Packaging Plain Files / When to start using a package manager
 

Hi,

after having completed LFS once quite a while ago, I am now going to do it again - this time using a package manager. I tried to figure out when to start using the package manager and it seems to be right at the beginning of chapter 6. If this is correct, how do I go about packaging things like /etc/group or the initial creation of the filesystem structure? Would I even do that? If not, then what would reinstalling the system be like? At the end I would like to have a script for that.

Thanks for your help,
thingsis

P.S.: I was going to use pacman, but I guess these questions are not specific to any package manager.

I use CLFS and use paco (which was written specifically for LFS systems). I start using paco to log the installation of packages in section 10.5 which is equivalent to the beginning of chapter 6 in LFS. You could then use the -+, --append option to add the configuration files like /etc/group to whichever package you think makes sense or a package that only installs the configuration/miscellaneous files. After you log the installation of the entire system you can use the pacoball utility that comes with paco and create binary packages.

I actually only use paco to log the installation of the base system packages (i.e., I don't create the pacoballs). Once I've installed the base system and verified it works, I create a bzipped tarball of the entire system. I then stick that tarball on one of my other boxes. If I want/need to reinstall the base system I just untar it to a clean partition.