git-annex/doc/tips/Internet_Archive_via_S3.mdwn

[The Internet Archive](http://www.archive.org/) allows members to upload
collections using an Amazon S3 
[compatible API](http://www.archive.org/help/abouts3.txt), and this can
be used with git-annex's [[special_remotes/S3]] support. 

So, you can locally archive things with git-annex, define remotes that
correspond to "items" at the Internet Archive, and use git-annex to upload
your files to there. Of course, your use of the Internet Archive must
comply with their [terms of service](http://www.archive.org/about/terms.php).

A nice added feature is that whenever git-annex sends a file to the
Internet Archive, it records its url, the same as if you'd run `git annex
addurl`. So any users who can clone your repository can download the files
from archive.org, without needing any login or password info. This makes
the Internet Archive a nice way to publish the large files associated with
a public git repository.

## webapp setup

Just go to "Add Another Repository", pick "Internet Archive",
and you're on your way.

## basic setup

Sign up for an account, and get your access keys here:
<http://www.archive.org/account/s3.php>
	
	# export AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=blahblah
	# export AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=xxxxxxx

Specify `host=s3.us.archive.org` when doing `initremote` to set up
a remote at the Archive. This will enable a special Internet Archive mode:
Encryption is not allowed; you are required to specify a bucket name
rather than having git-annex pick a random one; and you can optionally
specify `x-archive-meta*` headers to add metadata as explained in their
[documentation](http://www.archive.org/help/abouts3.txt).

	# git annex initremote archive-panama type=S3 \
		host=s3.us.archive.org bucket=panama-canal-lock-blueprints \
		x-archive-meta-mediatype=texts x-archive-meta-language=eng \
		x-archive-meta-title="original Panama Canal lock design blueprints"
	initremote archive-panama (Internet Archive mode) ok
	# git annex describe archive-panama "a man, a plan, a canal: panama"
	describe archive-panama ok

Then you can annex files and copy them to the remote as usual:

	# git annex add photo1.jpeg --backend=SHA256E
	add photo1.jpeg (checksum...) ok
	# git annex copy photo1.jpeg --fast --to archive-panama
	copy (to archive-panama...) ok

Once a file has been stored on archive.org, it cannot be (easily) removed
from it. Also, git-annex whereis will tell you a public url for the file
on archive.org. (It may take a while for archive.org to make the file
publically visibile.)

Note the use of the SHA256E [[backend|backends]] when adding files. That is
the default backend used by git-annex, but even if you don't normally use
it, it makes most sense to use the WORM or SHA256E backend for files that
will be stored in the Internet Archive, since the key name will be exposed
as the filename there, and since the Archive does special processing of
files based on their extension.

## publishing only one subdirectory

Perhaps you have a repository with lots of files in it, and only want
to publish some of them to a particular Internet Archive item. Of course
you can specify which files to send manually, but it's useful to
configure [[preferred_content]] settings so git-annex knows what content
you want to store in the Internet Archive.

One way to do this is using the "public" repository type.

	git annex enableremote archive-panama preferreddir=panama
	git annex wanted archive-panama standard
	git annex group archive-panama public

Now anything in a "panama" directory will be sent to that remote,
and anything else won't. You can use `git annex copy --auto` or the
assistant and it'll do the right thing.

When setting up an Internet Archive item using the webapp, this
configuration is automatically done, using an item name that the user
enters as the name of the subdirectory.