Re: [OE-core] [PATCH] license: Drop adding RRECOMMENDS for license packages

["Mike Crowe" <yocto@mac.mcrowe.com>]

On Wednesday 07 July 2021 at 18:06:07 +0100, Richard Purdie wrote:
> This changes behaviour when LICENSE_CREATE_PACKAGE is in use. Packages
> no longer have RRECOMMENDS adding to them.
> 
> It was highlighted that this doesn't apply to PACKAGES_DYNAMIC, nor can
> it easily be made to do so. There is also a much easier way to handle this
> which is:
> 
> IMAGE_INSTALL_COMPLEMENTARY += "*-lic"
> 
> which works on a per image basis and doesn't change the underlying
> package dependencies. I propose we switch to this instead.
> 
> Signed-off-by: Richard Purdie <richard.purdie@linuxfoundation.org>
> ---
>  meta/classes/license.bbclass | 8 --------
>  1 file changed, 8 deletions(-)
> 
> diff --git a/meta/classes/license.bbclass b/meta/classes/license.bbclass
> index f7978e266b6..c87473cbb85 100644
> --- a/meta/classes/license.bbclass
> +++ b/meta/classes/license.bbclass
> @@ -63,14 +63,6 @@ def add_package_and_files(d):
>          # first in PACKAGES to be sure that nothing else gets LICENSE_FILES_DIRECTORY
>          d.setVar('PACKAGES', "%s %s" % (pn_lic, packages))
>          d.setVar('FILES_' + pn_lic, files)
> -    for pn in packages.split():
> -        if pn == pn_lic:
> -            continue
> -        rrecommends_pn = d.getVar('RRECOMMENDS_' + pn)
> -        if rrecommends_pn:
> -            d.setVar('RRECOMMENDS_' + pn, "%s %s" % (pn_lic, rrecommends_pn))
> -        else:
> -            d.setVar('RRECOMMENDS_' + pn, "%s" % (pn_lic))
>  
>  def copy_license_files(lic_files_paths, destdir):
>      import shutil
> -- 
> 2.30.2
> 

It turns out that this has an interesting side effect when
IMAGE_FEATURES also contains "dbg-pkgs".

If python3-core is installed in my image then dbg-pkgs causes python3-dbg
to be installed. python3-dbg recommends gdbm-dbg, so libgdbm-dbg also gets
installed.

Prior to this change, libgdbm-dbg recommends gdbm-lic, so libgdbm-lic gets
installed too.

After this change, libgdbm-dbg no longer recommends gdbm-lic and since
libgdbm itself isn't installed and the complementary globs have already
been matched libgdbm-lic is not installed.

(Other recipes that have multiple binary packages with dependencies that
aren't all installed are affected similarly.)

I don't think this really matters in general, and don't propose to change
anything, but it is a surprise if you have a check that goes through the
results of image_list_installed_packages(d) confirming that all the licence
files have been installed and it gets upset that libgdbm-lic isn't there.

Thanks.

Mike.