[possible BUG] - install location on centos about btop

[aristocratos]

@daniejstriata
The PREFIX variable defaults to /usr/local/bin if not set by user which is default behaviour in most makefiles.
Running as superuser is not a requirement, the make setuid command is optional and added for convenience, so defaulting to /usr/local/sbin wouldn't be a good fix.

Might I suggest that you add /usr/local/bin to your path instead, since that's the path most user installed software will end up by default...

[daniejstriata]

It only seems to happen on Mint. My Fedora 34 setup does not have this issue. Closing.

[daniejstriata]

@aristocratos I would like to continue the discussion and point out another issue.

1. Install script always add bin in-front of the binary. This will cause undesired installation:
   Install command:
   make install PREFIX=/usr/local/sbin
   Output:
   Installing binary to: /usr/local/sbin/bin/btop
   I would've expected the install script to honour the path I gave it without adding bin.

2. By default Centos 7 also do not include the default path to /usr/local/bin. That makes sense from this statement below.

/usr/local/bin is for programs that a normal user may run. /usr/local/sbin is for system administration programs (which are not part of the core OS) that a local administrator may run. By default, a normal user does not have /usr/local/sbin on their path.

Would /usr/local/sbin not be the better install location without having to make changes to everyone's path? What I've done is to create a symlink for the binary in bin to sbin.

[aristocratos]

@daniejstriata
btop++ is not a "system administration program" it's a system monitor like top, ps or htop and just like them belongs in */bin.
The PREFIX variable defines where the desired top level folder containing bin and share is located.
The themes and readme also uses the PREFIX to get correct location.
If you really want btop in your sbin folder you're gonna have to move it yourself or write a script to do it for you.

That makes sense from this statement below.

What? If you got /usr/local/sbin in your path by default and not /usr/local/bin, it's the complete opposite of the cited statement...

[daniejstriata]

@aristocratos What that statement tries to say is if I'm root I have in path sbin. If I'm a regular use then I would not.

Have you seen my other commend about the make script always prepending the binary with bin?

[aristocratos]

@daniejstriata
The first line of the statement /usr/local/bin is for programs that a normal user may run applies here, there is no need to be root to run btop, it gives you more capabilities (like killing any process), but it's not designed to only be run by a superuser.

Have you seen my other commend about the make script always prepending the binary with bin?

Yes, and as I explained above, the PREFIX variable isn't supposed to be pointed at the binary location, but the folder above your binary location. /bin/ is added on the PREFIX path to get it to the binary folder, just as /share/btop/ is added on the PREFIX path to get the themes in the correct location.

[aristocratos]

@daniejstriata
If the goal is to get the default install path changed to /usr/local/sbin you're gonna have to be dissapointed.

I'm not sure why you see it as a problem to add /usr/local/bin to your path?

[daniejstriata]

@aristocratos Thank you for your explanation. I'm seeing the light. I'm updating my process.