Re: [PATCH v2 1/6] archive: optionally add "virtual" files

["René Scharfe" <l.s.r@web.de>]

Am 09.02.22 um 23:48 schrieb Junio C Hamano:
> René Scharfe <l.s.r@web.de> writes:
>
>> The number of files is relatively low and they aren't huge, right?
>
> As long as it is expected to fit on the command line, that's fine.
> But if the question is "it is OK to add a new option with known
> limitation", then it should be stated a bit differently.

I asked this question to find out if writing the files to $TMPDIR and
adding them with --add-file instead of with --add-file-with-content
would be feasible in patches 3 to 6.  git archive would not have to be
changed in that case.

>>> This will throw another monkey wrench to Konstantin's plan [*] to
>>> make "git archive" output verifiable with the signature on original
>>> Git objects, but it is not a new problem ;-)
>>>
>>>
>>> [Reference]
>>>
>>> * https://lore.kernel.org/git/20220207213449.ljqjhdx4f45a3lx5@meerkat.local/
>>
>> I don't see the conflict: If an untracked file is added to an archive
>> using --add-file, --add-file-with-content, or ZIP or tar then we'd
>> *want* the verification against a signed commit or tag to fail, no?  A
>> different signature would be required for the non-tracked parts.
>
> Yes, which is exactly how this (and existing --add-file) makes
> Konstantin's plan much less useful.
People added untracked files to archives before --add-file existed.

--add-file-with-content could be used to add the .GIT_ARCHIVE_SIG file.

Additional untracked files would need a manifest to specify which files
are (not) covered by the signed commit/tag.  Or the .GIT_ARCHIVE_SIG
files could be added just after the signed files as a rule, before any
other untracked files, as some kind of a separator.

Just listing untracked files and verifying the others might still be
useful.  Warning about untracked files shadowing tracked ones would be
very useful.

Some equivalent to the .GIT_ARCHIVE_SIG file containing a signature of
the untracked files could optionally be added at the end to allow full
verification -- but would require signing at archive creation time.

René