aerevml - Online in the Cloud

PROGRAM:

NAME

aerevml - send and receive RevML change sets

SYNOPSIS

aerevml -Send [ option... ]
aerevml -Receive [ option... ]
aerevml -Help
aerevml -VERSion

DESCRIPTION

The aerevml command is used to send and receive change sets using the RevML format. This
format is independent of any particular VC/SCM tool or vendor. It allows export from any
RevML capable VC/SCM system and import into any other RevML capable VC/SCM system.

The basic function is to reproduce a change, so a command like
aerevml -send | aerevml -receive
may be used to clone a change, though less efficiently than aeclone(1). The file format
used is designed to withstand mail servers, so activities such as
aerevml -send | e-mail | aerevml -receive
(where e-mail represents sending, transporting and receiving your e-mail) will reproduce
the change on a remote system. With suitable tools (such as PGP) is it possible to
aerevml -send | encrypt | e-mail | decrypt | aerevml -receive
The mechanism is also designed to allow web-based distribution such as
aerevml -send | web-server → web-browser | aerevml -receive
by the use of appropriate CGI scripts and mailcap entries.

It is possible to support both a “push” model and a “pull” model using this command. For
suggestions and ideas for various ways to do this, see the Aegis Users Guide.

RevML Project
The RevML format is used for copying revision controlled files and change sets between
various SCM repositories. The RevML project may be found at http://public.perforce.com/‐
public/revml/index.html

The latest RevML DTD may be found at http://public.perforce.com/public/revml/revml.dtd

SEND

The send variant takes a specified change, or baseline, and constructs a distribution
package containing all of the change attributes and source file attributes and source
file contents. The result is compressed, and encoded into a text format which can be
sent as e-mail without being corrupted by the mail transfer agents along the way.

Options
The following options are understood by the send variant:

-BaseLine
This option may be used to specify the source of a project, rather than a change.
Implies the -Entire_Source option, unless over-ridden.

-Change number
This option may be used to specify a particular change within a project. See
aegis(1) for a complete description of this option.

-COMPATibility version-number
This option may be used to specify the version of aerevml(1) which will be
receiving this change set. This information is used to select which features to
include in the data, and which to omit. By default, the latest feature set will
be used.

-compression-algorithm name
This option may be used to specify the compression to be used. They are listed
on order of compression effeciency.

none Use no compression (not always meaningful for all commands).

gzip Use the compression used by the gzip(1) program.

bzip2 Use the compression used by the bzip2(1) program.

More compression algorithms may be added in the future.

-COMPress
This option is deprecated in favour of the -comp-alg=gzip or -comp-alg=bzip2
options.

-No_COMPress
This options is deprecated in favour of the -comp-alg=none option.

-Content_Transfer_Encoding name
This option may be used to specify the content transfer encoding to be used. It
may take one of the following values:

None No content transfer encoding is to be performed.

Base64 The MIME base 64 encoding is to be used. This is the default.

Quoted_Printable
The MIME quoted printable encoding is to be used.

Unix_to_Unix_encode
The ancient unix-to-unix encoding is to be used.

These encodings may be abbreviated in the same way as comment line options.

-Ascii_Armor
This means the same as the “-cte=base64” option above.

-No_Ascii_Armor
This means the same as the “-cte=none” option above.

-DELta number
This option may be used to specify a particular delta in the project's history to
copy the file from, rather than the most current version. If the delta has been
given a name (see aedn(1) for how) you may use a delta name instead of a delta
number. It is an error if the delta specified does not exist. Delta numbers
start from 1 and increase; delta 0 is a special case meaning “when the branch
started”.

-DELta_Date string
This option may be used to specify a particular date and time in the project's
history to copy the file from, rather than the most current version. It is an
error if the string specified cannot be interpreted as a valid date and time.
Quote the string if you need to use spaces.

-DELta_From_Change number
This option may be used to specify a particular project delta from its change
number.

-Description_Header
This option may be used to add an RFC 822 style header to the change description
being sent, with a From and Date line. This is the default.

-No_Description_Header
This option suppresses the description header.

-Entire_Source
This option may be used to send the entire source of the project, as well as the
change source files.

-Mime_Headers
This option may be use to force the presence of mime headers in the output, in
circumstances they would usually be absent.

-No_Mime_Headers
This option may be use to force the absence of mime headers in the output, in
circumstances where they would usually be present.

-Partial_Source
This option may be used to send only source files of a change. This is the
default, except for the -BaseLine option.

-Output filename
This option may be used to specify the output file. The output is sent to the
standard output by default.

-Project name
This option may be used to select the project of interest. When no -Project
option is specified, the AEGIS_PROJECT environment variable is consulted. If
that does not exist, the user's $HOME/.aegisrc file is examined for a default
project field (see aeuconf(5) for more information). If that does not exist,
when the user is only working on changes within a single project, the project
name defaults to that project. Otherwise, it is an error.

-Signed_Off_By
This option may be used to have a Signed-off-by: line appended to the change set
description.

-No_Signed_Off_By
This option may be used to prevent a Signed-off-by: line from being appended to
the change set description.

RECEIVE

The receive variant takes a change package created by the send variant and creates an
Aegis change (see aenc(1)) to implement the change within. Files are added to the change
(see aerm(1), aecp(1), aenf(1) and aent(1)) and then the file contents are unpackaged
into the development directory.

The change is then built (see aeb(1)), differenced (see aed(1)), and tested (see aet(1)).
If all of this is successful, development of the change is ended (see aed(1)). The
automatic process stops at this point, so that a local reviewer can confirm that the
change is desired.

