[Server-devel] xs-rsync and the .contents file

[Daniel Drake]

I previously requested that XS-rsync generate the .contents file on
its own, rather than requiring it to be supplied by the user (it is
awkward to generate). However I learned the hard way that the contents
file generation is important and must be regenerated *inside the
image* for fs changes, otherwise the resultant image is not
olpc-update capable, and I think the right time for the creation of
this is clearly at image-generation time (no matter how fiddly).

However, this does make room for a different improvement: because
we're requiring that the .contents file inside the image be correct
when the image is pushed onto the XS, it should be possible to drop
the XS-rsync requirement that the user provides the .contents file a
second time, instead the xs-rsync unpack/repack process could just
grab it from /versions/contents/<HASH> inside the image
It would be a small simplification for those who wish to push updates
through xs-rsync...

Daniel