This documentation explains the differences in options and interface changes between versions.

Changes between 0.8.2.2 and 0.9.0.0

66 no longer builds against skalibs, s6 or execline: the scanner, the supervisor, the logger, the fd holder and the privilege dropper are now native programs of the suite. Most of the ecosystem conversion is automatic -- see the upgrade and upgrade process pages.

Programs renamed

The borrowed s6/skarnet programs are now native to the suite.

0.8.2.2	0.9.0.0
s6-svscan	66-scandir
s6-supervise	66-supervise
s6-log	66-log
s6-svc	66-svctl
s6-fdholder-*	66-fdholderd
s6-setuidgid	execl-runas
66-oneshot	removed -- handled by 66-oneshotd
66-fdholder-filler	removed -- handled by 66-fdholderd
66-shutdown	removed -- folded into 66 halt, 66 poweroff, 66 reboot

66-shutdownd moves from bindir to libexecdir and should not be called directly.

66-eventd is a new daemon of the suite -- the event daemon of a scandir. Like 66-oneshotd and 66-fdholderd it is started by the scandir and is not called by hand.

Live directory renames

Two entries of the live scandir change name. Nothing has to be converted -- /run/66 is rebuilt from scratch at every boot, and the upgrade process rewrites the paths held in the resolve files of a running system. But a script that walks these paths by hand must be adjusted.

0.8.2.2	0.9.0.0
/run/66/scandir/<uid>/.s6-svscan	/run/66/scandir/<uid>/.66-scandir
/run/66/scandir/<uid>/fdholder	/run/66/scandir/<uid>/fdholderd

Frontend keyword table conversion

Several keys move to the section of their domain, and the TimeoutStart / TimeoutStop names merge into a single Timeout disambiguated by the section. The old placements and names still parse with a deprecation warning; if a key is declared both at its deprecated location and at its canonical section, the canonical section wins. Swapping a [Start] key into [Stop] or the reverse is now a parse error.

0.8.2.2	0.9.0.0
[Main] Notify	[Start] Notify
[Main] DownSignal	[Stop] DownSignal
[Main] StdIn / StdOut / StdErr	[Execute] StdIn / StdOut / StdErr
[Main] TimeoutStart	[Start] Timeout
[Main] TimeoutStop	[Stop] Timeout
[Main] MaxDeath	[Start] MaxDeath
[Logger] TimeoutStart	[Logger] Timeout
[Logger] TimeoutStop	removed
[Logger] Destination	removed -- use [Execute] StdOut = 66log:/path
Build	deprecated and ignored -- the shebang decides the build type
s6log (StdIn / StdOut / StdErr value)	66log

MaxDeath now means a crash budget and accepts 0-16 (0 = infinite restart). The new [Start] MaxDeathInterval key sets the budget window in milliseconds (default 30000).

[Execute] UMask is now read as octal, as its notation always implied. It was scanned in base 10, so every value was misread -- UMask = 022 applied 0026. The same frontend now applies 0022. A value with an 8 or a 9 in it is refused instead of silently accepted.

An environment value may no longer contain a newline or a NUL byte. \n, \012, \x0a and their NUL counterparts \0, \000, \x00 used to decode to the byte itself inside a quoted value; they are now a syntax error, in a frontend [Environment] section, in a service configuration file and in any file read by execl-envfile. Both bytes are separators of the internal layout, so such a value could never survive a round-trip -- the parse now fails loudly instead of corrupting it. This is a deliberate divergence from execline's envfile.

Identifiers (@U, @H, @R…) are no longer resolved at parse time only: an environment directory read at runtime -- the scandir environment, and a service environment loaded through execl-envfile -- now has them replaced as well. @I stays parse-time, since an instance name exists only there.

The event system

A service can now react to what happens on the system instead of being wired into the dependency graph. This is new ground, not a renaming: nothing in 0.8.2.2 maps to it.

What	Where
[Event] section	turns any classic, oneshot or module service into a reactor -- EventType, From, On/OnAll, Do/Emit, Propagate
Type = event	a new service type: a non-supervised source (inotify, schedule, timer) that runs no process
66 emit	raise a user event by name, by hand or from a script
66-eventd	the daemon that routes events to the reactors

66 also raises a few events itself -- boot.done, boot.failed, shutdown.begin, and env.<variable> / unenv.<variable> from 66 env. See the event system.

