From a0ac4523b1ebceff60ced8c7d079caf0ffc0db8b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Eric Andersen Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2003 03:14:04 +0000 Subject: Write all the help text for the util-linux utilities. Allow people to locate the mtab file somewhere other that /etc to accomodate read only root filesystems. -Erik --- util-linux/Config.in | 186 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---------- 1 file changed, 152 insertions(+), 34 deletions(-) (limited to 'util-linux') diff --git a/util-linux/Config.in b/util-linux/Config.in index 2494e6e..be56020 100644 --- a/util-linux/Config.in +++ b/util-linux/Config.in @@ -10,100 +10,144 @@ config CONFIG_DMESG bool "dmesg" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + dmesg is used to examine or control the kernel ring buffer. When the + Linux kernel prints messages to the system log, they are stored in + the kernel ring buffer. You can use dmesg to print the kernel's ring + buffer, clear the kernel ring buffer, change the size of the kernel + ring buffer, and change the priority level at which kernel messages + are also logged to the system console. Enable this option if you + wish to enable the 'dmesg' utility. config CONFIG_FBSET bool "fbset" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + fbset is used to show or change the settings of a Linux frame buffer + device. The frame buffer device provides a simple and unique + interface to access a graphic display. Enable this option if you wish + to enable the 'fbset' utility. + config CONFIG_FEATURE_FBSET_FANCY bool " Turn on extra fbset options" default n depends on CONFIG_FBSET help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This option enables extended fbset options, allowing one to set the + framebuffer size, color depth, etc. interface to access a graphic + display. Enable this option if you wish to enable extended fbset + options. config CONFIG_FEATURE_FBSET_READMODE bool " Turn on fbset readmode support" default n depends on CONFIG_FBSET help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This option allows fbset to read the video mode database stored by + default as /etc/fb.modes, which can be used to set frame buffer + device to pre-defined video modes. config CONFIG_FDFLUSH bool "fdflush" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Fdflush is only needed when changing media on slightly-broken + removable media drives. It is used to make Linux believe that a + hardware disk-change switch has been actuated, which causes Linux to + forget anything it has cached from the previous media. If you have + such a slightly-broken drive, you will need to run fdflush every time + you change a disk. Most people have working hardware and can safely + say leave this disabled. config CONFIG_FDISK bool "fdisk" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The fdisk utility is used to divide hard disks into one or more + logical disks, which are generally called partitions. This utility + can be used to list and edit the set of partitions or BSD style + 'disk slices' that are defined on a hard drive. config CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE bool " Write support" default y depends on CONFIG_FDISK help - Allow changes to be written to disk, without this you - will only be able to view the partition table. + Enabling this option allows you to create or change a partition table + and write those changes out to disk. If you leave this option + disabled, you will only be able to view the partition table. config CONFIG_FEATURE_AIX_LABEL bool " Support AIX disklabels" default n depends on CONFIG_FDISK && CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this option allows you to create or change AIX disklabels. + Most people can safely leave this option disabled. config CONFIG_FEATURE_SGI_LABEL bool " Support SGI disklabels" default n depends on CONFIG_FDISK && CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this option allows you to create or change SGI disklabels. + Most people can safely leave this option disabled. config CONFIG_FEATURE_SUN_LABEL bool " Support SUN disklabels" default n depends on CONFIG_FDISK && CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this option allows you to create or change SUN disklabels. + Most people can safely leave this option disabled. config CONFIG_FEATURE_OSF_LABEL bool " Support BSD disklabels" default n depends on CONFIG_FDISK && CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this option allows you to create or change BSD disklabels + and define and edit BSD disk slices. config CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_ADVANCED bool " Support expert mode" default n depends on CONFIG_FDISK && CONFIG_FEATURE_FDISK_WRITABLE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this option allows you to do terribly unsafe things like + define arbitrary drive geometry, move the beginning of data in a + partition, and similarly evil things. Unless you have a very good + reason you would be wise to leave this disabled. config CONFIG_FREERAMDISK bool "freeramdisk" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Linux allows you to create ramdisks. This utility allows you to + delete them and completely free all memory that was used for the + ramdisk. For example, if you boot Linux into a ramdisk and later + pivot_root, you may want to free the memory that is allocated to the + ramdisk. If you have no use for freeing memory from a ramdisk, leave + this disabled. config CONFIG_FSCK_MINIX bool "fsck_minix" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The minix filesystem is a nice, small, compact, read-write filesystem + with little overhead. It is not a journaling filesystem however and + can encounted corruption if it is not properly unmounted or if the + power goes off in the middle of a write. This utility allows you to + check for and attempt to repair any corruption that occurs to a minix + filesystem. config CONFIG_MKFS_MINIX bool "mkfs_minix" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The minix filesystem is a nice, small, compact, read-write filesystem + with little overhead. If you wish to be able to create minix filesystems + this utility will do the job for you. comment "Minix filesystem support" depends on CONFIG_FSCK_MINIX || CONFIG_MKFS_MINIX @@ -113,57 +157,87 @@ config CONFIG_FEATURE_MINIX2 default y depends on CONFIG_FSCK_MINIX || CONFIG_MKFS_MINIX help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + If you wish to be able to create version 2 minix filesystems, enable this. + If you enabled 'mkfs_minix' then you almost certainly want to be using the + version 2 filesystem support. config CONFIG_GETOPT bool "getopt" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The getopt utility is used to break up (parse) options in command + lines to make it easy to write complex shell scripts that also check + for legal (and illegal) options. If you want to write horribly + complex shell scripts, or use some horribly complex shell script + written by others, this utility may be for you. Most people will + wisely leave this disabled. config