<debiandoc>
<!--
- Topics to be included someday:
+ Topics to be included:
- bugs in upstream versions should be reported upstream!
- - how to be a good non-maintainer
+ - fill in ftp and www server discussion
+
-->
<book>
<toc sect>
- <chapt>Applying to Become a Maintainer
+ <chapt id="scope">Scope of This Document
+ <p>
+The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of the
+processes and resources used by Debian developers.
+ <p>
+The processes discussed within include how to become a maintainer
+(<ref id="new-maintainer">); how to upload new packages (<ref
+id="upload">); how and when to do interim releases of other
+maintainer's packages (<ref id="nmu">); how to move, remove, or orphan
+packages (<ref id="archive-manip">); and how to handle bug reports
+(<ref id="bug-handling">).
+ <p>
+The resources discussed in this reference include the mailing lists
+and servers (<ref id="servers">); a discussion of the structure of the
+Debian archive (<ref id="archive">); explanation of the different
+servers which accept package uploads (<ref id="upload-master">); and a
+discussion of resources which an help maintainers with the quality of
+their packages (<ref id="tools">).
+ <p>
+It should be clear that this reference does not discuss the details of
+the Debian package or how to generate Debian packages; that is
+discussed in the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/packaging-manuals/packaging.html/"
+name="Debian Packaging Manual">. Nor is this reference intended to
+give details on standards for how Debian software must behave, which
+is documented in the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/" name="Debian Policy
+Manual">.
+
+
+ <chapt id="new-maintainer">Applying to Become a Maintainer
<sect>Getting started
<p>
So, you've read all the documentation, you understand what everything
in the <prgn/hello/ example package is for, and you're about to
-Debianise your favourite package. How do you actually become a Debian
-developer so that your work can be incorporated into the Project?
+Debianise your favourite piece of software. How do you actually
+become a Debian developer so that your work can be incorporated into
+the Project?
<p>
-Firstly, subscribe to <prgn/debian-devel/ if you haven't already.
-Send the word <tt/subscribe/ in the <em/Subject/ of a mail to
-<email/debian-devel-REQUEST@lists.debian.org/. In case of problems
-contact the list administrator at <email/listmaster@lists.debian.org/.
+Firstly, subscribe to <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ if you
+haven't already. Send the word <tt/subscribe/ in the <em/Subject/ of
+a mail to <email/debian-devel-REQUEST@lists.debian.org/. In case of
+problems contact the list administrator at
+<email/listmaster@lists.debian.org/. More information on available
+mailing lists can be found in <ref id="mailing-lists">.
<p>
You should subscribe and lurk for a bit before doing any coding, and
you should post about your intentions to work on something to avoid
duplicated effort.
<p>
-If you do not have a PGP key yet generate one. You should probably
-read the PGP manual, as it has much important information which is
+Another good list to subscribe to is
+<email/debian-mentors@lists.debian.org/. See <ref id="mentors"> for
+details. The IRC channel <tt/#debian/ on the Linux People IRC network
+(i.e., <tt/irc.debian.org/) can also be helpful.
+
+
+ <sect>Registering as a Debian developer
+ <p>
+Before you decide to work in the Debian Project you have to read the
+<url id="http://www.debian.org/social_contract" name="Debian Social
+Contract">. Registering as a developer means that you agree with and
+pledge to uphold the Debian Social Contract; it is very important that
+maintainers are in accord with the essential ideas behind Debian
+GNU/Linux. Reading the <url
+id="http://www.gnu.org/gnu/manifesto.html" name="GNU Manifesto"> would
+also be a good idea.
+ <p>
+The process of registering as a developer is a process of verifying
+your identity and intentions. As the number of people working on
+Debian GNU/Linux has grown to over 400 people and our systems are used
+in several very important places we have to be careful about being
+compromised. Therefore, we need to verify new maintainers before we
+can give them accounts on our servers and letting them upload
+packages.
+ <p>
+Registration requires that the following information be sent to
+<email/new-maintainer@debian.org/ as part of the registration
+application:
+<list>
+ <item>
+Your name.
+ <item>
+Your preferred login name on <tt/master/ (seven characters or
+less<footnote>Can anyone clarify for me why logins on <tt>master</tt>
+cannot be eight characters?</footnote> ), as well as the email address
+at which you'd prefer to be subscribed to
+<email/debian-private@lists.debian.org/ (typically this will be either
+your primary mail address or your new <tt>debian.org</tt> address).
+ <item>
+A phone number where we can call you.
+ <item>
+A statement of intention, that is, what package(s) you intend to work
+on, which Debian port you will be assisting, or how you intend to
+contribute to Debian.
+ <item>
+A statement that you have read and agree to uphold the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/social_contract" name="Debian Social
+Contract">.
+ <item>
+Some mechanism by which we can verify your real-life identity. For
+example, any of the following mechanisms would suffice:
+<list>
+ <item>
+A PGP key signed by any well-known signature, such as:
+<list>
+ <item>
+Any current Debian developer you have met <em/in real life/.
+ <item>
+Any formal certification service (such as Verisign, etc.) that
+verifies your identity. A certification that verifies your email
+address, and not you identity, is not sufficient.
+ </list>
+ <item>
+Alternatively, you may identify yourself with a scanned (or physically
+mailed) copy of any formal documents certifying your identity (such as
+a birth certificate, national ID card, U.S. Driver's License, etc.).
+If emailed, please sign the mail with your PGP key.
