On Sat, Jan 26, 2019 at 07:04:28PM -0500, Discussion about the Arch User Repository (AUR) wrote:
On 1/22/19 12:16 AM, Daniel M. Capella via aur-general wrote:
Based on the loosely defined "cleanup criteria"[], we're overdue for a little purge. The candidates can be found here:
https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/?O=0&SeB=nd&K=&outdated=on&SB=l&SO=a&PP=250&do_Orphans=Orphans https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/?O=250&SeB=nd&outdated=on&SB=l&SO=a&PP=250&do_Orphans=Orphans
Please run `aurphan -a` to see if you have any orphaned AUR packages installed, and do everyone a favor by adopting them.
If there are no objections, it will be done this weekend. A reply will be sent for record-keeping with the list of packages prior to deletion.
[]: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/DeveloperWiki:AUR_Cleanup_Day#Possible_...
In addition to Alad's point about how he once did the same thing and it did *not* turn out well, I simply don't fathom how you even read what you did in the AUR Cleanup Day wikipage.
You are darn right those are loosely defined -- those rules could be interpreted so loosely as to delete practically any package ever. Hence why that page actually has nothing to do with making up excuses for some TU to unilaterally purge random packages en masse.
The page is as it self-describes, a page discussing how to hold the semi-regular experience of users looking for old and unmaintained packages and submitting waves of deletion requests.
If you would like to do an Alad, please justify it on the grounds that you yourself want to and decided to do so -- don't try to pretend that "the Wiki told me to". Because no, the Wiki did not tell you to delete huge numbers of packages without warning, review, or a chance to let the people who use the packages appeal the decision on a per-package level.
-- Eli Schwartz Bug Wrangler and Trusted User
I don't understand why we should delete orphaned packages in the AUR at all. They are not harmful (like blowing up our repository like it would do in community) nor are they unused only because they are orphaned. I prefer having a big archive of orphaned packages with the chance that somebody adopts the package and finds a PKGBUILD as base to work on. Or are there some problems I am missing? like for example disk space on our AUR server? best regards, chris