Re: RFC: Checking for updates
On Wed, Oct 31, 2001 at 02:21:48PM +1100, Glenn McGrath wrote:
> (i previously posted something like this in a comment at debianplanet)
>
> It is possible to create a tool that checks for updated packages that
> would only send minimal amounts of data guarenteed to be less than 90kB
> for sid in its current state, and more likely only having to download
> about 45kB (est)
I read the entire post and you do have a point - DL a few MB to get the updated packages seems like a lot. IMHO, the debian box is
actually trying to pass the Package files down the line as efficiently as it can. In a better world, the box would refresh the main
package file once every 3 or so hours, and keep diff files from prev versions. Then just send the all the diffs to update to newest
one if that is the least amount of bytes OR send a new file.
And if the sum of diffs from version X to current is > than the size of Package et al. then delete the latest patch, and check
patch from version X+1 to current. This all could be done when Packages are updated. It would cost very little CPU time. (<1min
per day).
It would only need ONE small program [written in C would be real fast] that decides which files to send. But I guess this should go
into the apt-get & ftp-master wishlist.
-- Adam
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