+ </list>
+ </list>
+If you do not have a PGP key yet, generate one. Every developer needs
+a PGP key in order to sign and verify package uploads. You should read
+the PGP manual, since it has much important information which is
critical to its security. Many more security failures are due to
human error than to software failure or high-powered spy techniques.
<p>
+Your PGP key must be at least 1024 bits long. There is no reason to
+use a smaller key, and doing so would be much less secure. Your key
+must be signed with at least your own user ID. This prevents user ID
+tampering. You can do it by executing `<tt>pgp -ks
+<var/your_userid/</tt>'.
+ <p>
+If your PGP key isn't on public PGP key servers such as
+<tt>pgp.net</tt>, please read the documentation available locally
+<tt>/usr/doc/pgp/keyserv.doc</tt>. That document contains
+instructions on how to put your key on the public keyservers.
+ <p>
Due to export restrictions by the United States government some Debian
packages, including PGP, have been moved to an ftp site outside of the
United States. You can find the current locations of those packages on
-<ftpsite/ftp.debian.org/ in the <ftppath>/pub/debian/README.non-US</>
-file.
+<ftpsite/ftp.debian.org/ or <ftpsite/ftp.us.debian.org/ in the
+<ftppath>/pub/debian/README.non-US</ftppath> file.
<p>
If you live in a country where use of cryptography even for
authentication is forbidden then please contact us so we can make
special arrangements. This does not apply in France, where I believe
only encryption and not authentication is forbidden.
<p>
-
- <sect>Registering as a Debian developer
- <p>
-Before you decide to work in the Debian Project you have to read the
-<url id="http://www.debian.org/social_contract" name="Debian Social
-Contract">.
- <p>
-After that, you should send a message to
-<email/new-maintainer@debian.org/ to register as an 'offical' Debian
-developer so that you will be able to upload your packages.
- <p>
-The message should say what you've done and who you are, and should
-ask for an account on master and to be subscribed to debian-private
-(the developers-only mailing list). It should contain your PGP or RSA
-public key (extracted using `pgp -kxa', in the case of PGP) for the
-database of keys which is distributed on the FTP server
-(<tt>doc/debian-keyring.tar.gz</tt>). Please be sure to sign your
-request message with your chosen PGP or RSA key. In addition, you have
-to mention that you've read the ``Debian Social Contract'' (see above)
-and you are expected to know where to find the ``Debian Policy
-Manual'' and the ``Debian Packaging Manual.''
- <p>
-Please be sure to include your preferred login name on master (seven
-characters or less), as well as the E-mail address at which you'd
-prefer to be subscribed to debian-private (typically this will be
-either your primary mail address or your new debian.org address).
- <p>
-You should also include some mechanism by which we can verify your
-real-life identity. For example, any of the following mechanisms
-would suffice:
- <list compact>
- <item>
-A PGP or RSA key signed by any well-known signature, such as any
-current Debian developer.
- <item>
-A scanned (or physically mailed) copy of any formal documents
-certifying your identity (such as a birth certificate, national ID
-card, U.S. Driver's License, etc.). Please sign the image with your
-PGP or RSA key.
- </list>
-
-The following mechanisms are discouraged, but are acceptable if
-neither of the first two mechanisms is practical:
- <list compact>
- <item>
-A pointer to a phone listing at which you could be reached (at our
-expense). This phone listing should be verifiable independently
-through external means such as a national directory-listing service or
-other authoritative source.
- <item>
-Any other mechanism by which you can establish your real-life identity
-with reasonable certainty.
- </list>
-
-We're sorry about the inconvenience of requiring proof of identity,
-but for the moment, such measures are unfortunately the only way we
-can ensure the security and reliability of our distribution.
+Once you have all your information ready, and your public key is
+available on public key servers, send a message to
+<email/new-maintainer@debian.org/ to register as an offical Debian
+developer so that you will be able to upload your packages. This
+message must all the information discussed above. The message must
+also contain your PGP or RSA public key (extracted using <tt>pgp
+-kxa</tt> in the case of PGP; note that <tt/gpg/ integration is
+underway) for the database of keys which is distributed from
+<ftpsite/ftp.debian.org/ in
+<ftppath>/pub/debian/doc/debian-keyring.tar.gz</ftppath>, or the
+<prgn>debian-keyring</prgn> package). Please be sure to sign your
+request message with your chosen PGP or RSA key.
<p>
Once this information is received and processed, you should be
contacted with information about your new Debian maintainer account.
-If you don't hear anything within 7-10 days, please re-send your
+If you don't hear anything within 7-14 days, please re-send your
original message--the new-maintainer volunteers are typically
overworked, and mistakes do occasionally happen.
- <sect>Debian Mentors
+ <sect id="mentors">Debian Mentors
<p>
-There is a mailing list called <tt/debian-mentors/ which has been set
-up for newbie maintainers who seek help with initial packaging and
-other developer-related issues.
- <p>
-Every new developer is invited to subscribe to that list (see <ref
+There is a mailing list called <email/debian-mentors@lists.debian.org/
+which has been set up for newbie maintainers who seek help with
+initial packaging and other developer-related issues. Every new
+developer is invited to subscribe to that list (see <ref
id="mailing-lists"> for details).
<p>
Those who prefer one-on-one help (e.g., via private emails) should
help.
- <chapt>Internet Servers
+ <chapt id="servers">Mailing Lists and Servers
<sect id="mailing-lists">Mailing lists
<p>
The mailing list server is at <tt/lists.debian.org/. Mail
<tt/debian-<var/foo/-REQUEST@lists.debian.org/, where
<tt/debian-<var/foo// is the name of the list, with the word
-<tt/subscribe/ in the Subject to subscribe or <tt/unsubscribe/ to
-unsubscribe.
