RE: [isar][RFC] rootfs: clean debconf cache files

[<Venkata.Pyla@toshiba-tsip.com>]

Hi,

Sorry, somehow my replay mail to the below patch was not went to the mailing list earlier, I am resending.

Please provide your comments for the below patch that will remove the debconf cache files in the isar image.

I am removing these files for the purpose of the solving non-reproducible problem in debconf cache file.
I am also finding solution to not remove these files, by fixing the actual problem in packages who produces the non-reproducible content (information is present in the below commit log)

Also I am checking why not remove these files in isar image.
As I understood, the debconf cache files are used to store the answers of  debconf's questions asked during package installation and same cached information will be used in the next package update/re-install time.
I think in the isar build system the package installation is noninteractive and the debconf cache generates with default data, which is not necessary to store.
If my above understanding is correct, I think we can safely delete the debconf cache file in isar image.

Kindly let me know your feedback on this understanding and provide your suggestions.

Thanks,
Venkata.

>-----Original Message-----
>From: venkata.pyla@toshiba-tsip.com <venkata.pyla@toshiba-tsip.com>
>Sent: 06 May 2022 15:16
>To: isar-users@googlegroups.com
>Cc: pyla venkata(ＴＳＩＰ) <Venkata.Pyla@toshiba-tsip.com>;
>henning.schild@siemens.com; jan.kiszka@siemens.com; dinesh kumar(ＴＳＩ
>Ｐ) <dinesh.kumar@toshiba-tsip.com>; hayashi kazuhiro(林 和宏 □ＳＷＣ◯ＡＣ
>Ｔ) <kazuhiro3.hayashi@toshiba.co.jp>
>Subject: [isar][RFC] rootfs: clean debconf cache files
>
>From: venkata pyla <venkata.pyla@toshiba-tsip.com>
>
>Cleaning the debconf cache files for the purpose of generating reproducible
>system image.
>
>The debconf cache database sometime generates with non-reproducible
>contents because of some packages behaviour (e.g: localepurge), reported this
>to package bug tracking system[1], but because this problem is not with one
>particular package and can happen with other packages also, this should be
>solved in common place to address reproducibility problem, discussing with
>Reproducible-builds community[2] to find some common solution for this
>problem.
>
>[1] https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=1009639
>[2] https://lists.reproducible-builds.org/pipermail/rb-general/2022-
>April/002546.html
>
>Signed-off-by: venkata pyla <venkata.pyla@toshiba-tsip.com>
>Suggested-by: Henning Schild <henning.schild@siemens.com>
>---
> meta/classes/image.bbclass  | 2 +-
> meta/classes/rootfs.bbclass | 6 ++++++
> 2 files changed, 7 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)
>
>diff --git a/meta/classes/image.bbclass b/meta/classes/image.bbclass index
>eb879ff..a306bd2 100644
>--- a/meta/classes/image.bbclass
>+++ b/meta/classes/image.bbclass
>@@ -71,7 +71,7 @@ image_do_mounts() {
> }
>
> ROOTFSDIR = "${IMAGE_ROOTFS}"
>-ROOTFS_FEATURES += "clean-package-cache generate-manifest export-dpkg-
>status clean-log-files"
>+ROOTFS_FEATURES += "clean-package-cache generate-manifest export-dpkg-
>status clean-log-files clean-debconf-cache"
> ROOTFS_PACKAGES += "${IMAGE_PREINSTALL} ${IMAGE_INSTALL}"
> ROOTFS_MANIFEST_DEPLOY_DIR ?= "${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}"
> ROOTFS_DPKGSTATUS_DEPLOY_DIR ?= "${DEPLOY_DIR_IMAGE}"
>diff --git a/meta/classes/rootfs.bbclass b/meta/classes/rootfs.bbclass index
>b021e72..78f4ba6 100644
>--- a/meta/classes/rootfs.bbclass
>+++ b/meta/classes/rootfs.bbclass
>@@ -243,6 +243,12 @@ rootfs_postprocess_clean_log_files() {
>         -exec rm -f {} ';'
> }
>
>+ROOTFS_POSTPROCESS_COMMAND +=
>"${@bb.utils.contains('ROOTFS_FEATURES', 'clean-debconf-cache',
>'rootfs_postprocess_clean_debconf_cache', '', d)}"
>+rootfs_postprocess_clean_debconf_cache() {
>+    # Delete debconf cache files
>+    sudo rm -rf "${ROOTFSDIR}/var/cache/debconf/"*
>+}
>+
> ROOTFS_POSTPROCESS_COMMAND +=
>"${@bb.utils.contains('ROOTFS_FEATURES', 'generate-manifest',
>'rootfs_generate_manifest', '', d)}"
> rootfs_generate_manifest () {
>     mkdir -p ${ROOTFS_MANIFEST_DEPLOY_DIR}
>--
>2.20.1