Re: /etc/pkg/FreeBSD.conf and /usr/local/etc/pkg/FreeBSD.conf (not repo names)

> On 23. Aug 2025, at 14:39, Tomoaki AOKI <junchoon@dec.sakura.ne.jp> wrote:
> 
> On Sat, 23 Aug 2025 11:40:27 +0100
> Graham Perrin <grahamperrin@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>>> On 23/08/2025 10:28, Tomoaki AOKI wrote:
>>> … /etc/pkg is described as "default configuration for the package
>>> manager, pkg(8)".
>> 
>> 
>> Indeed, and pkg(8) is _not_ base, so what's described is not consistent 
>> with /etc/ for base system software configuration files.
>> 
>> <https://man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=intro&sektion=5&manpath=freebsd-current#FILES>
>> 
>> A single repo e.g. FreeBSD-ports in /etc/pkg/FreeBSD.conf is used by pkg 
>> (7, not 8) for bootstrap.
>> 
>> Then:
>> 
>> - /etc/pkg.conf does not exist
>> 
>> - /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf is explicitly the system-wide configuration 
>> file for pkg(8).
>> 
>> So, I might expect /usr/local/etc/pkg/repos/FreeBSD.conf to be the 
>> system-wide〓FreeBSD repository configuration file for pkg(8).
>> 
>> <https://man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=pkg.conf&sektion=5&manpath=freebsd-ports#OPTIONS> 
>> REPOS_DIR does have the default list of two directories to search.
>> 
>> When I first saw pkgbasify write a FreeBSD-base configuration to 
>> /usr/local/etc/pkg/repos/ I thought that the path was, somehow, unexpected.
> 
> I think it should be a fatal mistake and should be in under /etc,
> not under /usr/local/etc. If it is still as such, it should be fixed
> before any release primarily use PkgBase for installs/updates.
> Maybe at 15.0?
> 
> 
>> After looking at intro(5) and hier(7), /usr/local/etc/pkg/repos/ seems 
>> proper (a change of mind).
> 
> Again, I think /usr/local/etc/pkg should be the place for
> local ones, anything not updated on PkgBase, bsdinstall nor
> freebsd-update. Anything possibly updated by them should be in
> under /etc.
> 
> What allowed to be created and/or edited by admins in /etc
> should better limited to anything essential for boot.
> fstab, rc.conf, firewall configs and so on that any of boot process
> (including rc scripts in /etc/rc.conf.d) requires.
> 
> 
>> <https://reviews.freebsd.org/D51594> for pkgbasify in base 〓 without 
>> pkg(8) in base 〓 will probably change my mind, again.
> 
> I think pkg is quite irregular corner case.
> Indeed, it SHALL be the part of base, but as it is still under active
> developement, need to be in ports "until the spec prolerly fixed up".
> So exists /usr/sbin/pkg for bootstrapping.
> 
> If pkg is NOT an irregular corner case, why ALL ports are NOT forced
> to have corresponding bootstraps in base?
> 
> And IMHO, PkgBase SHALL NOT BE ALLOWED unless pkg is considered
> as the part of base, even though actual part is "currently" placed
> in ports tree.
> 
> "PkgBase is coming to true.", I believe this is why configs for pkg
> is placed under /etc, not /usr/local/etc.
> 
> -- 
> Tomoaki AOKI    <junchoon@dec.sakura.ne.jp>
> 

In an ideal world, pkg would be in base, its default config would be /etc/defaults/pkg.conf, users could override in /etc/pkg.conf and/or /etc/pkg.d/*.conf

But there’s history and making progress sometimes comes with compromises.

-m