Description of problem: This problem has existed ever since RHL8/9. I teach Linux classes and students get bitten by this all the time. When system|redhat-config-network is first launched it creates files in the /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ directory. If you then *save* and exit the tool, it hard links them to the /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts files. If a person launches the tool and then exits (without making changes and saving), then the "default" profile interface files are out-of-synce with the files in /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/. The "search path" for ifup/ifdown has the default profile before the /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts directory, so when changes are made in the "standard" location with a text editor the changes don't seem to take effect. This can be easily observed. On a freshly installed system I launch system|redhat-config-network. # ls -i /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 20772 /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 # ls -i /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-eth0 16879 /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-eth0 Note how the inode numbers are different. The files are different. Now if I do File -> Save, and then check the inode numbers: # ls -i /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 16879 /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0 # ls -i /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-eth0 16879 /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-eth0 You can see it is the same file. When I lecture my classes I currently tell my students, "if you decide to launch the system|redhat-config-network utility to see what it looks like make sure you *save* (even though they haven't changed anything) otherwise your /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts will be ignored by ifup/ifdown". Please fix system|redhat-config-network. I can think of a couple ways. 1) Don't create the default profile files until a "save" is done. Then make them as hard links from the begining. This seems best to me as it seems a little odd for the tool to perform *any* changes in /etc just by merely launching it. 2) Create the files as hard links from the very begining.
>> The "search path" for ifup/ifdown has the default profile before the >> /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts directory, so when changes are made >> in the "standard" location with a text editor the changes don't seem >> to take effect. This is wrong... the initscripts should not look in /etc/sysconfig/networking!! reassigning
Are you sure? Doesn't that then break network profiles? search path for: # ifup $DEV is: /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/$CURRENT_PROFILE/ifcfg-$DEV /etc/sysconfig/networking/profiles/default/ifcfg-$DEV /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-$DEV Seems they *have* to look in /etc/sysconfig/networking.
> This is wrong... the initscripts should not look in > /etc/sysconfig/networking!! They don't.
The original problem "If a person launches the tool and then exits (without making changes and saving), then the "default" profile interface files are out-of-synce with the files in /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/." Is fixed. I tested rawhide from today (FC2test3??).