"Martin Langhoff" <martin.langhoff@gmail.com> writes:

quoted text
> Git tries to be smart in at least 2 ways that don't work with dump
> protocols: it works locklessly (yet it performs atomic updates) and it
> sends only the objects needed over the wire (saving a lot of
> bandwidth).
>
> Using dumb protocols it's impossible to do either.

That's not exactly true. You can't be as efficient with dumb protocols
than you are with a dedicated protocol (something with some
intelligence on both sides), but at least the second point you mention
can be achieved with a dumb protocol, and bzr is a proof of existance.
To read over HTTP, it uses ranges request, and to push over
ftp/sftp/webdav, it appends new data to existing files (its ancestor,
GNU Arch, also had a way to be network-efficient on dumb protocols).

Regarding atomic and lock-less updates, I believe this is
implementable too as soon as you have an atomit "rename" in the
protocol. But here, bzr isn't a proof of existance, it does locking.

(BTW, about bzr, it also has a dedicated server now)

-- 
Matthieu
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