Command and option changes

0.8.2.2	0.9.0.0
66 scandir reload	66 scandir reconfigure
66 scandir create -s / --skeleton	removed -- boot reads init.conf itself
66 tree start -f	removed
66 tree create / admin -o rename=	removed -- now an error
66 status -o / 66 tree status -o	-f / --field (-o deprecated)
66 status -p nline	removed -- use 66 log
66 resolve / 66 state / 66 tree resolve	gain -f / --field and -n / --no-name (they took only -h)
66 signal	gains --stop-group / --cont-group / --kill-group, which signal the whole process group
66-shutdown	66 halt / 66 poweroff / 66 reboot (with -c / --cancel)

Every command and subcommand now accepts long options too (--help, --verbosity, --live, --tree, --timeout, --color, and per-command forms). Short options are unchanged, so existing scripts keep working.

66 status fields

66 status is rewritten around the state of the service -- durations are printed in human form and the line says who acted on the service -- and its field vocabulary shrinks from 25 names to 12. A script selecting fields with -o/-f must be adjusted.

0.8.2.2	0.9.0.0
intree	tree
logfile	removed -- use 66 log
version, partof, notify, maxdeath, earlier, live, optsdepends, start, stop, envat, envfile, stdin, stdout, stderr	removed -- 66 resolve reports them, under its own field names (inns, optsdeps, envdir, run_user, stdintype/stdindest…)
logname	removed -- a logger is now the boolean logger field of the resolve, and its name is always <service>-log
--	enabled, pid and log are new

The kept names are name, status, description, type, source, tree, depends, requiredby and contents.

New commands

Command	Action
66 log	read the logs of a service, of the system, or of everything interleaved
66 emit	raise a user event by name
66 env	publish session variables (DISPLAY, XAUTHORITY…) to every service of the scandir
66 runstate	dump a service's runtime record
66 fdholder	manage the scandir's fd holder daemon
66 suspend	suspend the system to RAM
66 hibernate	hibernate the system to disk

66 env is unrelated to the 66-env of 0.6.x, which became 66 configure back in 0.7.0.0: configure edits the versioned configuration file of one service, env publishes a value to every service at runtime.

init.conf

Key	Change
VERBOSITY	default 1 -> 2
TREE	removed from the skeleton, still honored, empty by default (group mode)
CONTAINER	removed -- use 66 boot -c
RCINIT / RCINIT_CONTAINER / RCSHUTDOWN / RCSHUTDOWNFINAL / RESCAN	removed

The rc.init, rc.init.container, rc.shutdown and rc.shutdown.final skeleton scripts are gone; boot and shutdown now run in C.

Changes between 0.7.2.1 and 0.8.0.0

Further information can be found on the upgrade page concerning behavior changes, frontend keyword changes and more.

Converting service frontend file

The upgrade process will handle the frontend file conversion, but only for active services (i.e., those listed when running 66 tree status with the field contents).

So, you may need to manually convert inactive frontend files. The following little script can be used by calling ./migrate_service.sh /path/to/my/<FrontendFile>.

#!/bin/sh

service="${1}"

sed -e "s:\[main\]:\[Main\]:g" \
    -e "s:@type:Type:g" \
    -e "s:@description:Description:g" \
    -e "s:@version:Version:g" \
    -e "s:@depends:Depends:g" \
    -e "s:@requiredby:RequiredBy:g" \
    -e "s:@optsdepends:OptsDepends:g" \
    -e "s:@options:Options:g" \
    -e "s:@flags:Flags:g" \
    -e "s:@notify:Notify:g" \
    -e "s:@user:User:g" \
    -e "s:@timeout-kill:TimeoutStart:g" \
    -e "s:@timeout-up:TimeoutStart:g" \
    -e "s:@timeout-finish:TimeoutStop:g" \
    -e "s:@timeout-down:TimeoutStop:g" \
    -e "s:@maxdeath:MaxDeath:g" \
    -e "s:@down-signal:DownSignal:g" \
    -e "s:@hiercopy:CopyFrom:g" \
    -e "s:@intree:InTree:g" \
    -e "s:\[start\]:\[Start\]:g" \
    -e "s:@build:Build:g" \
    -e "s:@runas:RunAs:g" \
    -e "s:@execute:Execute:g" \
    -e "s:\[stop\]:\[Stop\]:g" \
    -e "s:\[logger\]:\[Logger\]:g" \
    -e "s:@destination:Destination:g" \
    -e "s:@backup:Backup:g" \
    -e "s:@maxsize:MaxSize:g" \
    -e "s:@timestamp:Timestamp:g" \
    -e "s:\[environment\]:\[Environment\]:g" \
    -e "s:\[regex\]:\[Regex\]:g" \
    -e "s:@configure:Configure:g" \
    -e "s:@directories:Directories:g" \
    -e "s:@files:Files:g" \
    -e "s:@infiles:InFiles:g" \
    -i ${service}

