Re: Restoring GNATS database

[Yngve Svendsen]

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