Version Control System (VCS)

[hsk81]

It should be possible to version the project/documents (using either GIT or - more likely - something much simpler).

[hsk81]

The AcidFS library (available at http://acidfs.readthedocs.org/en/latest) seems very promising: Basically, it's a Python integration of GIT repositories. It could be used to replace NoTex.ch's current storage back-end,which is a combination of metadata being stored in an SQL database, and data as a flat list on the hard disk, with a GIT repository for data with search indices/metainfo in an SQL database.

[hsk81]

The basic problem is that a VCS (like GIT) collides with client side encryption (see #9); figure out a reasonable solution that ensures that the GIT repositories are encrypted without compromising basic VCS features:

• It could simply mean that the GIT repository is encrypted with a shared key between user and server: But this would also imply that we have to give up on client side encryption;
• Another possibility could be to use homomorphic encryption: Although that field seems to be still in research, my impression is that it might already be practically usable. If there is already a GIT library with integrated HE the better, but I fear such a thing is still not available.
• Re-implement GIT with HE, and replace current storage engine with it: But how do we create search indices then? This would imply the implementation of a DB engine with HE (which might be a little challenging though).
• A compromise might be the usage of plain text metadata, and encrypted data: This would allow us to create search indices with a regular SQL DB, while giving us a smaller challenge of implementing a VCS with HE support.

[hsk81]

Have reset application to have a clean state between DB and acid sub-directory. VCS read-only implementation done; read-write might be implemented only upon popular request; client side encryption will be reviewed as soon as git itself supports it.