+<tt/subscribe/ in the <em/Subject/ to subscribe or <tt/unsubscribe/ to
+unsubscribe. More detailed instructions on how to subscribe and
+unsubscribe to the mailing lists can be found at <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/subscribe">, <url
+id="ftp://ftp.debian.org/debian/doc/mailing-lists.txt"> or locally in
+<tt>/usr/doc/debian/mailing-lists.txt</tt> if you have the
+<prgn>doc-debian</prgn> package installed.
<p>
When replying to messages on the mailing list, please do not send a
carbon copy (<tt/CC/--this does not mean `courtesy copy') to the
see the responses.
<p>
In addition, all messages should usually only be sent to one of the
-following mailing lists: <tt/debian-devel/, <tt/debian-policy/,
-<tt/debian-user/, <tt/debian-announce/, <tt/debian-devel-announce/.
+following mailing lists: <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/,
+<email/debian-policy@lists.debian.org/,
+<email/debian-user@lists.debian.org/,
+<email/debian-announce@lists.debian.org/, or
+<email/debian-devel-announce@lists.debian.org/. Additional mailing
+lists are available for special purposes; see <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/MailingLists/subscribe">. Cross-posting is
+discouraged.
+ <p>
+<email/debian-private@lists.debian.org/ is a special mailing lists for
+private discussions amongst Debian developers. It is meant to be used
+for posts which for whatever reason should not be published
+publically. As such, it is a low volume list, and users are urged not
+to use <email/debian-private@lists.debian.org/ unless it is really
+necessary. Moreover, do <em/not/ forward email from that list to
+anyone.
<p>
As ever on the net, please trim down the quoting of articles you're
replying to. In general, please adhere to the usual conventions for
posting messages.
+ <p>
+Online archives of mailing lists are available at <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/Lists-Archives/">.
<sect>The master server
<p>
+The master server, <tt/master.debian.org/, holds the cannonical copy
+of the Debian archive (excluding the non-U.S. packages). Generally,
+package uploads go to this server; cf. <ref id="upload">. All Debian
+developers have accounts on this machine.
<sect>The FTP servers
<p>
<p>
- <chapt>The Debian Archive
+ <chapt id="archive">The Debian Archive
<sect>Overview
<p>
The Debian GNU/Linux distribution consists of a lot of Debian packages
-(<tt/.deb/'s, currently more than 1000) and a few additional files
+(<tt/.deb/'s, currently more than 1500) and a few additional files
(documentation, installation disk images, etc.).
<p>
Here is an example directory tree of a complete Debian distribution:
(disks-i386, disks-m68k, etc.).
<p>
The <em/binary/ and <em/source/ directories are divided further into
-<em/sub-sections/.
+<em/subsections/.
<sect>Sections
<p>
-The <em>main section</> is what makes up the <em>Debian GNU/Linux
+The <em>main</em> section is what makes up the <em>Debian GNU/Linux
distribution</>. This is because the packages in the other two
-sections do not fully comply with all our guidelines.
+sections do not fully comply with all our guidelines. As such, they
+are not officially part of Debian.
<p>
For example, every package in the main distribution must fully comply
-with the <em>Debian Free Software Guidelines</> (DFSG) and with all
-other policy requirements as described in the <em>Debian Policy
-Manual</em>. (The DFSG is our definition of ``free software.'' Check
-out the Debian Policy Manual for details.)
+with the <url id="http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines"
+name="Debian Free Software Guidelines"> (DFSG) and with all other
+policy requirements as described in the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/" name="Debian Policy
+Manual">. (The DFSG is our definition of ``free software.'' Check out
+the Debian Policy Manual for details.)
<p>
The packages which do not apply to the DFSG are placed in the
-<em>non-free</> section. These packages are not considered as part of
+<em/non-free/ section. These packages are not considered as part of
the Debian distribution, though we support their use, and we provide
infrastructure (such as our bug-tracking system and mailing lists) for
non-free software packages.
<p>
-Packages in the <em>contrib</> section have to apply to the DFSG, but
-fail other requirements.
+Packages in the <em/contrib/ section have to apply to the DFSG, but
+fail other requirements. For instance, they might depend on non-free
+packages.
<p>
-(The Debian Policy Manual contains a more exact definition of the
-three sections. This is just meant to be an introduction.)
+(The <url id="http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/" name="Debian
+Policy Manual"> contains a more exact definition of the three
+sections. This is just meant to be an introduction.)
<p>
The separation of the three sections at the top-level of the archive
is important for all people who want to distribute Debian, either via
FTP servers on the Internet or on CD-ROMs: by distributing only the
-<em/main/ and <em/contrib/ sections, one can avoid any legal risks,
-since some packages in the <em/non-free/ section do not allow
-commercial distribution, for example.
+<em/main/ and <em/contrib/ sections, one can avoid any legal risks.
+Some packages in the <em/non-free/ section do not allow commercial
+distribution, for example.
<p>
On the other hand, a CD-ROM vendor could easily check the individual
package licenses of the packages in <em/non-free/ and include as many
machines (like Atari and Amiga), MIPS, and PowerPC.
<p>
Debian GNU/Linux 1.3 is only available for Intel platforms. Debian
-2.0 supports Intel and m68k architectures.
+2.0 supports Intel and m68k architectures. The next version of Debian
+is likely to also support Alpha, PPC, and Sparc architectures, if not
+more.
