Using git on / for configuration files

[Eli Billauer]

Hi all,

I'd just like to get your input before I do something stupid. The idea, 
anyhow, is to create a git repository on my system's root directory, and 
add many of the system's configuration files (e.g. some of /etc/) for 
tracking.

This sounds a bit bizarre even to me, but my question is: Do you see 
anything bad that could happen?

I can see a few advantages:

1. Keep track of my changes in the configuration files over time

2. Easily spot what has changed, if something breaks for no apparent 
reason (after some well-meaning automatic utility "helps me out")

3. Possible to run a cronjob on "git commit -a", maintaining a history 
of these files (and makes it easy to fall back to a known set)

4. More freedom to hack these files to solve a problem, knowing that the 
"working set" it there to fall back to.

5. Migrating to a new computer by cloning the repository and selectively 
patching the new system.

And some disadvantages:

1. Opening a security loophole somehow (?)

2. Possibly exposing files containing secrets (otherwise readable by 
root only, e.g. /etc/ppp/pap-secrets and other password files)

3. Running git as root

4. Mess up the system somehow because git wasn't meant to handle 
sensitive files (?)




So what do you say? A bad idea? A brilliant idea? Everyone's doing it 
and nobody told me?

TAI,

    Eli

-- 
Web: http://www.billauer.co.il