bazelbuild/bazel

rctx.download_and_extract should fully unpack .deb files

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#23,634 opened on Sep 16, 2024

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P2help wantedteam-ExternalDepstype: feature request

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Description

Description of the feature request:

Currently, rctx.download_and_extract just extracts .deb files into its internals, e.g. data.tar, control.tar. It'd probably be more useful if it could actually extract the real data under it, like dpkg -x would do.

Which category does this issue belong to?

Core

What underlying problem are you trying to solve with this feature?

Easily unpack .deb files.

Which operating system are you running Bazel on?

Ubuntu 24.04

What is the output of bazel info release?

release 7.3.1

If bazel info release returns development version or (@non-git), tell us how you built Bazel.

No response

What's the output of git remote get-url origin; git rev-parse HEAD ?

No response

Have you found anything relevant by searching the web?

No response

Any other information, logs, or outputs that you want to share?

No response

Contributor guide

Research direction
Study how rctx.download and extract handles different archive formats. For .deb files, it currently only unpacks the outer ar archive. To fully extract, you need to unpack the data.tar and control.tar files inside. Implement logic to recursively extract these inner archives or use dpkg deb x if available. Ensure cross platform compatibility.
Tech stack
java
Domain
build system
Issue type
Feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
Half day
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
GitJavaBazel
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
70