Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2003 16:33:00 +0200 (CEST) From: Oliver Fromme <olli@lurza.secnetix.de> To: kensmith@cse.Buffalo.EDU (Ken Smith) Cc: freebsd-hubs@freebsd.org Subject: Re: RFC - extra sync functionality... Message-ID: <200306131433.h5DEX0cc043878@lurza.secnetix.de> In-Reply-To: <20030613141421.GD13868@electra.cse.Buffalo.EDU> from "Ken Smith" at Jun 13, 2003 10:14:21 AM
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Hi, I like the comparison with DNS and zone transfers. And I also like your proposal. Just a few minor comments ... Ken Smith wrote: > I thought that maybe there could be a top-level directory in the > FTP repository named "serial_numbers" and inside that would be an > individual file for each of the modules making up the FTP site. I would give it a different name. "Serial numbers" sounds a bit like registration codes for commercial software. Those are also called "serials" (or rather "serialz", in warez-speak). Could be misleading. Maybe simply "mirror_info". > [...] The serial > numbers are the standard one recommended in the DNS docs, YYYYMMDDXX > where XX is just two extra digits in case you decide to change the > contents more than once in a day (e.g. today would be 2003061300). Personally I often just start a zone with serial 1 and increase by at 1 each change. Less error-prone, IMO. I don't think that the RFC recommends using YYYYMMDDXX, it merely suggests it. Anyway, I don't care much in what particular way the serial numbers are constructed for mirroring purposes, as long as it is clearly documented. > The perl script then only calls your transfer script (you get to > [...] > the perl script writes the new serial number to your local directory. Uhm, why perl? It rather sounds like a good job for a shell script. I do have machines which don't even have perl installed at all (those are not FreeBSD FTP mirrors, though). > We would probably recommend (or implement in this some sort of force > mechanism...) running a real transfer pass once a week or so "just > because" in case someone(s) don't quite play nice with the serial > number generation and update content by mistake. I know there have > been times I've forgotten to update the serial number in DNS SOA > records when I should have... There could be a cron job on the server, which goes through the tree, checks the mtimes of all files and complains loudly if there are any which are newer than their corresponding "serial numbers". It could even update the numbers automatically. > Is this a good idea? Yes, I think so. Regards Oliver -- Oliver Fromme, secnetix GmbH & Co KG, Oettingenstr. 2, 80538 München Any opinions expressed in this message may be personal to the author and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of secnetix in any way. "The idea that Bill Gates has appeared like a knight in shining armour to lead all customers out of a mire of technological chaos neatly ignores ignores the fact that it was he who, by peddling second-rate technology, led them into it in the first place." -- Douglas Adams (1952-2001)
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