- <sect>Sub sections
+ <sect>Subsections
<p>
The sections <em/main/, <em/contrib/, and <em/non-free/ are split into
-<em/sub sections/, to simplify the installation process and the
-maintainance of the archive.
+<em/subsections/, to simplify the installation process and the
+maintainance of the archive. Subsections are not formally defined,
+excepting perhaps for the "base" subsection. Subsections exist simply
+to simpilfy the organization and browsing of available packages.
+Please check the current Debian distribution to see which sections are
+available.
+
<sect>Packages
If you have a look at the Debian FTP server or one of its mirrors,
you'll discover that there is one additional directory level on top of
the directory tree, as described in the previous chapter. These
-directories are the <em/distribution directories/.
+directories are the <em/distribution directories/. All distributions
+are contained in the <tt/dists/ directory in the top-level of the
+Debian archive (the symlinks from the top-level directory to the
+distributions themselves is for backwards compatability and
+deprecated).
+
+ <sect1>Stable, unstable, and sometimes frozen
<p>
-There is always a distribution called <em/stable/ and one called
-<em/unstable/. This reflects the development process of the Debian
-project:
+There is always a distribution called <em/stable/ (residing in
+<tt>dists/stable</tt>) and one called <em/unstable/ (residing in
+<tt>dists/unstable</tt>. This reflects the development process of the
+Debian project.
<p>
The ``development'' is done in the <em/unstable/ distribution (that's
why this distribution is sometimes called <em/development
-distribution/). Every Debian developer can update his/her packages in
+distribution/). Every Debian developer can update his or her packages in
this distribution at any time. Thus, the contents of this distribution
changes from day to day and since no special effort is done to test
this distribution it's sometimes ``unstable.''
<p>
-After about two months of development, the <em/unstable/ distribution
-is copied in a new distribution directory, called <em/frozen/. After
+After about a period of development, the <em/unstable/ distribution is
+copied in a new distribution directory, called <em/frozen/. After
that, no changes are allowed to the frozen distribution, except bug
-fixes. (That's why it's called ``frozen.'')
- <p>
-After another month or a little longer, the <em/frozen/ distribution
-is renamed to <em/stable/, overriding the old <em/stable/
-distribution, which is removed at that time.
- <p>
-This development cycle is based on the assumption, that the once
-`unstable' distribution finally becomes `stable' after passing one
-month of testing. Unfortunately, a few bugs still remain--that's why
-the stable distribution is updated every few weeks. However, these
+fixes. (That's why it's called ``frozen.'') After another month or a
+little longer, the <em/frozen/ distribution is renamed to <em/stable/,
+overriding the old <em/stable/ distribution, which is removed at that
+time.
+ <p>
+This development cycle is based on the assumption that the
+<em/unstable/ distribution becomes <em/stable/ after passing a period
+of testing as <em/frozen/. Unfortunately, even once a distribution is
+considered <em/stable/, a few bugs inevitably remain--that's why the
+stable distribution is updated every now and then. However, these
updates are tested very carefully and have to be acknowledged
-individually to reduce the risk of introducing new bugs.
+individually to reduce the risk of introducing new bugs. You can find
+proposed additions to <em/stable/ in the <tt/proposed-updates/
+directory.
<p>
Note, that development is continued during the ``freeze'' period,
-since a new ``unstable'' distribution will be created at that time.
+since a new <em/unstable/ distribution is be created when the older
+<em/unstable/ is moved to <em/frozen/.
<p>
In summary, there is always a <em/stable/ and an <em/unstable/
-distribution available and the <em/frozen/ distribution shows up for a
-month from time to time.
+distribution available, and the <em/frozen/ distribution shows up for
+a month or so from time to time.
+
+
+ <sect1>Experimental
+ <p>
+The <em/experimental/ distribution is a specialty distribution. It is
+not a full distribution in the same sense that 'stable' and 'unstable'
+are. Instead, it is meant to be a temporary staging area for highly
+experimental software where there's a good chance that the software
+could break your system. Users who download and install packages from
+<em/experimental/ are expected to have been duly warned. In short,
+all bets are off for the <em/experimental/ distribution.
+ <p>
+Developers should be very selective in the use of the
+<em/experimental/ distribution. Even if a package is highly unstable,
+it could well still go into <em/unstable/; just state a few warnings
+in the description. However, if there is a chance that the software
+could do grave damage to a system, it might be better to put it into
+<em/experimental/.
+ <p>
+For instance, an experimental encrypted filesystem should probably go
+into experimental. A new, beta, version of some software which uses
+completely different configuration might go into experimental at the
+maintainer's discretion. New software which isn't likely to damage
+your system can go into <em/unstable/.
- <sect>Release code names
+
+ <sect id="codenames">Release code names
<p>
Every released Debian distribution has a <em/code name/: Debian 1.1 is
called <em/buzz/, Debian 1.2 <em/rex/, Debian 1.3 <em/bo/, Debian 2.0
-<em/hamm/, Debian 2.1 will be called <em/slink/, etc.
+<em/hamm/, Debian 2.1 will be called <em/slink/, etc. There is also a
+"pseudo-distribution", called <em/sid/, which is
+used to contain packages for architectures which are not yet
+officially supported or released by Debian. are intended to be
+released for some future distribution.
