Repo Policy
Contents
Description
The following repositories are spawned for each platform (release):
- main — officially supported repository with free content only. The repository is maintained by ROSA[1];
- contrib — community-supported repository with free content only, no package in this repository will prevent any package in main from working properly. Because of this, some restrictions apply, see #Contrib Policy. Currently, contrib is not ready, see #Current status of Contrib.
- non-free — officially supported repository with non-free, non-patent-infringing content. The repository is maintained by ROSA[1];
- restricted — officially supported repository with content subject to patent restrictions in some countries. The repository is maintained by ROSA[1].
Each repository has two branches: release and updates. The release branch is frozen shortly before the release. After that, all packages for the platform are placed into the updates branch. Update policy depicts the restrictions on what can be placed into updates.
The repositories are formed automatically from users' ABF projects. Please, follow the Submission Policy to make sure this happens.
Meaning of "Maintained by ROSA"
By "maintained by ROSA" we mean above that:
- the patches with bug- and security fixes will be applied;
- the packages will get timely updates according to the Update policy.
Media policies
Main Policy
The guidelines for package selection into the main repository are still being developed.
Contrib Policy
The contrib repository contains the accompanying software that doesn't fit into the main. It is a collection of community-maintained packages where volunteers who applied for maintainership post the results of their work. Contrib repository will be included into the package management utility so that users may turn it on easily, but will not be turned on by default; see #Default repository configuration.
Not all packages may be placed into contrib. If your package prevents the base system from working or damages one of the packages in main (i.e. replaces its files), then it can't be included in contrib. To enforce this policy, Contrib Repository Manager will check your package at submission as a step during the processing of your update request.
Some packages are useful and important even if they may prevent packages in main from working if installed. These are "alternative technologies", such as init systems, login screens, package managers, etc. If you really want to build them, build them into your own, personal repository via ABF, which gives you ultimate freedom in package selection.
Default repository configuration
Free Release
| Repo | Release | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| Main | + | |
| Main updates | + | |
| Contrib | ||
| Contrib updates | ||
| Non-free | ||
| Non-free updates | ||
| Restricted | ||
| Restricted updates |
Enterprise Edition (EE) Release
| Repo | Release | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| Main | + | |
| Main updates | + | |
| Contrib | ||
| Contrib updates | ||
| Non-free | + | |
| Non-free updates | + | |
| Restricted | + | |
| Restricted updates | + |
Supplementary information
The sections below do not contain the actual policy, and are provided to inform you about its future changes, rationales, or history.
Current status of Contrib
Currently, the contrib repository is not ready. It has not been rebuilt because we focused on getting the main repository ready. A usable version of contrib will be ready in June. We will take the contrib repository from Mandriva, and start a mass-rebuild against the ROSA 2012 Marathon main packages. Any package that fails to build will be discarded unless a maintainer volunteers to fix and take maintainership of it.
Backports
Historically, Mandriva had "backports" repository that contained newer versions of the software built against the system base of an older release, but versions of which did not comply to the update policy. It was considered unstable, and was supported by community.
ROSA Technical Committee decided that we won't include any designated "backports" repository. If anyone needs to build an updated package that doesn't comply to Update policy for a released distribution for testing or dissemination purposes, he or she may publish it via a personal repository without requesting anyone's permission.
