docs: clarify wipefs --force description for partition-table signatures

The current description states that --force "is required in order to erase
a partition-table signature on a block device", which is misleading.
According to the source code (do_wipe() in wipefs.c), --force is needed
for mounted filesystems and for nested partition tables on non-whole-disk
devices, not for all partition tables on all block devices.

Update the text to say "a nested partition-table signature on a non-whole
disk device", consistent with the note earlier in the man page.

Fixes #2447

diff --git a/misc-utils/wipefs.8.adoc b/misc-utils/wipefs.8.adoc
index 5e676ecbf5f74b3016b795d0b16cb0e88f1a36be..1077c79021259b7fe9e2ae0af38c87943a22df75 100644 (file)
--- a/misc-utils/wipefs.8.adoc
+++ b/misc-utils/wipefs.8.adoc
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ partitions.
 Create a signature backup to the file _wipefs-<devname>-<offset>.bak_ in _$HOME_ or the directory specified as the optional argument. For more details see the *EXAMPLE* section.
 
 *-f*, *--force*::
-Force erasure, even if the filesystem is mounted. This is required in order to erase a partition-table signature on a block device.
+Force erasure, even if the filesystem is mounted. This is also required in order to erase a nested partition-table signature on a non-whole disk device.
 
 *-J*, *--json*::
 Use JSON output format.