<p>
-Since the Debian has an open development (i.e., everyone can
+Since the Debian has an open development model (i.e., everyone can
participate and follow the development) even the ``development
versions'' (unstable) are distributed via the Internet on the Debian
FTP server. This FTP server is mirrored by lots of other
<p>
That's why the distribution directories use the <em/code names/ and
there are symbolic links <em/stable/, <em/unstable/, <em/frozen/,
-etc. which point to the appriopriate release directories.
+etc., which point to the appriopriate release directories.
- <chapt>Package uploads
+ <chapt id="upload">Package uploads
<sect>Announcing new packages
<p>
If you want to create a new package for the Debian distribution, you
-have to send a short email to <em/debian-devel/ describing your plans
-before you upload the new package.
- <p>
-This has the following advantages:
-
+should first check the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/prospective-packages.html"
+name="Work-Needing and Prospective Packages (WNPP)"> page. Checking
+the WNPP ensures that no-one is already working on packaging that
+software, and that effort is not duplicated. Assuming no-one else is
+already working on your prospective package, you must then send a
+short email to <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ describing your
+plan to create a new package. You should set the subject of the email
+to "intent to package <var/foobar/", substituting the name of the new
+package for <var/foobar/.
+ <p>
+There are a number of reasons why we ask maintainers to follow these
+steps.
<list compact>
<item>
It helps the (potentially new) maintainer to tap into the experience
<item>
It lets other people thinking about working on the package know that
-there already is a volunteer, and efforts may be shared.
+there already is a volunteer, and efforts may be shared. The "intent
+to package" message to <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ will be
+picked up the the WNPP maintainer, and your intention will be
+published in subsequent versions of the WNPP document.
<item>
It lets the rest of the maintainers know more about the package than
the one line description and the changelog entry "Initial version"
-that generally gets posted to debian-devel-changes by default.
+that generally gets posted to <tt/debian-devel-changes/ by default.
<item>
It is helpful to the people who live off unstable (and form our first
<item>
If we appreciate alpha testers, than any name changes have to be
backwards compatible with the people who already installed the old
-package (conflict and replace old package name at a minimum)
+package (conflict and replace old package name at a minimum).
</list>
-
- <sect>Uploading a package
+
+
+ <sect id="uploading">Uploading a package
<sect1>Generating the changes file
<p>
handling. This is usually generated by <prgn/dpkg-genchanges/.
<p>
This file is a control file with the following fields:
- <list compact>
+<list compact>
<item><tt/Format/
<item><tt/Date/
<item><tt/Source/
</list>
<p>
All of them are mandatory for a Debian upload. See the list of
-control fields in the <em/Debian Packaging Manual/ for the contents of
-these fields.
+control fields in the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/packaging-manuals/packaging.html/"
+name="Debian Packaging Manual"> for the contents of these fields.
+ <p>
+Notably, the <tt/Distribution/ field, which originates from the
+<tt>debian/changelog</tt> file, should indicate which distribution the
+package is intended for. There are four possible values for this
+field: <em/stable/, <em/unstable/, <em/frozen/, or <em/experimental/;
+these values can also be combined. For instance, if you have a
+crucial security fix release of a package, and the package has not
+diverged between the <em/stable/ and <em/unstable/ distributions, then
+you might put <tt/stable unstable/ in the <tt>debian/changelog</tt>'s
+distribution field. Or, if Debian has been frozen, and you want to
+get a bug-fix release into <em/frozen/, you would set the distribution
+to <tt/frozen unstable/. Note that setting the distribution to
+<tt/stable/ means that the pacakge will be placed into the
+<tt>proposed-updates</tt> directory of the Debian archive for further
+testing, before it is actually included in <em/stable/. Also note
+that it never makes sense to combine the <em/experimental/
+distribution with anything else.
+
<p>
The first time a version is uploaded which corresponds to a particular
upstream version the original source tar file should be uploaded and
source should be uploaded, possibly by using the <tt/-sa/ flag.
- <sect1>Transferring the files to master
+ <sect1 id="upload-checking">Checking the package prior to upload
+ <p>
+Before you upload your package, you should do basic testing on it.
+Make sure you try the following activities (you'll need to have an
+older version of the Debian package around).
+<list>
+ <item> install the package and make sure the software
+ works
+
+ <item> upgrade the package from an older version to your
+ new version
+
+ <item> downgrade the package to the previous version
+ (this tests the <tt/postrm/ and <tt/prerm/ scripts)
+
+ <item> remove the package
+
+ <item> run <prgn/lintian/ over the package. You can run
+ <prgn/lintian/ as follows: <tt>lintian -v
+ <var>package-NN</var>.changes</tt>. This will check the
+ source package as well as the binary package. If you
+ don't understand the output that <prgn/lintian/
+ generates, try adding the <tt/-i/ switch, which will
+ cause <prgn/lintian/ to output a very verbose
+ description of the problem.
+
+ </list>
+
+
+ <sect1 id="upload-master">Transferring the files to master
<p>
-To upload a package, you need a personal account on the master
-server. Just log in via ftp and transfer the files to
-<tt>/home/Debian/ftp/private/project/Incoming</tt>. (You cannot
-upload to Incoming on master using anonymous FTP--you must use your
-user-name and password.)
+To upload a package, you need a personal account on
+<ftpsite>master.debian.org</ftpsite>. All maintainers should already
+have this account. You can use either <prgn/ssh/ or <prgn/ftp/ to
+transfer the files. In either case, the files need to be placed into
+<ftppath>/home/Debian/ftp/private/project/Incoming</ftppath>. (You
+cannot upload to Incoming on master using anonymous FTP--you must use
+your user-name and password.)
