UUIDs on drives (Derek Broughton)

[Chris Jeffries]

On Fri, 2008-08-15 at 03:05 +0100, ubuntu-users-request at lists.ubuntu.com
wrote:
> Re: UUIDs on drives (Derek Broughton)

The discussion seems to be 'Where it is' vs 'What it is'. For me, this
isn't the big problem. I am no expert in Unix, but it seems to me that a
system where dev/sda suddenly points you to a different device despite
the fact you have done NOTHING to the device that you found on dev/sda
previously is a BAD THING - and it scares me, and something SHOULD be
done to fix that.

Also I find myself getting lost amongst all the device stubs in dev
(entries for devices that do not exist). I am sure it is just my lack of
knowledge of Unix, but I'd like to find a database or something that
lists all the actual devices on my machine by location, type and, where
possible, unique id, eg with entries something like this

'dev' id: /dev/xx05
location: system/USB_bus/USB_socket1/USB_hub/USB_socket1/
type:     webcam 
UUID:     sefhasrhnfasorfnasrofnsro

I see location as a path through the equivalent of directories, but in
hardware, so a USB hub of a SCSI controller channel look like
directories with folders inside in this view, and they themselves are in
some sort of root directory called (in this example) system.

Is there anything like this? I'd feel so much more in control of my fate
if there were.