Notification
The aerevml command invokes various other Aegis commands. The usual notifications that
these commands would issue are issued.

Options
The following options are understood by the receive variant:

-Change number
This option may be used to choose the change number to be used, otherwise one
will be chosen automatically.

-DELta number
This option may be used to specify a particular delta in the project's history to
copy the file from, just as for the aecp(1) command. You may also use a delta
name instead of a delta number.

-DIRectory path
This option may be used to specify which directory is to be used. It is an error
if the current user does not have appropriate permissions to create the directory
path given. This must be an absolute path.

Caution: If you are using an automounter do not use `pwd` to make an absolute
path, it usually gives the wrong answer.

-File filename
Read the change set from the specified file. The default is to read it from the
standard input. The filename `-' is understood to mean the standard input.

If your system has libcurl(3), and Aegis was configured to use it at compile time
(this is the default if it is available) you will also be able to specify a
Uniform Resource Locator (URL) in place of the file name. The relevant data will
be downloaded. (The -Verbose option will provide a progress bar.)

-Ignore_UUID
This option may be used to ignore the UUID, if present, of the incoming change
set.

-No_Ignore_UUID
This option force the aerevml command to use the change set's UUID. This is the
default.

-Project name
This option may be used to set the project name. If not specified, the project
name in the input package will be used, rather than the usual project name
defaulting mechanism.

-Trojan This option may be used to treat the change set as if it had a Trojan horse
attack in it.

-No_Trojan
This option may be used to treat the change set as if it definitely does not have
a Trojan horse attack in it. Use with extreme care. You need to have
authenticated the message with something like PGP first and know the the author
well.

Security
Receiving changes by e-mail, and automatically committing them to the baseline without
checking them, would be a recipe for disaster. A number of safeguards are provided:

· The format of the package is confirmed to be correct, and the package verified for
internal consistency, before it is unpacked and acted upon.

· The automatic portion of the process stops when development ends. This ensures that a
local reviewer validates the change before it is committed, preventing accidental or
malicious damage.

· If the change seeks to update the project config file, the automatic process terminates
before the build or difference occurs. This is because this file could contain trojans
for these operations, so a human must examine the file before the change proceeds any
further.

· There is a potential_trojan_horse = [ string ]; field in the projectconfig file.
Nominate build configuration files, shell scripts, code generators, etc here to specify
files in addition to the project configuration file which should cause the automatic
processing to halt.

· The use of e-mail authentication and encryption systems, such as PGP and GPG, are
encouraged. However, it is expected that this processing will occur after aerevml
--send has constructed the package and before aerevml --receive examines and acts on
the package. Verification of the sender is the surest defense against trojan horses.

· Automatic sending and receiving of packages is supported, but not implemented within
the aerevml command. It is expected that the aerevml command will be used within shell
scripts customized for your site and its unique security requirements. See the Aegis
User Guide for several different ways to do this.

· The more you use Aegis' test management facilities (see aent(1) and aet(1)) the harder
it is for an inadequate change to get into the baseline.

Duplicate Storms
In a distributed development environment, it is common for change sets to eventually be
propagated back to the originator. There are situations (particularly in some star
topologies) where several copies of the package will return to the originator.

If these change sets are not detected at the review stage, and are propagated out yet
again, there is the possibility of an exponential explosion of redundant change sets
being distributed again and again.

To combat this, changes are checked after the files are unpacked, but before and build or
difference or test is performed. The “aecpu --unchanged” command is used to exclude all
files that the local repository already has in the desired form. If no change files
remain after this, the change is dropped entirely (see aedbu(1) and aencu(1)).

LIST

The list variant can be used to list the contents of a package without actually unpacking
it first. The output is reminiscent of the aegis -list change-details output.

Options
The following options are understood by the list variant:

-File filename
Read the change set from the specified file. The default is to read it from the
standard input. The filename `-' is understood to mean the standard input.

If your system has libcurl(3), and Aegis was configured to use it at compile time
(this is the default if it is available) you will also be able to specify a
Uniform Resource Locator (URL) in place of the file name. The relevant data will
be downloaded. (The -Verbose option will provide a progress bar.)

-Output filename
This option may be used to specify the output file. The output is sent to the
standard output by default. Only useful with the -List option.

OPTIONS

The following options to this command haven't been mentioned yet:

-Help
This option may be used to obtain more information about how to use the aerevml
program.

See also aegis(1) for options common to all aegis commands.

All options may be abbreviated; the abbreviation is documented as the upper case letters,
all lower case letters and underscores (_) are optional. You must use consecutive
sequences of optional letters.

All options are case insensitive, you may type them in upper case or lower case or a
combination of both, case is not important.

For example: the arguments "-project, "-PROJ" and "-p" are all interpreted to mean the
-Project option. The argument "-prj" will not be understood, because consecutive
optional characters were not supplied.

Options and other command line arguments may be mixed arbitrarily on the command line,
after the function selectors.

The GNU long option names are understood. Since all option names for aerevml are long,
this means ignoring the extra leading '-'. The "--option=value" convention is also
understood.

EXIT STATUS

The aerevml command will exit with a status of 1 on any error. The aerevml command will
only exit with a status of 0 if there are no errors.

ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES

See aegis(1) for a list of environment variables which may affect this command. See
aepconf(5) for the project configuration file's project_specific field for how to set
environment variables for all commands executed by Aegis.

COPYRIGHT

aerevml version 4.24.3.D001
Copyright (C) 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002,
2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Peter Miller

The aerevml program comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY; for details use the 'aerevml
-VERSion License' command. This is free software and you are welcome to redistribute it
under certain conditions; for details use the 'aerevml -VERSion License' command.

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