Hand editing config files

I'm very comfortable with the text file configuration, but a GUI would
probably expand the installed base.  Please either keep the ability to use
text files as an alternative, or provide a simple bulk-load interface/API
for the database.  I'm not doing it yet, but we have a configuration
management database with sufficient asset information to generate
hosts.cfg (for instance).  My general objection to GUIs is having to do
everything manually because they're built for single transactions at a
time.

On Wed, June 13, 2012 21:12, Jamison Maxwell wrote:

My vote is on text files....  I wouldn't complain about a syntax checker,
but I probably wouldn't use it either.... (I edit /etc/shadow with VI, I
know, I'm a rebel.)


Jamison Maxwell
user-87d336c3dce6@xymon.invalid

-----Original Message-----
From: xymon-bounces at xymon.com [mailto:xymon-bounces at xymon.com] On Behalf
Of FORD Alan
Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 7:42 PM
To: 'Scot Kreienkamp'; 'Henrik Størner'; Xymon mailinglist
Subject: Re: [Xymon] Hand editing config files

Here here :-) agree a config/syntax checker would be great...

Would be good to have something that generates the web pages into a folder
so you can see the changes without actually putting them into Xymon so you
can adjust the layout with immediately affecting the "Live view" :-)


Alan Ford
Senior Database Administrator
Com Serv - Information Communications and Technology Stanwell Corporation
Limited

www.stanwell.com


-----Original Message-----
From: xymon-bounces at xymon.com [mailto:xymon-bounces at xymon.com] On Behalf
Of Scot Kreienkamp
Sent: Thursday, 14 June 2012 9:13 AM
To: 'Henrik Størner'; Xymon mailinglist
Subject: Re: [Xymon] Hand editing config files

I'm OK with text files, but a syntax checker for each config file sure
would be nice.  I like the text files for the flexibility they allow.

Scot Kreienkamp
Senior Systems Engineer
user-462cf0b6d846@xymon.invalid

-----Original Message-----
From: xymon-bounces at xymon.com [mailto:xymon-bounces at xymon.com] On Behalf
Of Henrik Størner
Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 5:04 PM
To: Xymon mailinglist
Subject: [Xymon] Hand editing config files

Hi,

in another mail thread, another monitoring tool (Zenoss) was mentioned
which had the advantage of "no hand editing of config files".

Text based config files have their ups and downs - they are infinitely
flexible and can adapt to all sorts of weird ways of defining your setup,
but it is also easier to "get it wrong" and put something in there which
doesn't work. Even happens to me occasionally.

It's the age-old debate over whether something is "powerful" or
"dangerous".

I am currently working on the next Xymon version (except I've been swamped
with for-pay work the past couple of months ... and a hefty round of
lay-offs in other departments than mine). This involves a complete rewrite
of the network testing tool, and for this rewrite I've started using an
SQLite database for storing some intermediate data used by the network
tester, instead of keeping it in a bunch of temporary text-files.

And it has made me consider the idea of using a database for storing at
least some of the configuration - first of all the hosts.cfg configuration
of hosts, IP-adresses and network tests. This would make some things
simpler, others a bit more complex - "xymongrep", for instance - but would
also make it a lot easier to provide a GUI for managing what hosts are
being monitored.

This is not going to happen anytime soon, but since the subject was up in
the air - what do you think about it ? Is it a major problem that Xymon
has all configuration in text files ? How many of you auto-generate the
Xymon config by extracting the information from a database already ?

Just looking for some feedback...


Regards,
Henrik


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