ubuntu installer already contains code to configure the base system, which we can reuse under the oem-config framework.

Rationale

The base system configuration component(s) of UbuntuExpress needs to perform the following tasks (in cooperation with user interface code for each of GNOME and KDE):

  • select language
  • select country
  • select timezone
  • select keymap
  • select username/password
  • configure apt

There has been some debate about whether hostname selection ought to be present; the consensus appears to be that, while it is useful in a server install, it can be skipped in a default desktop install.

Use cases

  1. Users want to have their own username and password.
  2. Users want the system in their language.

Scope

Design

In the GNOME user interface (see UbuntuExpress/GnomeUserInterface), we can borrow a city map widget from Evolution to choose a city for the timezone. This implies the country, and gives us a good guess for the language, in conjunction with the bootloader language.

For keymap configuration, we will factor out the "select keymap based on pressing keys" widget from our existing installer (it is already quite cleanly separated) and add appropriate user interface code to it. We will select the keymap default based on that configured in the live CD.

The Guadalinex implementation of UbuntuExpress already has username and password questions, which just need some polish (and replacement of the backend to remove duplicated and incorrect validation code, and just use that in passwd.config). We will need to remove the hostname question from that implementation.

Implementation

Code

Data preservation and migration

Outstanding issues

BoF agenda and discussion

apt configuration:
 - need to regenerate by default so that we get local CC.archive.ubuntu.com mirrors
 - must honour customisations and not overwrite
  - ... including customisations made to the live CD filesystem before the user boots
 - nevertheless, may be useful for casper to use the new apt-setup udebs to generate a sample apt configuration as the live CD starts up, provided that the customiser doesn't forbid it from doing so (using some yet-to-be-invented mechanism)

how to get pieces only available as udebs? (unpack udebs somehow, or generate debs from each relevant source package)
 - in this case, the only things we care about are (I think) apt-setup and the keyboard configuration bits; apt-setup wants to generate a deb eventually anyway, and I can cope with building some for keymapper etc.

UbuntuExpress/BaseSystemConfiguration (last edited 2008-08-06 16:36:22 by localhost)