[CentOS-devel] Confusing package versioning

[Dag Wieers]

On Wed, 4 May 2011, Karanbir Singh wrote:

> On 05/04/2011 06:00 PM, Ned Slider wrote:
>
>> httpd-2.2.3-11.el5_1.3.src.rpm
>> httpd-2.2.3-11.el5_2.4.src.rpm
>>
>> here el5_2.4>  el5_1.3
>
> yes, but so was .el5.centos.4 > .el5.centos.3

I think Ned's point is that .el5_1.3 is not higher than .el5.centos.4 in 
two hypothetical cases. Either where a package would need a change after 
an updated package. Or when the %{dist} used to be el5 and becomes el5_2.

So this would only work if it is guaranteed that:

  - .centos is always added during the entire lifespan
  - the version is not different but only %{dist} changes


>> Is that intentional on the part of upstream? I doubt we'll ever know the
>> answer to that.
>
> it is by design, it is my understanding that the right-of %{dist} only
> changes within a single point release cycle.

If you assume that Red Hat always changes something in the version string, 
and not depends on %{dist} changing. I wouldn't be sure of that, but I 
lack the resources to scan the entire list of RHEL5 SRPMs.

-- 
-- dag wieers, dag at wieers.com, http://dag.wieers.com/
-- dagit linux solutions, info at dagit.net, http://dagit.net/

[Any errors in spelling, tact or fact are transmission errors]