getdeb-collaboration team mailing list archive

[João Luís Marques Pinto <joao.pinto@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello all,

One of the most frequently requested features for getdeb.net is the 
ability to install the packages from a repository. Despite the clear 
advantages of using a repository there were some issues that made it 
unsuitable for us.

On the last couple of months most of those issues have been resolved 
with changes/improvements that will be available on Ubuntu 9.04. With 2 
months left for its release this is the right time to reevaluate the 
change to an APT repository distribution method.

Advantages
- Security / integrity verification for packages (GPG signed repository)
- Automatic updates
- Install multi-package applications with a single click
- Provide packages with additional dependencies not available on the 
official repositories

Disadvantages
- Updates will be recommended for all packages making hard to apply only 
specific packages updates
- Faulty packages will have a wider impact
- Installing a package forces a repositories info update (to ensure you 
will get the latest version installed)
- Reverting to a previous installed version is harder (requires an 
unusual force version command or Synaptic)

Implementation
The implementation will require some technical changes that will need to 
be implemented on the next 2 months:
- Database model needs to be simplified (instead of listing files we 
only need to list package names and provide APT urls)
- A server side mirror selection script must be implemented to redirect 
APT file requests to available/updated mirrors
- A debian package must be provided to setup the repository, add custom 
APT config and install the GPG keyring

The decision to change to a repository or keep with the current (.deb) 
system must be taken, as providing both methods is not an option 
(release management would be much harder, not enough human resources to 
handle it).

I would like to see your opinions/suggestions.

--
João Luís Marques Pinto
GetDeb Team Leader
http://www.getdeb.net
http://blog.getdeb.net