X-Git-Url: https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/ucgi/~ianmdlvl/git?a=blobdiff_plain;f=developers-reference.sgml;h=8917c406994ab45a18f1c255aba891190f5dfa76;hb=3a06b4317d7d02d1c19b0c503561146c5a8e5686;hp=0b954d4337f700fec23f826cb271f46d5622a5f9;hpb=108d5cca7e92773ec2ee2c543e04610e9cd49374;p=developers-reference.git diff --git a/developers-reference.sgml b/developers-reference.sgml index 0b954d4..8917c40 100644 --- a/developers-reference.sgml +++ b/developers-reference.sgml @@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ %commondata; - + @@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ Adam Di Carlo, current maintainer aph@debian.org Christian Schwarz schwarz@debian.org Ian Jackson ijackson@gnu.ai.mit.edu - ver. &version;, &date; + ver. &version;, &date-en; @@ -76,16 +76,15 @@ discussion of resources which can help maintainers with the quality of their packages ().

It should be clear that this reference does not discuss the technical -details of the Debian package nor how to generate Debian packages; -that information is discussed in the . Nor does this reference detail the -standards to which Debian software must comply; that information can -be found in the . +details of the Debian package nor how to generate Debian packages. +Nor does this reference detail the standards to which Debian software +must comply. All of such information can be found in the .

Furthermore, this document is not an expression of formal -policy. It contains documentation for the Debian system, and -generally agreed-upon best practices. +policy. It contains documentation for the Debian system and +generally agreed-upon best practices. Thus, it is what is called a +``normative'' document. Applying to Become a Maintainer @@ -318,20 +317,19 @@ to remove the ``on vacation'' flag when you come back. Coordination With Upstream Developers

A big part of your job as Debian maintainer will be to stay in contact -with the upstream developers since you'll have to share information that -you get from the Bug Tracking System. It's not your job to fix non-Debian -specific bugs. -Rather, you have to forward these bugs to the upstream developers. -(Of course, if you are able to do so, you may certainly fix them...) -This way, the bug will hopefully -be corrected when the next upstream version comes out. +with the upstream developers. Debian users will sometimes report bugs +to the Bug Tracking System that are not specific to Debian. You +must forward these bug reports to the upstream developers so that +they can be fixed in a future release. It's not your job to fix +non-Debian specific bugs. However, if you are able to do so, you are +encouraged to contribute to upstream development of the package by +providing a fix for the bug. Debian users and developers will often +submit patches to fix upstream bugs, and you should evaluate and +forward these patches upstream.

-From time to -time, you may get a patch attached to a bug report. You have to send the -patch upstream and make sure that it gets included (if the authors accept -the proposed fix). If you need to modify the upstream sources in order to -build a policy conformant package, then you should propose a nice fix -to the upstream developers which can be included there, so that you won't have to +If you need to modify the upstream sources in order to build a policy +conformant package, then you should propose a nice fix to the upstream +developers which can be included there, so that you won't have to modify the sources of the next upstream version. Whatever changes you need, always try not to fork from the upstream sources. @@ -347,7 +345,7 @@ id="&url-debian-qa;" name="Debian Quality Assurance"> effort are following those bugs and try to help you each time they can. But if you can't fix such bugs within 2 weeks, you should either ask for help by sending a mail to the Quality Assurance (QA) group -(&email-debian-qa;) or justify yourself and present your plan to fix +&email-debian-qa;, or justify yourself and present your plan to fix it by sending a mail to the bug concerned report. Otherwise people from the QA group may want to do a Non-Maintainer Upload (see ) after trying to contact you (they might not wait as long as @@ -876,18 +874,25 @@ not duplicated. Read the for more information.

Assuming no one else is already working on your prospective package, -you must then submit a short bug () against the -pseudo package wnpp and send a copy to &email-debian-devel; +you must then submit a bug report () against the +pseudo package wnpp describing your plan to create a new package, including, but not limiting yourself to, a description of the package, the license of the prospective package and the current URL where it can be downloaded -from. You should set the subject of the bug to ``ITP: foo +from. +

+You should set the subject of the bug to ``ITP: foo -- short description'', substituting the name of the new -package for foo. The severity of the bug report must be -set to wishlist. Please include a Closes: -bug#nnnnn entry on the changelog of the new package in -order for the bug report to be automatically closed once the new -package is installed on the archive (). +package for foo. The severity of the bug report must be set +to wishlist. If you feel it's necessary, send a copy to +&email-debian-devel; by putting the address in the X-Debbugs-CC: header +of the message (no, don't use CC:, because that way the message's subject +won't indicate the bug number). +

+Please include a Closes: bug#nnnnn entry on the +changelog of the new package in order for the bug report to be +automatically closed once the new package is installed on the archive +().

