[tex-live] tlmgr query

[Norbert Preining]

On Di, 21 Jul 2009, Rowland McDonnell wrote:
> `Like any good GUI app,the program which appears is mostly self
> explanatory.'
> 
> Unfortunately, I do not find it so and I daren't press any buttons for
> fear of what might happen.

That is bad, but we can work on that.

> I'd like to find out how to get tlmgr -gui to generate a configuration
> information listing as:
> 
> texconfig conf

It does not, neither does tlmgr. Use texconfig.

> I would also like to know what exactly tlmgr -gui does when the
> `Re-create all formats' button is pressed.  I have some custom formats

It calls
	fmtutil-sys --all
not surprisingly.

> Obviously, tlmgr -gui won't be using that fmtutil file - so which file
> /does/ it use and what's the approved method of adding formats to those

kpsewhich is your friend, it is for 
	ROOT/texmf-var/web2c/fmtutil.cnf
which is generated every time a format is installed or removed from the
information in the database (see below).

> What does `Re-initialize file database' mean?

Calling
	mktexlsr
(was that difficult?)

> I see a setting for `Default backup directory' (and `Auto backup
> setting).  What exactly does tlmgr do by way of backing things up?

tlmgr -help, man page, web page generated from man page, I don't repeat
here what is written there.

> What's `the installation's TeX Live Package Database' and how can it be
> used to generate language.dat, language.def, fmtutil.cnf, and
> updmap.cfg?)

ROOT/tlpkg/texlive.tlpdb

and it contains for each package the contained map files to be
(de)activated, the contained/supported formats, and hyphenation
patterns.

BTW, again all this is documented in the man pages for TLPSRC, TLPOBJ,
TLPDB, etc ...

Best wishes

Norbert

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Dr. Norbert Preining <preining at logic.at>        Vienna University of Technology
Debian Developer <preining at debian.org>                         Debian TeX Group
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