[Debtorrent-devel] Fwd: BitTorrent Protocol Expansion (Google SoC)

[Cameron Dale]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Cameron Dale <camrdale at gmail.com>
Date: Mar 26, 2007 10:37 PM
Subject: Re: BitTorrent Protocol Expansion (Google SoC)
To: Anthony Towns <aj at azure.humbug.org.au>


Anthony Towns wrote:
> On Mon, Mar 26, 2007 at 05:25:05PM -0700, Cameron Dale wrote:
>> http://www.cs.sfu.ca/~camerond/personal/GoogleSoCDebian.html
>
> Some comments:
>
>     This project proposes to create a backend or proxy to the Debian
>     package distribution tool apt, which will allow it to download
>     packages from other users of Debian in a BitTorrent-like manner,
>     thus reducing the costs incurred by the [Debian project].
>
> I'm not sure it's the costs to the Debian project that matter, so much
> as the costs for random people to setup Debian archives that get used
> by a lot of people.

Are you suggesting that random people will use the same software for
distributing their packages (i.e. setup their own tracker), or that we would
allow random people to use the Debian distribution system (i.e. connect to the
large Debian BitTorrent swarm, tracked by Debian trackers)? I had been thinking
the former would occur, not the latter, as this seems like Debian is endorsing
their archive when we might not want to.

Either way, my thoughts were that the big advantage was to Debian itself, and
possibly the mirror sites. I hadn't considered the small developer. Are you
aware of any good examples of where this is needed (debian-multimedia.org comes
to mind).

> I would think a standalone mirroring app (like apt-proxy) is likely far
> easier than integrating it into apt.

I think so too, I just think that the eventual goal would be to integrate more
with apt (it's at the bottom under optional things to do). I'll try to reword it
to highlight proxy more in some places.

>     These costs are currently being reduced by the voluntary mirroring
>     system Debian uses to help distribute packages. This system comes
>     with some drawbacks though [...]
>
> One you didn't mention was that it's slow to react to changes in the
> mirror network -- users have to change their sources list by hand if
> they need to switch to a different mirror, and admins have to keep their
> upstream (and sometimes downstream) mirrors organised by hand too.

Good point, I'll add it to the website.

>     Finally, the archive is frequently updated, though only a very small
>     portion of it at a time.
>
> See http://ftp-master.debian.org/size-quarter.png for a graph of the
> amount that changes daily. We seem to be getting about 1GB or 2GB per day,
> compared to a current total archive size of 200GB or so I guess.

Thanks, I'll add the link.

>     running many copies of a modified BitTorrent client on the PlanetLab
>     research testbed.
>
> What's the client? BitTorrent itself or BitTornado or..?

It's BitTornado. I'll clarify that.

Thanks for all the comments. I'll make the changes and then go ahead
and submit it.

Cameron
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