<p>
-You may also find the Debian package '<tt>dupload</tt>' useful in
-uploading new packages to master. See the '<tt>dupload</tt>'
-documentation for more information.
+You may also find the Debian package <prgn/dupload/ useful when
+uploading packages. This handy program is distributed with defaults
+for uploading via <prgn/ftp/ to <tt/master/, <tt/chiark/, and
+<tt/erlangen/. It can also be configured to use <prgn/ssh/. See
+<manref name="dupload" section="1"> and <manref name="dupload"
+section="5"> for more information.
<sect1>Uploads via Chiark
<p>
-If you have a slow network connection to the master system, there are
-two alternatives: You can upload files to Incoming via a cron-driven
-upload queue in Europe on ftp.chiark.greenend.org.uk. For details
-connect to chiark using anonymous FTP and read
-<tt>/pub/debian/private/project/README.how-to-upload</tt>.
+If you have a slow network connection to <tt/master/, there are two
+alternatives: You can upload files to Incoming via a cron-driven
+upload queue in Europe on <tt/chiark/. For details connect to
+<ftpsite>ftp.chiark.greenend.org.uk</ftpsite> using anonymous FTP and
+read
+<ftppath>/pub/debian/private/project/README.how-to-upload</ftppath>.
<p>
-The program <tt/dupload/ support uploads to chiark, please refer to
-the documentation that comes with the program, for details.
+The program <tt/dupload/ supports uploads to chiark, please refer to
+the documentation that comes with the program for details.
<sect1>Uploads via Erlangen
<p>
-Another cron-driven upload queue is available in Germany: Just upload
-the files via anonymous FTP to
-<tt>ftp://ftp.uni-erlangen.de/pub/Linux/debian/UploadQueue</>.
+Another cron-driven upload queue is available in Germany: just upload
+the files via anonymous FTP to <url
+id="ftp://ftp.uni-erlangen.de/pub/Linux/debian/UploadQueue">.
<p>
The upload must be a complete Debian upload, as you would put it into
-master's incoming, i.e. a <tt/.changes/ files along with the other
-files mentioned in the <tt/.changes/. The queue daemon also checks
-that the <tt/.changes/ is correctly PGP-signed by a Debian developer,
-so that no bogus files can find their way to master via the
+master's <tt/Incoming/, i.e., a <tt/.changes/ files along with the
+other files mentioned in the <tt/.changes/. The queue daemon also
+checks that the <tt/.changes/ is correctly PGP-signed by a Debian
+developer, so that no bogus files can find their way to master via the
queue. Please also make sure that the <tt/Maintainer:/ field in the
-<tt/.changes/ contains *your* e-mail address. The address found there
-is used for all replies, just as on master.
+<tt/.changes/ contains <em/your/ e-mail address. The address found
+there is used for all replies, just as on master.
<p>
There's no need to move your files into a second directory after the
upload as on chiark. And, in any case, you should get some mail reply
should have been moved to master, but in case of errors you're
notified, too.
<p>
-The program <prgn/dupload/ support uploads to erlangen, please refer
-to the documentation that comes with the program, for details.
- <p>
+The program <prgn/dupload/ supports uploads to erlangen, please refer
+to the documentation that comes with the program for details.
+
<sect1>Uploading to the non-us server
<p>
When a package is uploaded an announcement should be posted to one of
the debian-changes lists. The announcement should give the (source)
package name and version number, and a very short summary of the
-changes, in the <tt/Subject/ field, and should contain the PGP-signed
+changes, in the <em/Subject/ field, and should contain the PGP-signed
<tt/.changes/ file. Some additional explanatory text may be added
before the start of the <tt/.changes/ file.
<p>
<tt/experimental/, or <tt/frozen/ (when present), the announcement
should be posted to <email/debian-devel-changes@lists.debian.org/
instead.
+ <p>
+If you use dupload, it is clever enough to determine for itself where
+the announcement should go, and will automatically mail the
+announcement.
+ <sect>Notification that a new package has been installed
+ <p>
+The Debian archive maintainers are responsible for handling package
+uploads. For the most part, uploads are automatically handled on a
+daily basis by an archive maintenance tool called <prgn/dinstall/.
+Specifically, updates to existing packages to the `unstable'
+distribution are handled automatically. In other cases, notably new
+packages, placing the uploaded package into the distribution is
+handled manually. When uploads are handled manually, the change to the
+archive may take up to a week to occur (please be patient).
+ <p>
+In any case, you will receive notification indicating that the package
+has been uploaded via email. Please examine this notification
+carefully. Sometimes the "override" file which the archive
+maintainers use to indicate where packages go, is incorrect or
+out-of-sync with your control file. In these cases, you should either
+correct your control file or file a bug against <tt/ftp.debian.org/
+using the BTS.
- <sect>Interim releases
+ <sect id="nmu">Interim releases
<p>
Under certain circumstances it is necessary for someone other than the
usual package maintainer to make a release of a package. For example,
a porter for another architecture may have to make some small changes
to the source package and does not wish to wait with uploading their
release until the main maintainer has incorporated the patch, or a
-serious security problem may have come to light requiring immediate
-attention.
+serious security problem or bug may have come to light requiring
+immediate attention.
<p>
When a security bug is detected a fixed package should be uploaded as
soon as possible. In this case, the Debian Security Managers should
changes to the package as possible, and they should always send a
unified context diff (<tt/diff -u/) detailing their changes to the bug
tracking system properly flagged with the correct package so that the
-usual maintainer is kept aware of the situation. If the non-maintainer
-upload fixes some bugs, the bug reports should not be closed. However,
-the person making the non-maintainer release should send a short
-message to the bug tracking system to all the fixed bugs explaining
-that they have been fixed. This way, the maintainer and other people
-will get notified about that.
