[gentoo-dev] Re: Is /var/cache the right place for repositories?

[Duncan]

Alexandre Rostovtsev posted on Thu, 20 Dec 2012 13:10:38 -0500 as
excerpted:

> On Thu, 2012-12-20 at 18:27 +0100, Ulrich Mueller wrote:
>> The FHS says:
>>
>>    /var/cache is intended for cached data from applications. Such data
>>    is locally generated as a result of time-consuming I/O or
>>    calculation. The application must be able to regenerate or restore
>>    the data.
>>
>> Now I wonder: After removal of e.g. the Portage tree from a system, it
>> is generally not possible to restore it. (It can be refetched, but not
>> to its previous state.)
>>
>> Same is true for distfiles

> But I think that the main portage and overlay checkouts are already
> cache-like in the sense that any manual user changes are automatically
> overwritten by "emerge --sync" / "layman -S", which the users are
> supposed to run on a sufficiently regular basis. So /var/cache does seem
> like a reasonable place for them.

I'd been wondering about the point others have made about "locally 
generated", vs "Internet downloaded".

However, upon rereading the above FHS quote, it hit me -- "from 
applications... locally generated... as a result of time-consuming I/O" 
is actually pretty explicit.  I believe the emphasis has been on "locally 
generated", and the point that it explicitly includes "as a result of 
time-consuming I/O" in the definition of "locally generated" has been 
missed entirely.  I know I missed it.  But, if internet downloads 
triggered by running a local app don't qualify as "generated as a result 
of time-consuming I/O", what other I/O-basis generated files DO qualify 
as cache?  That seems to pretty explicitly include Internet downloads in 
the definition, to me!

-- 
Duncan - List replies preferred.   No HTML msgs.
"Every nonfree program has a lord, a master --
and if you use the program, he is your master."  Richard Stallman