IMHO, the proper way of doing it is using configuration files. And let the init.d scripts configure your interfaces (majority of which still use good old ifconfig).
Have an example of such a config file, and what Linux distro you're using?
Files in /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts (well, at least on Red Hatish systems). Unless you have something really special that can't be done using standard configuration files, of course (I'm not implying that everything can be fitted into standard config files). Never done bridges, but by looking into ifup script, there's support for it. Search for if [ "${TYPE}" = "Bridge" ] line.
Anyhow, the point I was trying to make wasn't about should one use ifconfig or ip exclusivly. The point was that one shouldn't worry about whether ifconfig or ip was used to configure interfaces, if his configuration can be described by use of standard set of config files. And even if it can't be described by use of standard set of config files, one shouldn't choose one over another because one is being labeled as "obsolite" and the other is "shiny new toy".
-- Aleksandar Milivojevic <amilivojevic@xxxxxx> Pollard Banknote Limited Systems Administrator 1499 Buffalo Place Tel: (204) 474-2323 ext 276 Winnipeg, MB R3T 1L7
