Re: apt-get may accept inconsistent data

[Goswin von Brederlow <goswin-v-b@web.de>]

Bernd Eckenfels <ecki@lina.inka.de> writes:

> In article <[🔎] 87abj5k6yi.fsf@frosties.localdomain> you wrote:
>> Apt-get should not even send an "If-Modified" query imho. After
>> fetching the Release file is already knows with near certainty if the
>> local file is current or not. It should check the Checksums of the
>> local file and then either keep it or fetch it. Asking
>> If-Modified-Since can only lead to triggering a bug like the squid
>> one.
>
> It would be possible to not base the if-modifed-since on the file time but
> on a date header inside the file. But in that case the mirrors will have to
> react reasonable well to that.
>
> Gruss
> Bernd

What should that give you? Either the file already has the right
checksum (don't fetch) or not (fetch).

The only case an If-Modified-Since would help is when the mirror is
broken and the Packages file actualy does not match. apt-get would
keep trying to fetch it on every invocation even if it isn't new.

I'm not even sure I wouldn't want that in case the file was corrupted
during transfer or locally.

MfG
        Goswin