Fossil - A Software Configuration Management System

This is a preliminary homepage for a new software configuration management system called "Fossil". The code is currently under development, and has been for about a year. Nothing is available for download or inspection as of this writing (2007-06-09). But the system is self-hosting now. Hopefully something will be available soon.

Distinctive features of Fossil:

• Supports disconnected, distributed development (like git, monotone, mercurial, or bitkeeper) or tightly coupled client/server operation (like CVS or subversion) or both at the same time
• Integrated bug tracking and wiki, along the lines of CVSTrac and Trac.
• Built-in web interface that supports deep archaeological digs through historical source code.
• All network communication via HTTP (so that everything works from behind restrictive firewalls).
• Everything included in a single self-contained executable - trivial to install
• Server runs as CGI, using inetd or xinetd or using its own built-in, standalone web server.
• The entire project contained in single disk file (which also happens to be an SQLite database.)
• Self sign-up (at the administrators discretion) including the ability to support secure anonymous check-ins (also optional).
• Digital signatures on all files, versions, wiki pages, trouble tickets, etc. Everything is digitally signed.
• Trivial to setup and administer
• Files and versions identified by their SHA-256 signature expressed in base-32 notation. Any unique prefix is sufficient to identify a file or version - usually the first 4 or 5 characters suffice.
• Automatic self-check on repository changes makes it exceedingly unlikely that data will ever be lost because of a software bug.

Goals of fossil:

• Fossil should be ridiculously easy to install and operate.
• With fossil, it should be possible (and easy) to set up a project on an inexpensive shared-hosting ISP (example: Hurricane Electric) that provides nothing more than web space and CGI capability.
• Fossil should provide in-depth historical and status information about the project through a web interface
• The integration of Wiki and the ability to safely support anonymous check-in are features sometimes described as Web 2.0. Fossil attempts to better capture "collective intelligence" and "the wisdom of crowds" by opening up write access to the masses.

Links:

• Principals Of Operation
• The base-32 encoding mechanism used by Fossil.
• The file format used by every content file stored in the repository.