Patrick Elliott wrote:
> In the first case, you adjust BITS, or wget, so it logs the audit with 
> which application asked it to install the stuff, or something.

If you distinguish "install" from "write files", it's easier, yes. OK, so 
firefox downloads and installs Adobe, which includes a plug-in for firefox. 
Then you uninstall firefox. What happens? :-)

> In the second case, SQL, since your application should only care how to 
> talk to, and maybe where, the SQL is not where the documents end up. 

My point is that you wind up having to copy specific records out of a SQL 
database when you move the files those records refer to, etc.

Singularity addresses this problem. You have clear distinctions between 
executable code and data files and configuration files. You can't install 
executable code without it being in a manifest, which gets checked when you 
install it to make sure it's compatible with everything else. The 
application doesn't get handles to any part of the file system it didn't ask 
for in the manifest, so it can't spew config files in odd places. Etc etc 
etc.  The only problem is you have to throw out all that code you already have.

-- 
Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
  "How did he die?"   "He got shot in the hand."
     "That was fatal?"
          "He was holding a live grenade at the time."

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