- <p>
-The normal maintainer should do at least one of
+usual maintainer is kept aware of the situation.
+ <p>
+If the non-maintainer upload (as known as an "NMU") fixes some
+existing bugs, the bug reports should not be closed. Technically,
+only the official package maintainer or the original bug submitter are
+allowed to close bugs. However, the person making the non-maintainer
+release should send a short message to the bug tracking system to all
+the fixed bugs explaining that they have been fixed. Using
+<email/control@bugs.debian.org/, the party doing the NMU should also
+set the severity of the bugs fixed in the NMU to "fixed". This
+ensures that everyone knows that the bug was fixed in an NMU; however
+the bug is left open until the changes in the NMU are incorporated
+"officially" into the package by the offical package maintainer.
+ <p>
+The normal maintainer should do at least one of the following:
<list compact>
<item>
apply the diff,
<sect>Maintainer changes
<p>
Periodically, a listing of packages in need of new maintainers will be
-sent to the <tt>debian-devel</> list. This list is also available at
-<ftpsite>ftp.debian.org</> in
-<ftppath>/debian/doc/package-developer/prospective-packages.html</> If
-you wish to take over maintenance of any of those packages, or if you
-can no longer maintain the packages you have, or you simply want to
-know if any one is working on a new package, send a message to
-<email/override-change@debian.org/.
+sent to <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org</email> list. This list
+is also available at in the Work-Needing and Prospective Packages
+document (WNPP), <url
+id="ftp://ftp.debian.org/debian/doc/package-developer/prospective-packages.html">
+and at <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/prospective-packages.html">. If you wish
+to take over maintenance of any of the packages listed in the WNPP, or
+if you can no longer maintain a packages you have, or you simply want
+to know if any one is working on a new package, send a message to
+<email/wnpp@debian.org/.
<p>
If you take over an old package, you probably want to be listed as the
package's official maintainer in the bug system. This will happen
that bug reports will go to you.
- <chapt>Handling bug reports
+ <chapt id="archive-manip">Moving, Removing, Renaming, and Orphaning Packages
+ <p>
+Some archive manipulation operation are not automated in the Debian
+upload process. This chapter gives guidelines in what to do in these
+cases.
+
+ <sect>Moving packages
+ <p>
+Sometimes a package will change either it's section or it's
+subsection. For instance, a package from the `non-free' section might
+be GPL'd in a later version; in this case you should consider moving
+it to `main' or `contrib' (see the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/" name="Debian Policy
+Manual"> for guidelines).
+ <p>
+In this case, it is sufficient to edit the package control information
+normally and re-upload the package (see the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/packaging-manuals/packaging.html/"
+name="Debian Packaging Manual"> for
+details). Carefully examine the installation log sent to you when the
+package is installed into the archive. If for some reason the old
+location of the package remains, file a bug against
+<prgn/ftp.debian.org/ asking that the old location be removed. Give
+details on what you did, since it might be a <prgn/dinstall/ bug.
+
+
+ <sect>Removing packages
+ <p>
+If for some reason you want to completely remove a package (say, if it
+is an old compatability library which is not longer required), you
+need to file a bug against <prgn/ftp.debian.org/ asking that the
+package be removed. Make sure you indicate which distribution the
+package should be removed from.
+ <p>
+If in doubt concerning whether a package is disposable, email
+<email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ asking for opinions.
+
+
+ <sect>Replacing or renaming packages
+ <p>
+Sometimes you made a mistake naming the package and you need to rename
+it. In this case, you need to follow a two-step process. First, set
+your <tt>debian/control</tt> file to replace and conflict with the
+obsolete name of the package (see the <url
+id="http://www.debian.org/doc/packaging-manuals/packaging.html/"
+name="Debian Packaging Manual"> for details). Once you've uploaded
+that package, and the package has moved into the archive, file a bug
+against <prgn/ftp.debian.org/ asking to remove the package with the
+obsolete name.
+
+
+ <sect>Orphaning a package
+ <p>
+If you can no longer maintain a package, then you should set the
+package maintainer to <tt>Debian QA
+<debian-qa@lists.debian.org></tt> and email
+<email/wnpp@debian.org/ indicating that the package is now orphaned.
+If the package is especially crucial to Debian, you should instead
+email <email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ asking for a new
+maintainer.
+
+
+ <chapt id="bug-handling">Handling Bug Reports
+
+ <sect>Monitoring bugs
+ <p>
+If you want to be a good maintainer, you should periodically check the
+<url id="http://www.debian.org/Bugs/" name="Debian bug tracking system
+(BTS)"> for your packages. The BTS contains all the open bugs against
+your packages.
+ <p>
+Maintainers interact with the BTS via email addresses at
+<tt/bugs.debian.org/. Documentation on available commands can be
+found at <url id="http://www.debian.org/Bugs/">, or, if you have
+installed the <prgn/debian-doc/ package, you can look at the local
+files <tt>/usr/doc/debian/bug-*</tt>.
+ <p>
+Often as a package maintainer, you find bugs in other packages or else
+have bugs reported to your packages which need to be reassigned. The
+BTS instructions can tell you how to do this. Make sure the bug is
+not already filed against a package. Try to do a good job reporting a
+bug and redirecting it to the proper location. For extra credit, you
+can go through other packages, merging bugs which are reported more
+than once, or setting bug severities to "fixed" when they have already
+been fixed. Note that when you are neither the bug submitter nor the
+package maintainer, you are not empowered to actually close the bug
+(unless you secure permission from the maintainer).
