Re: [Monotone-devel] CVS import errors

[Nathaniel Smith]

On Fri, Aug 26, 2005 at 08:36:01AM +0100, M?ns Rullg?rd wrote:
> M?ns Rullg?rd <address@hidden> writes:
> 
> > I'm trying to import a CVS repository into monotone.  All goes
> > seemingly well, in that there are no warnings or error messages.
> > However, when I check it out, I notice that a lot of the files are old
> > versions, and some are missing altogether.  The set is not consistent
> > with any point in the past, either.  If I import only a subset of the
> > repository (a few files), I get different versions, sometimes even the
> > latest.
> >
> > I reported this to the bug tracker a week ago, but it appears to have
> > gone unnoticed there.  For reference, the report there is at URL
> > https://savannah.nongnu.org/bugs/?func=detailitem&item_id=14151, where
> > I also attached the failing repo.
> 
> Please, could someone at least comment on this?  Or should I be
> looking for a replacement for monotone?

Sorry about that.

Unfortunately, the answer is "yes, it seems to be broken; but, as
you've seen, no-one seems to have time to look at it ATM" :-/.

Other options are to use Tailor:
   http://www.darcs.net/DarcsWiki/Tailor
or to check out and build the net.venge.monotone.cvssync branch, which
is a version of monotone with a different, incremental CVS importer
built in.

Given that this repo seems to have been converted from BK (and I'm
suspicious that this might be related to our problems importing it,
CVS files have ill-defined structure in some ways and it's possible
that bkcvs is generating something that CVS can read but would never
itself produce), you might have some luck writing a script based on
tridge's "sourcepuller" program.  In principle, this could preserve
the full merge history graph, rather than the degraded linearization
bkcvs produces.  The Xaraya folks might have some insight into good
ways to go straight BK->monotone.

As for other systems, your best bet is probably SVN; svn2cvs is the
only CVS converter that can do better than the above options (except,
possibly, for some unreleased software that Canonical uses).

Good luck,
-- Nathaniel

-- 
When the flush of a new-born sun fell first on Eden's green and gold,
Our father Adam sat under the Tree and scratched with a stick in the mould;
And the first rude sketch that the world had seen was joy to his mighty heart,
Till the Devil whispered behind the leaves, "It's pretty, but is it Art?"
  -- The Conundrum of the Workshops, Rudyard Kipling