[maemo-developers] [maemo-developers] Zapped wtmp...

[From: Michael Saunby]

I don't know about JFFS2 but back in the old days before Linux yuo 
could be pretty sure that a Unix filesystem didn't waste space storing 
null bytes.   Wtmp and other system files (databases?) take advantage 
of this.

Now you've made me aware of this I've deleted /var/log/wtmp.  I doubt 
it was using as much storage as you suggest but if I'd really been 
thinking I'd have done a df before and after - maybe someone else 
will.

There's no need to link it to anything.  If the file isn't there, then 
logging is turned off - at least that's what should happen.

Michael

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Nils Faerber" <nils.faerber at kernelconcepts.de>
To: <maemo-developers at maemo.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2006 3:34 PM
Subject: [maemo-developers] Zapped wtmp...


> Hi!
> I thought I should let you know...
>
> I am not sure if I really found any cure to anything but after the
> latest discussions about the size of wtmp I checked mine on the 770 
> and
> found a more than 200MB file!
>
> After gzip'ping it it shrank to just 5MB because it contains almost 
> only
> 0s. But there must be the information for 200MB stored somewhere in 
> the
> JFFS2 so I guess that even if it only has 5MB as a comporessed file 
> the
> impact on a JFFS2 can be much worse.
>
> So I enabled the R&D mode, became root and linked /var/log/wtmp to
> /dev/null (who cares for this wtmp on the 770 anyway?).
>
> Before I did this I saw more and more weird phenomena on the device,
> like crashing browser and spurious power-offs when case closed 
> (almost
> 100% battery, closed device one night, next morning it was powered 
> off
> and had to be rebooted!).
>
> Now after I zapped wtmp I have the feeling (!) that it behaves much
> better again! I can browse pages that before did not work and I hope
> that the power-downs are history now too (for the last three days 
> they
> are but you never know).
>
> Maybe someone else likes to try to this too and report his/her
> experience here.
>
> Probably wtmp should be linked to /dev/null in the next software 
> release
> too.
>
> BTW: With every closure of the case the wtmp grows by about 3kB. You 
> can
> estimate with your usage how big it will get...
>
> Cheers
>  nils faerber
>
> -- 
> kernel concepts          Tel: +49-271-771091-12
> Dreisbachstr. 24         Fax: +49-271-771091-19
> D-57250 Netphen          Mob: +49-176-21024535
> --
> _______________________________________________
> maemo-developers mailing list
> maemo-developers at maemo.org
> https://maemo.org/mailman/listinfo/maemo-developers
>