linux-install creates prefix dir but says it does not
Description
A comment in linux-install preceding the mkdir commands says, "we don't want to use -p because prefix dir should exist already, the prefix folder should not be created but the necessary subfolders should." But the ensuing mkdir uses -p anyway. As a result, a typo in the --prefix option goes undetected because the directory inadvertently gets created. This may be a common risk as users must run linux-install as root to make a shared installation.
Environment
Linux
Activity
Alex Miller April 13, 2018 at 6:32 PM
This is not covered by the other ticket, however I'm going to decline. This is generally an issue when you are invoking the install script with an explicit prefix directory and I think it's natural in that case to expect the dir should be created.
Alex Miller April 1, 2018 at 9:10 PM
This would also be covered by the changes in INST-22.
Critical
A comment in linux-install preceding the mkdir commands says, "we don't want to use -p because prefix dir should exist already, the prefix folder should not be created but the necessary subfolders should." But the ensuing mkdir uses -p anyway. As a result, a typo in the --prefix option goes undetected because the directory inadvertently gets created. This may be a common risk as users must run linux-install as root to make a shared installation.