[OUTREACHY] Proposal: substitutes over IPFS

["Ludovic Courtès" <ludo@gnu.org>]

Hi!

Gábor Boskovits <boskovits@gmail.com> skribis:

> There are some ideas that were brought up earlier, for example the
> list of ideas for GSoC 2020:
> https://libreplanet.org/wiki/Group:Guix/GSoC-2020, except the network
> booting project.
>
> And the previous round proposal for creating a netlink binding for guile:
> https://www.outreachy.org/outreachy-may-2020-internship-round/communities/gnu-guix/create-netlink-bindings-in-guile/cfp/
>
> Also if you should have any new ideas feel free to start discussion
> threads on the guix-devel mailing list, tagged with [OUTREACHY].

While discussing it on IRC, the idea of turning the IPFS work into an
Outreachy came up, and I think it’s a good idea!

Technically, the work would consist in completing the prototype at
<https://issues.guix.gnu.org/33899>, which entails roughly the
following:

  • Updating (guix ipfs) to the latest IPFS HTTP API (I think IPFS no
    longer has a separate “gateway”).

  • Inserting directories as “UnixFS” instead of the custom data
    structure.

  • Finishing the ‘guix substitute’ implementation, allowing users to
    choose whether or not to use IPFS, and allowing for smooth
    integration on the main branch.

  • Testing publication/substitution in the real world, with fellow
    hackers.

  • (Optional.) Try and use IPFS for long-term source tarball
    archival.

Perhaps Pierre (Cc’d) has more ideas on this.

I prefer not to volunteer to mentor it, but I’m happy to contribute to
discussions and code review.

Who’d be willing to mentor it?

Anyhow, if we do it, we should advertise it widely and early!

Thanks,
Ludo’.