rsync - May 2006 - DO NOT REPLY [Bug 3768] New: --no-specials in Rsync 2.6.8 breaks compatibility with 2.6.0-r6 Mirroring system

https://bugzilla.samba.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3768

           Summary: --no-specials in Rsync 2.6.8 breaks compatibility with
                    2.6.0-r6 Mirroring system
           Product: rsync
           Version: 2.6.8
          Platform: x86
        OS/Version: Linux
            Status: NEW
          Severity: normal
          Priority: P3
         Component: core
        AssignedTo: wayned@samba.org
        ReportedBy: jackass.project@gmail.com
         QAContact: rsync-qa@samba.org


I am publishing a small linux distribution (The Jackass! Project) which uses
tiered array of rsync servers to act as a mirror distribution system.  One of
our mirrors updated to rsync 2.6.8 (on Gentoo).  as a result, it is no longer
capable of performing transactions with the mirror above it.  the host mirror
is running rsync 2.6.0-r6 on Gentoo vServer.  it appears that the
"--no-specials" parameter is now a default command line parameter, and
this
prevents mirrors from being able to perform an rsync.  the server rsyncd.log
reports the following error:


<snip>
2006/05/09 17:04:45 [15633] rsync on script from mojope (82.117.33.58)
2006/05/09 22:04:45 [15633] on remote machine: --no-specials: unknown option
2006/05/09 22:04:45 [15633] rsync: on remote machine: --no-specials: unknown
option
2006/05/09 22:04:45 [15633] rsync error: requested action not supported (code
4) at clientserver.c(461)
</snip>

Unfortunately, this is a major show-stopper, as it has brought our entire
mirroring system to a halt.  Nobody using the new version of rsync can sync
with the host mirror above it.


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https://bugzilla.samba.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3768





------- Comment #1 from wayned@samba.org  2006-05-10 09:58 MST -------
The only time that rsync sends the --no-specials option is when the user has
requested only the transfer of devices and not special files.  This undoubtedly
means that the options passed to rsync used the --devices option, but not -D or
-a. The --devices option changed slightly in meaning in 2.6.7 to only match
block and character devices, while the -D option remained the same.

So, the easiest solution is to change the code running rsync to use the -D (or
the -a) option. Another solution is to define a popt alias on the initiating
system that makes --devices have its old meaning by putting this in either
/etc/popt or the user's ~/.popt file:

    rsync alias --devices -D

Aliasing the option globally is probably not that good of an idea, but for this
option it might not be that bad.  However, if it's possible to change how
rsync
is run, that is the best solution.


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wayned@samba.org changed:

           What    |Removed                     |Added
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Status|ASSIGNED                    |RESOLVED
         Resolution|                            |WONTFIX




------- Comment #2 from wayned@samba.org  2006-07-09 22:12 MST -------
Closing this since there is a compatibile way to use all versions of rsync
(using -D) and the new meaning of --devices is as designed.


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