Re: Restoring GNATS database

[Yngve Svendsen <yngve.svendsen@sun.com>]

Andrew,

see my comments inline.

Andrew Gray wrote:

>Hi Yngve and Chad,
>
>One important outstanding issue with GNATS is the bug database.  After
>the main GNU host was cracked in August last year the GNATS database
>was unavailable.  I have started looking at getting it back on-line again.
>  
>
Excellent news. I put a bit of work into a similar effort some months 
ago, but I was unable to get a useful response from the fencepost 
admins. They were probably swamped trying to restore other stuff at the 
time.

>Two key problems are (1) recoving the data from the old database and
>(2) identifying a machine that can host the GNATS database.
>
>I have sent a message to the GNU sysadmins and received a response.
>
>Regarding recovering the old database, they asked where the data was.
>I guessed it would be in /usr/local/com/gnatsdb or /usr/com/gnatsdb.
>Yngve, do you recall what directory the GNATS database on fencepost
>was in?
>  
>
I seem to remember that nothing was in default locations and I remember 
that the configure command line was extremeky long. I think /var/lib is 
a likely candidate.

>Regarding running the GNATS database on fencepost, the response included:
>
>  
>
>>Can GNATS run as a non-root user?  If so, reinstalling on
>>fencepost shouldn't be a problem.  I recall that in years past the
>>installation was poorly maintained / undocumented, and whenever we had
>>to swap out hardware or reinstall fencepost, GNATS broke.  Is there a
>>stable Debian package that we can keep installed on the machine, or
>>does the install need to constantly change?
>>    
>>
>
>My response included:
>
>  
>
>>Yes, GNATS normally run as a specially created "gnats" user.  However,
>>I think that root access was required to administer that GNATS and
>>Gnatsweb installation.
>>    
>>
If we get a properly maintained Debian package, as looks likely now, 
with Chad's efforts, that would be the way to do it. I am still pretty 
sure we would need root access, though.

>>I think there is a stable Debian package (3.999.beta1+cvs20020303-1),
>>but I'm not sure if we would need to run a newer version of GNATS.
>>
>>Another option I am considering is using a cheap Linux virtual hosting
>>service for the GNATS database.  If installing and maintaining
>>GNATS/Gnatsweb on fencepost would involve significant work for the
>>fencepost admins, this approach might shift the admin burden to the
>>GNATS maintainer and/or contributers.
>>    
>>
>
>Chad, was my response to the question about the stable Debian package
>correct?
>
>The Linux virtual hosting service I was thinking of was on jvds.com.
>They have a plan that is USD 12.50 per month, I would be happy to pay
>this for a year if it would help get the GNATS database online again
>quickly.  What do you think about using such a service for the GNATS
>database?
>  
>
I think we ought to push hard to get this on fencepost, because that is 
really where this belongs. If that proves hard, I should be able to host 
it on one of the Debian boxes in my own basement. It is currently hooked 
up to a 1600/512 ADSL connection with a fixed IP address.

- Yngve



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