Chapter 1. Configuration Overview: The GConf System
The GConf system is one of the
primary means to configure the users' desktops, therefore a brief
overview of this system is provided below.
Many configurable quantities are accessible via
key/value pairs using the graphical
GConf editor tool. This tool is available
from the command-line using the command
/usr/bin/gconf-editor, or, more simply by
typing gconf-editor in a terminal. The
GConf editor is also available through
(the main menu on the
panel) => =>
.
For more detailed information on GConf
Editor, refer to the Configuration
Editor Manual through (the main menu on the
panel) =>
, and by selecting the
Applications Category, then the
Utilities Category, and finally, by selecting
the Configuration Editor Manual
Document.
The following provides background material that the
administrator may find useful, especially when saving current
desktop preferences.
 | Tip |
|---|
| | Readers might first wish to refer to the
GConf section of the
GNOME Desktop System Administration
Guide available through (the main menu on the
panel) =>
, and by selecting the
Desktop Category, selecting the
System Administration Guide Document, and
reading the chapter titled Using GConf,
and also the GConf project page located on the web at https://www.gnome.org/projects/gconf/
before continuing. Specifically, the use of
gconftool-2 to
load and
dump preference settings is not
discussed in depth in this document, but is detailed in the
GNOME Guide. |
GConf stores preferences data in
a set of configuration sources. The
sources used, their properties, and the order in which they are
used by GConf is defined in the
/etc/gconf/2/path file.
Each configuration source entry has three parts:
- Storage Backend Identifier
The only commonly used configuration backend is the
XML backend whose identifier is
xml.
- Configuration Source Flags
A comma separated list of flags which is interpreted
by the storage backend. The XML backend recognizes two
flags - readonly and
readwrite which determine whether the
configuration source is writable.
- Storage Location
The location in which the storage backend should store
the preferences data. The exact meaning of this storage
location depends on the storage backend in use. With the
XML backend, the location is the path to a filesystem
directory.
By default there is a Mandatory Source,
a User Source and a Defaults
Source. They are:
xml:readonly:/etc/gconf/gconf.xml.mandatory
xml:readwrite:$(HOME)/.gconf
xml:readonly:/etc/gconf/gconf.xml.defaults
The order of the configuration sources is intentional. If a
key is set in the Mandatory Source and the Defaults Source, then
the value in the Mandatory Source takes precedence. Therefore,
by setting the value of a key in the Mandatory Source, users will not
be able to modify that key.
The default GConf path file also
includes a number of other path files if they exist. The
/etc/gconf/2/path file allows
administrators to define new configuration sources and include
them in the set of configuration sources used by
GConf. The configuration sources
specified in the path file are included
before the standard Defaults Source.
One final item of note is that the storage location
specifier for a source may also reference the value of environmental
variables. For example, the standard User Source is defined as
xml:readwrite:$(HOME)/.gconf. Environmental
variables may be defined as follows:
- $(HOME)
The user's home directory.
- $(USER)
The user's username.
- $(ENV_name)
Any other environmental variable may be referenced by
prefixing the environmental variables name with
ENV_.
