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Date:      Sat, 14 Dec 2024 09:58:16 +0800
From:      Zhenlei Huang <zlei@FreeBSD.org>
To:        Ed Maste <emaste@freebsd.org>
Cc:        FreeBSD Current <freebsd-current@freebsd.org>
Subject:   Re: Switching release media dist sets to .tzst (tar + zstd)?
Message-ID:  <D8462943-F951-43DC-BDB2-4944594D3C71@FreeBSD.org>
In-Reply-To: <CAPyFy2AXee_Y2xei176VAcW6peC0x=waxfPap%2B3uGG2o%2Bynv-A@mail.gmail.com>
References:  <CAPyFy2AXee_Y2xei176VAcW6peC0x=waxfPap%2B3uGG2o%2Bynv-A@mail.gmail.com>

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> On Dec 14, 2024, at 5:15 AM, Ed Maste <emaste@freebsd.org> wrote:
>=20
> I have been reviewing parts of the release artifact build process,
> including ISO and memstick images, and came across the distribution
> sets (e.g., base.txz, src.txz) used by the installer to populate new
> file systems. I=E2=80=99d like to discuss switching these to .tzst =
(tar +
> zstd) compression.
>=20
> While I haven=E2=80=99t yet conducted detailed benchmarks comparing =
zstd and
> xz specifically for this use case, here are some initial
> considerations:
>=20
> Pros of zstd:
> - Faster compression and decompression speeds.
> - Aligns with the compression method used for FreeBSD packages.
>=20
> Cons of zstd:
> - Somewhat larger compressed file sizes.
> - Requires updates to tools that interact with distribution sets.
> - May have limited availability on some other operating systems (?).
>=20
> I have a review open to demonstrate the extent of the change in the
> build system & installer: https://reviews.freebsd.org/D48042
>=20
> It might be that this is not worth pursuing, as dist sets will most
> likely go away with the migration to pkgbase, but I would like to
> discuss and make an explicit decision. We can separately consider
> compression on the release media images themselves.
>=20
> Feedback Requested:
>=20
> Is there support for this idea? Are there objections to pursuing this?
> Are there other factors I should consider, especially compatibility =
concerns?
>=20


I have slow internet, I'd always prefer xz than zstd, as the decompress =
speed does
not matter much.

For the compression, I'm not member of RE, but I guess that ( the slow =
speed of=20
compression ) is affordable, as the releasing is not frequent.

One good example usage of zstd is compressed kernel ( it seems we do not=20=

support that yet ). OCI images may also have benefit with that as those =
images
typically not large, xz saves a little more spaces then zstd but the =
decompress
speed is much slower. It is good to have fast startup speed of =
containers.

Best regards,
Zhenlei




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