git-annex/doc/todo/assistant_smarter_archive_directory_handling.mdwn

Client repos do not want files in archive directories. This can turn
out to be confusing to users who are using archive directories for their
own purposes and not aware of this special case in the assistant. It can
seem like the assistant is failing to sync their files.

I thought, first, that it should have a checkbox to enable the archive
directory behavior.

However, I think I have a better idea. Change the preferred content
expression for clients, so they want files in archive directories, *until*
those files land in an archive.

This way, only users who set up an archive repo get this behavior. And they
asked for it by setting up that repo!

Also, the new behavior will mean that files in archive directories still
propigate around to clients. Consider this topology:

	client A ---- client B ---- archive

If a file is created in client A, and moved to an archive directory before
it syncs to B, it will never get to the archive, and will continue wasting
space on A. With the new behavior, A and B serve as effectively, transfer
repositories for archived content.

Something vaguely like this should work as the preferred content
expression for the clients:

	exclude=archive/* or (include=archive/* and (not (copies=archive:1 or copies=smallarchive:1)))

> [[done]] --[[Joey]]