From: Zooko O'Whielacronx Date: Thu, 5 Jul 2007 01:59:26 +0000 (-0700) Subject: relnotes.txt: reflow to 70-char width X-Git-Url: https://git.rkrishnan.org/frontends/webapi.txt?a=commitdiff_plain;h=ccd92ddee8d18fd1104659a89e9b304033f6d4f6;p=tahoe-lafs%2Ftahoe-lafs.git relnotes.txt: reflow to 70-char width --- diff --git a/relnotes.txt b/relnotes.txt index 899a6021..89a8ed1d 100644 --- a/relnotes.txt +++ b/relnotes.txt @@ -1,63 +1,65 @@ NEW VERSION RELEASED -We are pleased to announce the release of version 0.4 of Allmydata-Tahoe, a -secure, decentralized storage grid under a free-software licence. This is -the follow-up to v0.3 which was released June 6, 2007 (see [1]). +We are pleased to announce the release of version 0.4 of +Allmydata-Tahoe, a secure, decentralized storage grid under a +free-software licence. This is the follow-up to v0.3 which was +released June 6, 2007 (see [1]). Since then we've made several improvements, including: - * Add encrypted, mutable directories, so that you can organize your files - into directories, change the contents of directories, and share your - directories with your friends, without thereby sharing your directories - with anyone else -- not even with the owners of the servers that host - your directories. + * Add encrypted, mutable directories, so that you can organize your + files into directories, change the contents of directories, and + share your directories with your friends, without thereby sharing + your directories with anyone else -- not even with the owners of + the servers that host your directories. - * make it so that web browsers can connect to the Tahoe node securely with - https (ticket #55) + * make it so that web browsers can connect to the Tahoe node securely + with https (ticket #55) -For complete details, see this web page which shows all ticket changes, -repository checkins, and wiki changes from June 11 to today, June 29: [2]. +For complete details, see this web page which shows all ticket +changes, repository checkins, and wiki changes from June 11 to today, +June 29: [2]. -Allmydata-Tahoe v0.4 is incompatible with v0.3 due to the new encrypted -directory structure, among other things. (Note that this applies only to -directories -- individual files uploaded with v0.3 are probably downloadable -with v0.4.) +Allmydata-Tahoe v0.4 is incompatible with v0.3 due to the new +encrypted directory structure, among other things. (Note that this +applies only to directories -- individual files uploaded with v0.3 are +probably downloadable with v0.4.) WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR? -The source code that we are releasing is the current working prototype for -Allmydata's next-generation product. This release is targeted at hackers -and users who are willing to use a minimal, text-oriented web user -interface. +The source code that we are releasing is the current working prototype +for Allmydata's next-generation product. This release is targeted at +hackers and users who are willing to use a minimal, text-oriented web +user interface. -This software is not yet recommended for storage of highly confidential data -nor for important data which is not otherwise backed up, but it is useful -for experimentation, prototyping, and extension. +This software is not yet recommended for storage of highly +confidential data nor for important data which is not otherwise backed +up, but it is useful for experimentation, prototyping, and extension. -This release of Allmydata-Tahoe is suitable for Use Case #2: "groups of -friends who want to share backup and file-sharing" (see the wiki page -"UseCases": [3]). It is easy to set up a private grid which is securely -shared among a specific, limited set of friends. Files uploaded to this -shared grid will be available to all friends, even when some of the -computers are unavailable. It is also easy to use a public grid, but to -encrypt individual files and directories so that only intended recipients -can read them. +This release of Allmydata-Tahoe is suitable for Use Case #2: "groups +of friends who want to share backup and file-sharing" (see the wiki +page "UseCases": [3]). It is easy to set up a private grid which is +securely shared among a specific, limited set of friends. Files +uploaded to this shared grid will be available to all friends, even +when some of the computers are unavailable. It is also easy to use a +public grid, but to encrypt individual files and directories so that +only intended recipients can read them. LICENCE -Tahoe is offered under the GNU General Public License (v2 or later), with -the added permission that, if you become obligated to release a derived work -under this licence (as per section 2.b), you may delay the fulfillment of -this obligation for up to 12 months. +Tahoe is offered under the GNU General Public License (v2 or later), +with the added permission that, if you become obligated to release a +derived work under this licence (as per section 2.b), you may delay +the fulfillment of this obligation for up to 12 months. INSTALLATION -This release of Tahoe works on Linux/x86, Linux/amd64, Mac/Intel, Mac/PPC, -Windows-native, and Cygwin. +This release of Tahoe works on Linux/x86, Linux/amd64, Mac/Intel, +Mac/PPC, Windows-native, and Cygwin. To install, download the tarball [4], untar it, go into the resulting directory, and follow the directions in the README [5]. @@ -66,87 +68,94 @@ directory, and follow the directions in the README [5]. USAGE Once installed, create a "client node". Instruct this client node to -connect to a specific "introducer node" by means of config files in the -client node's working directory. To join a public grid, copy in the .furl -files for that grid. To create a private grid, run your own introducer, and -copy its .furl files. See the README for step-by-step instructions. - -Each client node runs a local webserver (enabled by writing the desired port -number into a file called 'webport'). The front page of this webserver -shows the node's status, including which introducer is being used and which -other nodes are connected. Links from the status page lead to others that -give access to a shared virtual filesystem, in which each directory is -represented by a separate page. Each client node also has a separate -(non-shared) virtual filesystem. Each directory page shows a list of the -files available there, with download links, and forms to upload new files. - -Other ways to access the filesystem are planned: please see the roadmap.txt -[6] for some rough details. +connect to a specific "introducer node" by means of config files in +the client node's working directory. To join a public grid, copy in +the .furl files for that grid. To create a private grid, run your own +introducer, and copy its .furl files. See the README for step-by-step +instructions. + +Each client node runs a local webserver (enabled by writing the +desired port number into a file called 