CONFIG_HEXDUMP bool "hexdump" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The hexdump utility is used to display binary data in a readable + way that is comparable to the output from most hex editors. config CONFIG_HWCLOCK bool "hwclock" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The hwclock utility is used to read and set the hardware clock + on a system. This is primarily used to set the correct time in + the hardware close, so the hardware will keep the correct time + when Linux is _not_ running. config CONFIG_FEATURE_HWCLOCK_LONGOPTIONS bool " Support long options (--hctosys,...)" default n depends on CONFIG_HWCLOCK help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + By default, the hwclock utility only uses short options. If you + are overly fond of the long options, such as --hctosys, --utc, etc) + then enable this option. config CONFIG_LOSETUP bool "losetup" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + losetup is used to associate or detach a loop device with a regular + file or block device, and to query the status of a loop device. This + version does not currently support enabling data encryption. config CONFIG_MKSWAP bool "mkswap" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The mkswap utility is used to configure a file or disk partition as + Linux swap space. This allows Linux to use the entire file or + partition as if it were additional RAM, which can greatly increase + the capability of low-memory machines. This additional memory is + much slower than real RAM, but can be very helpful at preventing your + applications being killed by the Linux out of memory (OOM) killer. Once + you have created swap space using 'mkswap' you need to enable the swap + space using the 'swapon' utility. config CONFIG_MORE bool "more" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + More is a simple utility which allows you to read text one screen + sized page at a time. If you want to read text that is larger than + the screen, and you are using anything faster than a 300 baud modem, + you will probably find this utility very helpful. If you don't have + any need to reading text files, you can leave this disabled. config CONFIG_FEATURE_USE_TERMIOS bool " Use termios to manipulate the screen" default y depends on CONFIG_MORE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This option allows utilities such as 'more' and 'top' to determine + the size of the screen. If you leave this disabled, your utilities + that display things on the screen with be especially primitive and + will be unable to determine the current screen size, and will be + unable to move the cursor. comment "Common options for ls and more" depends on CONFIG_LS || CONFIG_MORE @@ -173,31 +247,51 @@ config CONFIG_FEATURE_AUTOWIDTH default y depends on CONFIG_LS || CONFIG_MORE help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This option allows utilities such as 'ls' and 'more' to determine the + width of the screen, which can allow them to display additional text + or avoid wrapping text onto the next line. If you leave this + disabled, your utilities will be especially primitive and will be + unable to determine the current screen width. config CONFIG_PIVOT_ROOT bool "pivot_root" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The pivot_root utility swaps the mount points for the root filesystem + with some other mounted filesystem. This allows you to do all sorts + of wild and crazy things with your Linux system and is far more + powerful than 'chroot'. config CONFIG_RDATE bool "rdate" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + The rdate utility allows you to syncronize the date and time of your + system clock with the date and time of a remote networked system using + the RFC868 protocol, which is built into the inetd daemon on most + systems. config CONFIG_SWAPONOFF bool "swaponoff" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This option enables both the 'swapon' and the 'swapoff' utilities. + Once you have created some swap space using 'mkswap', you also need + to enable your swap space with the 'swapon' utility. The 'swapoff' + utility is used, typically at system shutdown, to disable any swap + space. If you are not using any swap space, you can leave this + option disabled. config CONFIG_MOUNT bool "mount" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + All files and filesystems in Unix are arranged into one big directory + tree. The 'mount' utility is used to graft a filesystem onto a + particular part of the tree. A filesystem can either live on a block + device, or it can be accessible over the network, as is the case with + NFS filesystems. Most people using BusyBox will also want to enable + the 'mount' utility. config CONFIG_NFSMOUNT bool " Support mounting nfs file systems" @@ -210,14 +304,18 @@ config CONFIG_UMOUNT bool "umount" default n help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + When you want to remove a mounted filesystem from its current mount point, + for example when you are shutting down the system, the 'umount' utility is + the tool to use. If you enabled the 'mount' utility, you almost certainly + also want to enable 'umount'. config CONFIG_FEATURE_MOUNT_FORCE bool " Support forced filesystem unmounting" default n depends on CONFIG_UMOUNT help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + This allows you to _force_ a filesystem to be umounted. This is generally + only useful when you want to get rid of an unreachable NFS system. comment "Common options for mount/umount" depends on CONFIG_MOUNT || CONFIG_UMOUNT @@ -227,14 +325,34 @@ config CONFIG_FEATURE_MOUNT_LOOP default n depends on CONFIG_MOUNT || CONFIG_UMOUNT help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + Enabling this feature allows mount to use the '-o' loop options, + which lets you loop mount files. Mount will automagically setup and + free the necessary loop devices so you do not need to mess with the + 'losetup' utility unless you really want to. This is really only useful + if you plan to loop mount files. config CONFIG_FEATURE_MTAB_SUPPORT bool " Support for a real /etc/mtab (instead of /proc/mounts)" default n depends on CONFIG_MOUNT || CONFIG_UMOUNT help - Please submit a patch to add help text for this item. + If your root filesystem is writable and you wish to have the 'mount' + utility create an mtab file listing the filesystems which have been + mounted then you should enable this option. Most people that use + BusyBox have a read-only root filesystem, so they will leave this + option disabled and BusyBox will use the /proc/mounts file. + +config CONFIG_FEATURE_MTAB_FILENAME + string " mtab file location" + default "/etc/mtab" + depends on CONFIG_FEATURE_MTAB_SUPPORT + help + Some people have a read only root filesystem, but they also wish to + have the 'mount' utility create an mtab file listing the filesystems + which have been mounted. This option allows you to specify an alternative + location for the mtab file, such as /var/mtab, or /tmp/mtab. The default + value is /etc/mtab, which is where this file is located on most desktop + Linux systems. endmenu -- cgit v1.1