[gentoo-user] emerge wants to install ssmtp...why?

I have postfix installed on this machine. I like postfix. And since
this is the mail server for my domain, I very emphatically do not want
something which will overwrite any component of postfix. So why, all of a
sudden, does emerge want to install ssmtp when I do an update?

***

$ emerge -puUD world

These are the packages that I would merge, in order:

Calculating world dependencies ...done!
[ebuild U ] sys-devel/autoconf-2.59-r4 [2.59-r3]
[ebuild N ] app-crypt/hashalot-0.3
[ebuild U ] sys-apps/cronbase-0.3 [0.2.1-r3]
[ebuild U ] sys-apps/man-1.5m-r1 [1.5l-r6]
[ebuild N ] sys-kernel/gentoo-sources-2.4.26-r7
[ebuild U ] dev-libs/libxml2-2.6.11 [2.6.7]
[ebuild N ] mail-mta/ssmtp-2.60.9
[ebuild U ] app-editors/vim-core-6.3-r1 [6.3]
[ebuild U ] sys-apps/file-4.09 [4.08]
[ebuild U ] dev-libs/glib-2.4.4 [2.4.1]
[ebuild U ] x11-libs/gtk+-2.4.4 [2.4.1]
[ebuild U ] sys-libs/device-mapper-1.00.17-r1 [1.00.08]

***

My daily sync was performed at 0300 CDT, so everything should be
pretty current (less than an hour old as I type this).
--
Matthew Landry mbl.TakeThisOut@lelnet.com O-
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"You don't have to outrun the bear. Just outrun the slowest hiker."
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Matthew Landry posted <20040805085520.GA22355.DeleteThis@finitysend.lelnet.com>,
excerpted below, on Thu, 05 Aug 2004 03:55:21 -0500:

> I have postfix installed on this machine. I like postfix. And since
> this is the mail server for my domain, I very emphatically do not want
> something which will overwrite any component of postfix. So why, all of a
> sudden, does emerge want to install ssmtp when I do an update?

ssmpt is the Gentoo system default MTA. While there's a virtual MTA
setup, that postfix should provide so you wouldn't need ssmtp, apparently
something is either dependent on ssmtp directly or your virtuals are
messed up.

Try adding the -t option to your -puUD. t=tree, and will reverse the
order and indent so you can see what's trying to pull it in. You can then
investigate why, and file a bug on it if necessary.

FWIW, here ssmtp (only) is installed, and -t shows it as being a
dependency of sys-apps/vixie-cron.

That's about the limit of my ability to help with that, as while ssmtp is
installed as the default mta for the system, I don't run it and only use
KMail set up for internet mail only. However, a couple additional comments.

1) I noticed you didn't use -v (verbose). If that was just to be more
concise with your post, great, but using it does display the use flags
each package uses and their status, which can be helpful at times. Thus,
try it, if you weren't aware of it already.

2) The use of -U (update only, no downgrades) is depreciated and strongly
discouraged, and the flag may be removed entirely at some point. Among
other things, it will prevent downgrades when a keyword is removed for
security or serious bug reasons. The preferred alternative is using
/etc/portage/package.keywords, to individually list exceptions to your
normal arch/~arch keyword in make.conf. If by some chance you are using
packages not keyworded for your arch at all, copy the ebuild to your
portage overlay and change the keywording there as necessary, then use
ebuild digest to re-md5sum it. (In the overlay case, occasional packages
may need additional files moved into the overlay as well.) By doing this,
you will remove the necessity of using the -U flag, and when something
DOES come up as a downgrade candidate, you can investigate further (if
desired) and find out why, security issue or whatever, and either
package.keyword it or let it downgrade as necessary.

--
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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little
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