Re: Add git-archive [take #2]

[Junio C Hamano <junkio@cox.net>]

Rene Scharfe <rene.scharfe@lsrfire.ath.cx> writes:

> Junio C Hamano schrieb:
>> Franck Bui-Huu <vagabon.xyz@gmail.com> writes:
>> 
>>> 1/ Allow 'git-upload-archive' command to enable/disable some 
>>> formats. This should be done by 'git-upload-archive'.
>> 
>> Perhaps.  I was thinking about the way how a site administrator can 
>> configure such when upload-archive is spawned via git-daemon (for 
>> users coming from ssh and spawn an upload-archive on their own, it's 
>> their own process and upload-archive has no business deciding what is
>>  allowed and what is forbidden).  Not very many clean ways I can
>> think of unfortunately.
>
> Mmpf, ssh is (one of the things) in my blind spot.  Do you mean a
> ssh+git-shell connection?  One could argue that since this is a
> restricted connection anyway upload-archive _has_ a right to restrict
> archive format etc., too.  On a full, unrestricted ssh connection one
> can start git-archive directly.  I'd do that anyway because I'm used to
> do this with tar. ;-)

Ah, I was not thinking about git-shell and it might want to be
restrictive.

> ... Mmh, maybe an environment variable
> which is set by the daemon can be used?  This is no dirtier than what
> webservers do..

Exactly my thought, except "no dirtier" part I did not think
through but now you said it I tend to agree.

So site administrator can ask git-daemon to export some
environment variable that git-upload-archive notices and
restrict service.  If we choose to we can add a similar facility
to set the same environment variable to git-shell, so services
to retricted ssh users can be limited the same way by the
administrator.  That sounds like a good plan; we do not have
to do that for git-shell until somebody asks.