Re: read-for-fill and caching in gitweb (Re: kernel.org mirroring)

On 12/29/06, Jakub Narebski [off-list ref] wrote:

It is simply the case that new features cost more. Namely in earlier
versions of gitweb Last Change time was taken from HEAD (from current
branch), in newer we check all branches (using git-for-each-ref).
For published public repository it migh make sense to pack also heads
(make them packed refs).

I haven't been using packed refs at all, but it sounds like it's a
single file. So we can stat just that file rather than ask questions
about the heads themselves. That makes checking for if-modified-since
cheap as well.

I was thinking about making this a gitweb %feature, allowing gitweb
administrator to chose if Last Change is taken from all branches
(as it is now), from HEAD (as it was before), or from given branch
(for example master).

I think the natural thing is to check all heads (doing it on the cheap
on packed-refs repos) and provide tuning tips. in this case "use
packed refs" which I guess will become the default eventually.

cheers,


martin