Info Catalog kpathsea: Filename database kpathsea: Filename aliases

kpathsea: ls-R

 
 5.4.1 'ls-R'
 ------------
 
 As mentioned above, you must name the main filename database 'ls-R'.
 You can put one at the root of each TeX installation hierarchy you wish
 to search ('$TEXMF' by default); most sites have only one hierarchy.
 Kpathsea looks for 'ls-R' files along the 'TEXMFDBS' path, so that
 should presumably match the list of hierarchies.
 
    The recommended way to create and maintain 'ls-R' is to run the
 'mktexlsr' script, which is installed in '$(bindir)' ('/usr/local/bin'
 by default).  That script goes to some trouble to follow symbolic links
 as necessary, etc.  It's also invoked by the distributed 'mktex...'
 scripts.
 
    At its simplest, though, you can build 'ls-R' with the command
      cd /YOUR/TEXMF/ROOT && ls -LAR ./ >ls-R
 
 presuming your 'ls' produces the right output format (see the section
 below).  GNU 'ls', for example, outputs in this format.  Also presuming
 your 'ls' hasn't been aliased in a system file (e.g., '/etc/profile') to
 something problematic, e.g., 'ls --color=tty'.  In that case, you will
 have to disable the alias before generating 'ls-R'.  For the precise
 definition of the file format, see Database format.
 
    Regardless of whether you use the supplied script or your own, you
 will almost certainly want to invoke it via 'cron', so when you make
 changes in the installed files (say if you install a new LaTeX package),
 'ls-R' will be automatically updated.
 
    The '-A' option to 'ls' includes files beginning with '.' (except for
 '.' and '..'), such as the file '.tex' included with the LaTeX tools
 package.  (On the other hand, _directories_ whose names begin with '.'
 are always ignored.)
 
    If your system does not support symbolic links, omit the '-L'.
 
    'ls -LAR /YOUR/TEXMF/ROOT' will also work.  But using './' avoids
 embedding absolute pathnames, so the hierarchy can be easily
 transported.  It also avoids possible trouble with automounters or other
 network filesystem conventions.
 
    Kpathsea warns you if it finds an 'ls-R' file, but the file does not
 contain any usable entries.  The usual culprit is running plain 'ls -R'
 instead of 'ls -LR ./' or 'ls -R /YOUR/TEXMF/ROOT'.  Another possibility
 is some system directory name starting with a '.' (perhaps if you are
 using AFS); Kpathsea ignores everything under such directories.
 
    Because the database may be out-of-date for a particular run, if a
 file is not found in the database, by default Kpathsea goes ahead and
 searches the disk.  If a particular path element begins with '!!',
 however, _only_ the database will be searched for that element, never
 the disk.  If the database does not exist, nothing will be searched.
 Because this can surprise users ("I see the font 'foo.tfm' when I do an
 'ls'; why can't Dvips find it?"), it is not in any of the default search
 paths.
 

Info Catalog kpathsea: Filename database kpathsea: Filename aliases