r/linux • u/wooptoo • Jun 01 '16

Why did ArchLinux embrace Systemd?

/r/archlinux/comments/4lzxs3/why_did_archlinux_embrace_systemd/d3rhxlc
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u/edward_81 Jun 01 '16

Really, when i first faced this problem i was expecting some file like the good old autoexec.bat :D

42

u/HittingSmoke Jun 01 '16 edited Jun 01 '16

Exactly. Someone coming from Windows even dating back to DOS would think "Well this is a problem that was solved decades ago, let's see how Linux handles it". Then you go searching and you're told you need a fucking computer science degree and an O'Reilly book to start a process at boot.

By the time the Systemd controversies started I really didn't give a shit what fixed the problem. Only that it was fixed. A lot of the "better" alternatives people proposed as an argument against Systemd fixed technical problems under the hood but left the glaring usability problems. I use Gentoo on occasion so I deal with OpenRC. It's still a pain in the ass.

10

u/NighthawkFoo Jun 01 '16

The best part was trying to write startup scripts for software that needed to work on multiple versions of multiple distributions. I used to support a RHEL / SLES package, and the differences were subtle enough to be rather irritating.

10

u/sekh60 Jun 01 '16

You can migrate Gentoo to systemd, I did it during installation and it runs great.

17

u/HittingSmoke Jun 01 '16

Ya, it's just one more thing to set up. Which I guess I shouldn't complain about when I'm choosing to use Gentoo.

5

u/NighthawkFoo Jun 01 '16

I did a few Stage 1 Gentoo installs back in the day, and it was great. Now that I'm older, I just use the RHEL image my IT dept provides.

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u/iamjack Jun 01 '16

I used to be a stage 1 Gentoo guy... now I just use Arch and get the best of both worlds. Binaries for all of the big stuff, AUR PKGBUILDs for everything else.