Re: (ITS#6151) Update cosine.schema to RFC 4524

[Kurt@OpenLDAP.org]

On Apr 22, 2010, at 9:58 AM, Michael Str=F6der wrote:

> Kurt Zeilenga wrote:
>>=20
>> On Apr 22, 2010, at 1:34 AM, michael@stroeder.com wrote:
>>=20
>>> Kurt Zeilenga wrote:
>>>> obsoletes !=3D OBSOLETE, so no.   That is, the meaning of the term
>>>> 'obsolete' is quite different in these two contexts.
>>>>=20
>>>> The latter context the term is defined as follows: The OBSOLETE =
field, if
>>>> present, indicates the element is not active.
>>>=20
>>> I agree that OBSOLETE should not be set in this case.
>>>=20
>>>> For user application attribute types, whether the type is active or =
not is,
>>>> I think, best left to the schema administrator.
>>>=20
>>> Who is the schema administrator?
>>=20
>> Generally speaking, the OpenLDAP admin administrates which schema =
elements
>> to load into the schema and whether each such element is active and
>> inactive.
>=20
> What does "active and inactive" mean exactly? Does that include =
changing the
> OBSOLETE keyword in schema files? I hope not...

The purpose of the OBSOLETE (inactive) flag is to support transition =
away from a particular schema element.  Basically, if one no longer =
wants to use the attribute type 'x' in their directory, they should 1) =
mark x as inactive in the subschema, 2) then remove all uses of x, 3) =
then remove x from the subschema.

The directory prevents all non-removal updates to inactive elements, =
allowing 2 to be well performed.

>=20
>> While in some cases a schema admin might design schema elements, I =
consider
>> schema admin and schema element designer to be two separate roles.
>=20
> Agreed.
>=20
>>> I'm nitpicking here because on the OpenLDAP
>>> lists we all keep telling OpenLDAP admins not to mess with the =
standard schema
>>> at all.
>>=20
>> We often advise admins to load various schema elements into their =
schemas.
>=20
> The role for loading the shipped schema files is not the question =
here.
>=20
>> When at I say "don't mess with standard schema elements", what I mean =
is
>> don't change aspects of schema specifications which are consider per =
the
>> technical specifications to be immutable on published in a technical
>> specification (or otherwise broadly published).
>=20
> Does "immutable" include OBSOLETE? I hope so...

OBSOLETE is one of the mutable properties of a schema element (because =
otherwise it couldn't support local movements away from arbitrary schema =
elements).

-- Kurt

>=20
> Ciao, Michael.