Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!mordor!sri-spam!ames!ll-xn!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!fluke!jeff
From: jeff@tc.fluke.COM (Jeff Stearns)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.uucp
Subject: Pathalias vs reality
Message-ID: <3008@fluke.COM>
Date: 29 Feb 88 19:32:59 GMT
Sender: news@tc.fluke.COM
Lines: 36
Keywords: pathalias maps

I'm listed in the USENET maps.  I run pathalias.  There's something I don't
understand.

How do I gracefully change my map data?  I have many uucp neighbors.  The
configuration changes from week to week, so the published pathalias data is
always somewhat out-of-date.

I can easily change my path.local file, and I dutifully mail the changes off
to the uucpmap folks, but it takes many weeks for the changed d.usa.wa.1 map
file to arrive back here.  Meanwhile, my new path.local file disagrees with
the now-stale map data for my site in d.usa.wa.1.  When pathalias sees this
stale old data, it treats it with as much respect as my path.local file.
This causes invalid routes to be built.

Of course, I can go edit the map postings, but this kind of approach is
decidedly non-deterministic.  When will another posting arrive and overwrite
my changes?  Will the new posting contain my changes, or will they have
"passed each other in the mail"?

My updated map data can take weeks to arrive via netnews.  (And a couple
updates never did arrive.)  Meanwhile, I must await the receipt of another
out-of-date comp.mail.maps posting that could invalidate my pathalias database
again.

What is the proper way to merge my path.local data with the comp.mail.maps data?

For example, I'd like pathalias to understand that my path.local file always
has precedence over anything posted to comp.mail.maps.  I furthermore expect
that most other sites would wish this as well.  Is this thinking correct?  If
so, how do others handle the situation?  It seems like such a common scenario;
is there a clean solution?
-- 
	    Jeff Stearns
    Domain: jeff@tc.fluke.COM
     Voice: +1 206 356 5064
      UUCP: {uw-beaver,decvax!microsof,ucbvax!lbl-csam,allegra,sun}!fluke!jeff
     Snail: John Fluke Mfg. Co. / P.O. Box C9090 / Everett WA  98206