From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Hans Reiser Subject: Re: A couple of questions Date: Fri, 17 May 2002 03:57:34 +0400 Message-ID: <3CE4476E.8070101@namesys.com> References: <3CE41796.4030404@namesys.com> <200205161723.42672.kuba@mareimbrium.org> <20020516214419.GE15774@schmorp.de> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Return-path: list-help: list-unsubscribe: list-post: List-Id: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format="flowed" To: "Marc A. Lehmann" <\"\"pcg\"@goof.com>"> Cc: Kuba Ober , reiserfs-list@namesys.com pcg( Marc)@goof(A.).(Lehmann )com wrote: >On Thu, May 16, 2002 at 05:23:42PM -0400, Kuba Ober wrote: > > >>What I'm thinking of is this: >>to the user, which most users w/o intimate filesystem knowledge won't be able >>to answer at all? >> >> > >Unix traditionally wasn't aimed at the point-and-click users without >knowledge. > > > >>Looking at this list, what people want is to get their data >>back, as much as possible. They never want to get less than that. Why bother >>asking? >> >> > >Users who know nothing can still be told to just press "y". Even better, >somebody with some knowledge about the filesystem (and the contents!) >layout can often do better with an interactive fsck (see ext2fs). > >I don't think it makes sense to enhance the dumb-user-mode while at the same >time keeping informed users from working properly. > > > >>that is what many unsuspecting users actually do. It should simply disregard >>read errors and try using whatever data there is in ok-read blocks. >> >> > >It should actually ask the user wether she wants the block to be repaired >(if possible), or permanently marked defect. > > > >>I don't think that asking too many questions is worth it. He who runs fsck in >>"fix" mode wants his data back (whatever is left of it). >> >> > >Thats a big mistake. He who runs fsck wants to recover as much data as >possible. Sometimes maybe more than fsck alone can do. > > > >>recovery stuff should be w/o questions in my opinion. At least that's what >>I'd expect all fsck's to do. >> >> > >for some strange reason no fsck behaves like that. > > > Actually, I think Kuba makes a good point. I will ask some questions about exactly when do we ask the user a question more than once. I am a filesystems developer, and I don't know enough to do more than press y with most fscks. I think that for the most part, if one is going to ask the user to help, one needs to provide a real interface, a filesystem structure editor..... which no FS has ever done.... but right now we need to get what we have debugged thoroughly. It is on the list of things I would like to add someday. Hans