How do I compile GNOME with all the files in the right place for FHS Compliance? How do I relocate GNOME's etc and var directories to easily network GNOME?

By default, GNOME puts all of its files under its prefix directory. While this makes GNOME easy to isolate, it's not necessarily the best place for certain files in some situations. In particular, if you are looking to network GNOME, or for strict FHS compliance, you might want to relocate some directories. To relocate GNOME's etc directory, use the --sysconfdir option. To relocate the var directory, use the --localstatedir option.

For example, an FHS installation of GNOME might have a prefix of /opt/gnome. However, it's etc files should be in /etc/opt/gnome, and similarly, its var files should be in /var/opt/gnome. This has the advantage of allowing you to network the /opt/gnome directory, keep it read-only, and allow machines to have local configuration and information without worrying about other machines. To do this, the configure command would be as follows: ./configure --prefix=/opt/gnome --sysconfdir=/etc/opt/gnome --localstatedir=/var/opt/gnome.