There are a number of reasons why we ask maintainers to announce their intentions: @@ -928,9 +933,9 @@ The changes file is a control file with the following fields: &control-file-fields;

All of these fields are mandatory for a Debian upload. See the list -of control fields in the for the contents of these fields. You can close -bugs automatically using the Description field, see for the contents of these fields. You can close bugs +automatically using the Description field, see . Only the Distribution field is discussed in this section, since it relates to the archive maintenance policies. @@ -1086,7 +1091,7 @@ After uploading your package, you can check how the archive maintenance software will process it by running dinstall on your changes file: dinstall -n foo.changes - Uploading to non-us (pandora) + Uploading to non-US (pandora)

As discussed above, export controlled software should not be uploaded to ftp-master. Instead, use scp or non-anonymous @@ -1101,7 +1106,29 @@ the program for details. You can check your upload the same way it's done on ftp-master, with: dinstall -n foo.changes - +

+Note that U.S. residents or citizens are subject to restrictions on +export of cryptographic software. As of this writing, U.S. citizens are +allowed to export some cryptographic software, subject to notification +rules by the U.S. Department of Commerce. +

+Debian policy does not prevent upload to non-US by U.S. residents or +citizens, but care should be taken in doing so. It is recommended that +developers take all necessary steps to ensure that they are not +breaking current US law by doing an upload to non-US, including +consulting a lawyer. +

+For packages in non-US main or contrib, developers should at least +follow the . Maintainers of non-US/non-free packages should +further consult these of non-free software. +

+This section is for information only and does not constitute legal +advice. Again, it is strongly recommended that U.S. citizens and +residents consult a lawyer before doing uploads to non-US. + + Uploads via chiark

If you have a slow network connection to ftp-master, there are @@ -1521,7 +1548,7 @@ of things you should check or be aware of. Don't set architecture to a value other than ``all'' or ``any'' unless you really mean it. In too many cases, maintainers don't follow the -instructions in the . Setting your architecture to ``i386'' is usually incorrect. Make sure your source package is correct. Do dpkg-source -x @@ -1579,7 +1606,7 @@ NMU of the source package ``foo_1.3-1'' would be numbered ``foo_1.3-1.0.1''.

The way to invoke dpkg-buildpackage is as -dpkg-buildpackage -B -mporter-email. Of course, +dpkg-buildpackage -B -eporter-email. Of course, set porter-email to your email address. This will do a binary-only build of only the architecture-dependant portions of the package, using the `binary-arch' target in debian/rules. @@ -1710,8 +1737,8 @@ belongs in.

If you need to change the section for one of your packages, change the package control information to place the package in the desired -section, and re-upload the package (see the for details). Carefully examine the +section, and re-upload the package (see the 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 ftp.debian.org asking that the old @@ -1752,8 +1779,8 @@ announce list (either &email-debian-changes; or 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 debian/control file to replace and conflict with the -obsolete name of the package (see the for details). Once you've uploaded +obsolete name of the package (see the for details). Once you've uploaded that package, and the package has moved into the archive, file a bug against ftp.debian.org asking to remove the package with the obsolete name. @@ -1763,15 +1790,20 @@ obsolete name. If you can no longer maintain a package, you need to inform the others about that, and see that the package is marked as orphaned. you should set the package maintainer to Debian QA Group -<debian-qa@lists.debian.org> and submit a bug report -against the pseudo package wnpp. The bug report should be +&orphan-address; and submit a bug report +against the pseudo package wnpp. The bug report should be titled O: package -- short description indicating that the package is now orphaned. The severity of the bug -should be set to normal. If the package is especially -crucial to Debian, you should instead submit a bug against -wnpp and title it RFA: package -- short -description and set its severity to important. You -should also email &email-debian-devel; asking for a new maintainer. +should be set to normal. If you feel it's necessary, send a copy +to &email-debian-devel; by putting the address in the X-Debbugs-CC: header +of the message (no, don't use CC:, because that way the message's subject +won't indicate the bug number). +

+If the package is especially crucial to Debian, you should instead submit +a bug against wnpp and title it RFA: package -- +short description and set its severity to +important. Definitely copy the message to debian-devel in this +case, as described above.

Read instructions on the for more information. @@ -1802,7 +1834,6 @@ right away. - Handling Bugs Monitoring bugs @@ -1927,6 +1958,47 @@ that the bug report is not forwarded to the bug distribution mailing list. + + Interaction with Prospective Developers + +

+This chapter describes procedures that existing Debian developers should +follow when it comes to dealing with wannabe developers. + + Sponsoring packages +

+Sponsoring a package means uploading a package for a maintainer who is not +able to do it on their own, a new maintainer applicant. Sponsoring a package +also means accepting responsibility for it. +

+New maintainers usually have certain difficulties creating Debian packages +-- this is quite understandable. That is why the sponsor is there, to check +the package and verify that it is good enough for inclusion in Debian. +(Note that if the sponsored package is new, the FTP admins will also have to +inspect it before letting it in.) +

+Sponsoring merely by signing the upload or just recompiling is +definitely not recommended. You need to build the source +package just like you would build a package of your own. Remember that it +doesn't matter that you left the prospective developer's name both in the +changelog and the control file, the upload can still be traced to you. +

+If you are an application manager for a prospective developer, you can also +be their sponsor. That way you can also verify the how the applicant is +handling the `Tasks and Skills' part of their application. + + Advocating new developers +

+See the page about at the Debian web site. + + Handling new maintainer applications +

+Please see at the Debian web site. + + + Overview of Debian Maintainer Tools

This section contains a rough overview of the tools available to @@ -1965,6 +2037,21 @@ of Debian policy as well as some checks for common errors. The use of id="upload-checking"> and . + + debconf +

+debconf provides a consistent interface to +configuring packages interactively. It is user interface +intedependant, allowing end-users to configure packages with a +text-only interface, an HTML interface, or a dialog interface. New +interfaces can be added modularly. +

+Many feel that this system should be used for all packages requiring +interactive configuration. debconf is not +currently required by Debian Policy, however, that may change in the +future. + + debhelper