Keyword table conversion

The table below gives you the keyword conversion between versions

0.7.2.1	0.8.0.0
[main]	[Main]
@type	Type
@description	Description
@version	Version
@depends	Depends
@requiredby	RequiredBy
@optsdepends	OptsDepends
@options	Options
@flags	Flags
@notify	Notify
@user	User
@timeout-kill	TimeoutStart
@timeout-up	TimeoutStart
@timeout-finish	TimeoutStop
@timeout-down	TimeoutStop
@maxdeath	MaxDeath
@down-signal	DownSignal
@hiercopy	CopyFrom
@intree	InTree
[start]	[Start]
@build	Build
@runas	RunAs
@execute	Execute
[stop]	[Stop]
[logger]	[Logger]
@destination	Destination
@backup	Backup
@maxsize	MaxSize
@timestamp	Timestamp
[environment]	[Environment]
[regex]	[Regex]
@configure	Configure
@directories	Directories
@files	Files
@infiles	InFiles

Changes between v0.6.1.3 and 0.7.0.0.

Further information can be found on the upgrade page concerning behavior changes, frontend keyword changes and more.

General Interface changes

Generally, the prefix is removed from commands, for example, 66-enable becomes 66 enable, 66-start becomes 66 start, and so on except for a few special commands -- see below.

Debug command

Old command	New command
66-parser	66 parse
66-inresolve	66 resolve
66-instate	66 state

Admin command

Old command	New command
66-boot	66 boot
66-scandir	66 scandir
66-scanctl	incorporate into 66 scandir
66-init	66 init
66-svctl	66 signal
66-dbctl	removed
66-hpr	66-hpr. This command should not be used directly. Prefer using 66 poweroff, 66 reboot, 66 halt to power off, reboot and halt the machine respectively
66-shutdownd	66-shutdownd
66-update	removed

User command

Old command	New command
66-all	66 tree
66-tree	66 tree
66-enable	66 enable
66-disable	66 disable
66-start	66 start
66-stop	66 stop
66-intree	66 tree status
66-inservice	66 status
66-env	66 configure
66-shutdown	66 poweroff, 66 reboot, 66 halt to power off, reboot and halt the machine respectively

Extra tools

Old command	New command
66-echo	66-echo
66-nuke	66-nuke
66-umountall	66-umountall
execl-envfile	execl-envfile

New command

Command	Action
66 reload	reload a service
66 restart	restart a service
66 free	unsupervise a service
66 reconfigure	parse again a service
66 remove	remove a service
66 poweroff	poweroff the system
66 reboot	reboot the system
66 halt	halt the system
66 version	get the version of 66

General options changes

Previous tools accepted the options -h, -z, -l, -T and -t. These options are now integrated into the general 66 command. Let's take an examples:

Old command	New command
66-enable -t root consolekit	66 -t root enable consolekit
66-start -l /run/66 sshd	66 -l /run/66 start sshd

Help accessibility

All commands and subcommands accept the -h option to access their respective help.

• 66 -h: get the help of the general command
• 66 tree -h: get the help of the tree subcommand
• 66 tree resolve -h: get the help of resolve subcommand of the tree subcommand

General exit codes

All commands and subcommands return:

• 0 success
• 100 wrong usage
• 111 system call failed

Interface and Options changes by command

If not specified, the interface (except for the name itself -- see General Interface changes) or the options do not change.

66-scandir

---

66-scandir and 66-scanctl was combined together into the command 66 scandir.

old options	new options
66-scanctl interrupt	66 scandir stop
66-scanctl reload	66 scandir reconfigure
66-scanctl reboot	removed
66-scanctl poweroff	removed

New subcommands was integrated to 66 scandir to avoid using options from s6-svscanctl.