+
+
+ <sect>When bugs are closed by new uploads
+ <p>
+If you fix a bug in your packages, it is your responsibility as the
+package maintainer to close the bug when it has been fixed. However,
+you should not close the bug until the package which fixes the bug has
+been accepted into the Debian archive. Therefore, once you get
+notification that your updated package has been installed into the
+archive, you can and should close the bug in the BTS.
+ <p>
+Again, see the BTS documentation for details on how to do this.
+Often, it's sufficient to mail the <tt/.changes file to
+<email/<var/XXX/-done@bugs.debian.org/, where <var/XXX/ is your bug
+number.
+
+ <sect id="lintian-reports">Lintian reports
+ <p>
+You should periodically get the new <prgn/lintian/ from `unstable' and
+check over all your packages. Alternatively you can check for you're
+maintainer email address at <url id="http://www.debian.org/lintian/">.
+That page, which is updated automatically, contains <prgn/lintian/
+reports against the latest version of the package (usually from
+'unstable') using the latest <prgn/lintian/.
+
<sect>Reporting lots of bugs at once
<p>
If you report more then 10 bugs on the same topic at once, it is
-recommended that you send a message to debian-devel describing your
-intention before submitting the report. This will allow other
-developers to verify that the bug is a real problem. In addition, it
-will prevent the situation where several maintainers start filing the
-same bug report simultaneously.
+recommended that you send a message to
+<email/debian-devel@lists.debian.org/ describing your intention before
+submitting the report. This will allow other developers to verify that
+the bug is a real problem. In addition, it will prevent the situation
+where several maintainers start filing the same bug report
+simultaneously.
<p>
Note, that when sending lots of bugs on the same subject, you should
send the bug report to <email/maintonly@bugs.debian.org/ so that the
bug report is not forwarded to the bug distribution mailing list.
-
+
+ <chapt id="tools">Whirlwind Tour of Debian Maintainer Tools
+ <p>
+This section contains a rough overview of the tools available to
+maintainers. These tools are meant to help convenience developers and
+free their time for critical tasks.
+ <p>
+Some people prefer to use high-level package maintenance tools and
+some do not. Debian is officially agnostic on this issue, other than
+making the attempt to accomodate the reasonable wishes of developers.
+Therefore, this section is not meant to stipulate to anyone which
+tools they should use or how they should go about with their duties of
+maintainership. Nor is it meant to endorse any particular tool to the
+exclusion of a competing tool.
+ <p>
+Most of the descriptions of these packages come from the actual
+package descriptions themselves.
+
+ <sect id="dpkg-dev">
+ <heading><prgn>dpkg-dev</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>dpkg-dev</prgn> contains the tools (including
+<prgn/dpkg-source/) required to unpack, build and upload Debian source
+packages. These utilities contain the fundamental, low-level
+functionality required to create and manipulated packages; as such,
+they are required for any Debian maintainer.
+
+ <sect id="lintian">
+ <heading><prgn>lintian</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>Lintian</prgn> dissects Debian packages and reports bugs and
+policy violations. It contains automated checks for many aspects of
+Debian policy as well as some checks for common errors. The use of
+<prgn>lintian</prgn> has already been discussed in <ref
+id="upload-checking"> and <ref id="lintian-reports">.
+
+ <sect id="debhelper">
+ <heading><prgn>debhelper</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>debhelper</prgn> is a collection of programs that can be used in
+<tt>debian/rules</tt> to automate common tasks related to building
+binary Debian packages. Programs are included to install various files
+into your package, compress files, fix file permissions, integrate
+your package with the Debian menu system.
+ <p>
+Unlike <prgn>debmake</prgn>, <prgn>debhelper</prgn> is broken into
+several small, granular commands which act in a consistent manner. As
+such, it allows a greater granularity of control than
+<prgn>debmake</prgn>.
+
+ <sect id="debmake">
+ <heading><prgn>debmake</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>debmake</prgn>, a pre-cursor to <prgn>debhelper</prgn>, is a
+less granular <tt>debian/rules</tt> assistant. It includes two main
+programs: <prgn>deb-make</prgn>, which can be used to help a
+maintainer convert a regular (non-Debian) source archive into a Debian
+source package; and <prgn>debstd</prgn>, which incorporates in one big
+shot the same sort of automated functions that one finds in
+<prgn>debhelper</prgn>.
+
+ <sect id="cvs-buildpackage">
+ <heading><prgn>cvs-buildpackage</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>cvs-buildpackage</prgn> provides the capability to inject or
+import Debian source packages into a CVS repository, build a Debian
+package from the CVS repository, and helps in integrating upstream
+changes into the repository.
+ <p>
+These utilities provide an infrastructure to facilitate the use of CVS
+by Debian maintainers. This allows one to keep separate CVS branches
+of a package for <em/stable/, <em/unstable/, and possibly
+<em/experimental/ distributions, along with the other benefits of a
+version control system.
+
+ <sect id="dupload">
+ <heading><prgn>dupload</prgn>
+ <p>
+<prgn>dupload</prgn> is a package and a script to automagically upload
+Debian packages to the Debian archive, to log the upload, and to send
+mail about the upload of a package. You can configure it for new
+upload locations or methods.
+
</book>
</debiandoc>
~ianmdlvl / developers-reference.git / blobdiff