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linux file serving



Hi,

I would like to set up a linux host as a file server for other linux boxes
"in the strong sense". 
i.e., I want a comprehensive /usr/local (let's call it /usr/local.dist)
tree to sit on a central server and be exported to a whole LAN.
The question is whether the current package management systems (rpm and
dpkg) allow for easy maintenance of such a server. I'll be more specific:

- The basic question is whether one can force an installation rootdir when
using rpm or dpkg.
This can be achieved by trickery, 'fooling' the package manager to think
that it's actually installing relative to the root directory. However,
this is not a good idea, for the following reason. 
- Supposing the answer to the previous question is positive, the
installation should know how to handle locations of config files, and of
course make sure all links are relative. Now this is NOT trivial.

So - do you know of any reasonable way to handle such a task, other than
compiling each and every package by hand, specifying the installation
rootdir each time?!

Tuvik