66 scandir	s6-svscanctl
66 scandir rescan	s6-svscanctl -a
66 scandir abort	s6-svscanctl -b
66 scandir nuke	s6-svscanctl -n
66 scandir annihilate	s6-svscanctl -N
66 scandir zombies	s6-svscanctl -z

66-init

---

As s6-rc was dropped, the specification of the type of the service is not needed anymore. This program was integrated into the 66 tree command -- see the 66 tree init documentation for further information.

old argument	new argument
66-init classic	66 tree init treename
66-init database	66 tree init treename
66-init both	66 tree init treename

66-svctl

---

This tool previously deals only with classic service whereas 66 signal deals with all kind of services type.

old options	new options
66-svctl -n	removed
66-svctl -X	66 signal -x -d
66-svctl -K	66 signal -k -d

66-all

---

This tool previously handles all services for trees, the new command handles all enabled services for trees.

old argument	new argument
66-all up	66 tree start
66-all down	66 tree stop
66-all unsupervise	66 tree free

66-tree

---

old options	new options
66-tree -n	66 tree create
66-tree -a	66 tree admin -o allow=user,user,... or at creation with 66 tree create -o allow=user,user,...
66-tree -d	66 tree admin -o deny=user,user,... or at creation with 66 tree create -o deny=user,user,...
66-tree -c	66 tree current
66-tree -S	66 tree admin -o depends=tree,tree,... or at creation with 66 tree create -o depends=tree,tree,...
66-tree -E	66 tree enable
66-tree -D	66 tree disable
66-tree -R	66 tree remove
66-tree -C	removed

66-enable

---

With the previous version, services must be enabled to be able to start the service. It is not mandatory anymore with the new version. A service can be started without enabling it first. As result, the enable process is not responsible of the parse process even if it parse the service if the service was never parsed before.

old options	new options
66-enable -f	66 enable
66-enable -F	66 reconfigure
66-enable -I	66 parse -I
66-enable -S	66 enable -S

66-disable

---

old options	new options
66-disable -S	66 disable -S
66-disable -F	removed
66-disable -R	66 remove

66-start

---

old options	new options
66-start -r	66 reload
66-start -R	66 restart

66-stop

---

old options	new options
66-stop -u	66 free
66-stop -X	66 signal -x
66-stop -K	66 signal -k -d

Converting service frontend file

Manual intervention is required to upgrade the frontend file to version 0.7.0.0, as both the longrun and bundle types have been eliminated. Additionally, certain fields have been altered, deprecated, or removed.

• The longrun type should be converted to the classic type. To achieve this, simply replace @type=longrun with @type=classic. This conversion is performed by 66 during the parse process, but the change is not applied to the frontend file.

• The @extdepends= field has been removed and has no effect. To address this, switch the service definition in this field to the @depends= field. For example, a service declaring @depends=(consolekit) and @extdepends=(dbus) should be converted by removing the @extdepends field and appending dbus to the @depends=(dbus consolekit) field.

• The @shebang field is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. To define the shebang for your script, place it at the beginning of the @execute field right after the opened parentheses, without any space, new line, or other characters. For example, for an sh script, the beginning of the @execute field must be

  @execute = (!#/usr/bin/sh
  echo myscript
  ....
  )
  

  The incorrect way is

  @execute = (
  #!/usr/bin/sh
  echo myscript
      ....
  )
  

  The following is also incorrect

  @execute = ( #!/usr/bin/sh
  echo myscript
      ....
  )
  

  Failure to adhere to the correct syntax will result in an Error format during the execution of the service.

• The bundle type no longer exists. To achieve a similar behavior, you can emulate the functionality of a bundle by using a oneshot type. Define the @depends= field with the service name previously defined in your bundle type under the @contents field. The @execute field of the oneshot service should simply be defined as true. For instance, the following bundle

  [main]
  @type=bundle
  @version=0.0.1
  @description="launch network"
  @user=(root)
  @contents=(connmand openntpd)
  

  will be converted to following oneshot service

  [main]
  @type=oneshot
  @version=0.0.1
  @description="launch network"
  @user=(root)
  @depends=(connmand openntpd)
  
  [start]
  @execute=(true)
  

  Certainly, you can replace the bundle type with the module type. However, depending on your specific cases, the module type might overcomplicate the service itself.

• The module type must be redefined from scratch due to significant changes in the directory module structure. Refers to the module-creation documentation for detailed information.

Cleaning the 66 directories and files

The heart structure of 66 has been reframed, resulting in a simplified directory architecture. Clean unused files and directories from the previous release by following the instructions below. Additionally, refer to the deeper understanding documentation about the 66 architecture.

/var/lib/66

You can safely remove the following directories and files:

• /var/lib/66/current directory.

• /var/lib/66/system/:

  Any other directories and files except for the /var/lib/66/.resolve and /var/lib/66/service directories from this directory.

The exact same task applies to the ${HOME}/.66 directory. Also, you can remove the ${HOME}/.66/module directory.

/etc/66

You can safely remove the following /etc/66/module directory.