Re: [PATCH 0/2] optimizing pack access on "read only" fetch repos

On Sun, Jan 27, 2013 at 1:32 PM, Junio C Hamano [off-list ref] wrote:

I also wonder if we would be helped by another "repack" mode that
coalesces small packs into a single one with minimum overhead, and
run that often from "gc --auto", so that we do not end up having to
have 50 packfiles.

When we have 2 or more small and young packs, we could:

 - iterate over idx files for these packs to enumerate the objects
   to be packed, replacing read_object_list_from_stdin() step;

 - always choose to copy the data we have in these existing packs,
   instead of doing a full prepare_pack(); and

 - use the order the objects appear in the original packs, bypassing
   compute_write_order().

Isn't it easier and cheaper to create the "master index", something
like bup does?
-- 
Duy