'webport'). The front page of +this webserver shows the node's status, including which introducer is +being used and which other nodes are connected. Links from the status +page lead to others that give access to a shared virtual filesystem, +in which each directory is represented by a separate page. Each +client node also has a separate (non-shared) virtual filesystem. Each +directory page shows a list of the files available there, with +download links, and forms to upload new files. + +Other ways to access the filesystem are planned: please see the +roadmap.txt [6] for some rough details. HACKING AND COMMUNITY Please join the mailing list [7] to discuss the ideas behind Tahoe and -extensions of and uses of Tahoe. Patches that extend and improve Tahoe are -gratefully accepted -- roadmap.txt shows the next improvements that we plan -to make and CREDITS lists the names of people who've contributed to the -project. You can browse the revision control history, source code, and -issue tracking at the Trac instance [8]. Please see the buildbot [9], which -shows how Tahoe builds and passes unit tests on each checkin, and the code -coverage results [10] and percentage-covered graph [11], which show how much -of the Tahoe source code is currently exercised by the test suite. +extensions of and uses of Tahoe. Patches that extend and improve +Tahoe are gratefully accepted -- roadmap.txt shows the next +improvements that we plan to make and CREDITS lists the names of +people who've contributed to the project. You can browse the revision +control history, source code, and issue tracking at the Trac instance +[8]. Please see the buildbot [9], which shows how Tahoe builds and +passes unit tests on each checkin, and the code coverage results [10] +and percentage-covered graph [11], which show how much of the Tahoe +source code is currently exercised by the test suite. NETWORK ARCHITECTURE -Each peer maintains a connection to each other peer. A single distinct -server called an "introducer" is used to discover other peers with which to -connect. +Each peer maintains a connection to each other peer. A single +distinct server called an "introducer" is used to discover other peers +with which to connect. -To store a file, the file is encrypted and erasure coded, and each resulting -share is uploaded to a different peer. The secure hash of the encrypted -file and the encryption key are packed into a URI, knowledge of which is -necessary and sufficient to recover the file. +To store a file, the file is encrypted and erasure coded, and each +resulting share is uploaded to a different peer. The secure hash of +the encrypted file and the encryption key are packed into a URI, +knowledge of which is necessary and sufficient to recover the file. -To fetch a file, starting with the URI, a subset of shares is downloaded -from peers, the file is reconstructed from the shares, and then decrypted. +To fetch a file, starting with the URI, a subset of shares is +downloaded from peers, the file is reconstructed from the shares, and +then decrypted. -A single distinct server called a "vdrive server" maintains a global mapping -from pathnames/filenames to URIs. +A single distinct server called a "vdrive server" maintains a global +mapping from pathnames/filenames to URIs. -We are acutely aware of the limitations of decentralization and scalability -inherent in this version. In particular, the completely-connected property -of the grid and the requirement of a single distinct introducer and vdrive -server limits the possible size of the grid. We have plans to loosen these -limitations (see roadmap.txt). Currently it should be noted that the grid -already depends as little as possible on the accessibility and correctness -of the introduction server and the vdrive server. Also note that the choice -of which servers to use is easily configured -- you should be able to set up -a private grid for you and your friends almost as easily as to connect to -our public test grid. +We are acutely aware of the limitations of decentralization and +scalability inherent in this version. In particular, the +completely-connected property of the grid and the requirement of a +single distinct introducer and vdrive server limits the possible size +of the grid. We have plans to loosen these limitations (see +roadmap.txt). Currently it should be noted that the grid already +depends as little as possible on the accessibility and correctness of +the introduction server and the vdrive server. Also note that the +choice of which servers to use is easily configured -- you should be +able to set up a private grid for you and your friends almost as +easily as to connect to our public test grid. SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE -Tahoe is a "from the ground-up" rewrite, inspired by Allmydata's existing -consumer backup service. It is primarily written in the Python programming -language. - -Tahoe is based on the Foolscap library [12] which provides a remote object -protocol inspired by the capability-secure "E" programming language [13]. -Foolscap allows us to express the intended behavior of the distributed grid -directly in object-oriented terms while relying on a well-engineered, secure -transport layer. - -The network layer is provided by the Twisted library [14]. Computationally -intensive operations are performed in native compiled code, such as the -"zfec" library for fast erasure coding (also available separately: [15]). - -Tahoe is sponsored by Allmydata, Inc. [16], a provider of consumer backup -services. Allmydata, Inc. contributes hardware, software, ideas, bug -reports, suggestions, demands, and money (employing several Allmydata-Tahoe -hackers and allowing them to spend part of their work time on the -next-generation, free-software project). We are eternally grateful! +Tahoe is a "from the ground-up" rewrite, inspired by Allmydata's +existing consumer backup service. It is primarily written in the +Python programming language. + +Tahoe is based on the Foolscap library [12] which provides a remote +object protocol inspired by the capability-secure "E" programming +language [13]. Foolscap allows us to express the intended behavior of +the distributed grid directly in object-oriented terms while relying +on a well-engineered, secure transport layer. + +The network layer is provided by the Twisted library [14]. +Computationally intensive operations are performed in native compiled +code, such as the "zfec" library for fast erasure coding (also +available separately: [15]). + +Tahoe is sponsored by Allmydata, Inc. [16], a provider of consumer +backup services. Allmydata, Inc. contributes hardware, software, +ideas, bug reports, suggestions, demands, and money (employing several +Allmydata-Tahoe hackers and allowing them to spend part of their work +time on the next-generation, free-software project). We are eternally +grateful! Zooko O'Whielacronx and Brian Warner