RFE: Message-ID support

[awilliam]

It would be useful if the Message-ID header could be extracted from email imports and optionally included in the commit log. For example, a new --msgid option to the import command would result in the following being appended to the commit log before any new sign-offs/acks/reviews:
Message-Id: themessageidextractedfromheader@example.com

Ideally configuration options might allow the Message-Id string to be changed and the reference to be manipulated (via regex?), such that this same support could generate:
Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/themessageidextractedfromheader@example.com

This support would align well with better patch tracking that many maintainers are adopting. Thanks!

[awilliam]

Now that stgit uses mailinfo, this is just creating an option to use the -m flag. A hard coded variant is simply:

diff --git a/stgit/commands/imprt.py b/stgit/commands/imprt.py
index 92c7d59e44fe..0ccd39752473 100644
--- a/stgit/commands/imprt.py
+++ b/stgit/commands/imprt.py
@@ -364,7 +364,7 @@ def __import_mail_path(mail_path, filename, options):
     patch_path = mail_path + '-patch'
 
     mailinfo_lines = (
-        Run('git', 'mailinfo', msg_path, patch_path)
+        Run('git', 'mailinfo', '-m', msg_path, patch_path)
         .encoding(None)
         .decoding(None)
         .raw_input(mail)

[chucklever]

Is there a config or cmdline option to disable this behavior?

[jpgrayson]

No, should there be?

[chucklever]

The Linux kernel subsystem maintainer workflow uses lore, b4, and DKIM attestation, so generally a Message-ID: tag is not required or used. I plan to delete Message-ID: tags after importing patches from mailing lists, at least until such time as Message-ID: becomes a requirement for submitting patches to the Linux kernel. It would save me a step if stg import simply skipped adding them.

[chucklever]

Well, let me put this a better way. My impression is that when a reference to an e-mail is needed, a kernel commit requires a link to a permanent e-mail archive. Something like:

Link: https://lore.kernel.org/linux-nfs/163303597560.5125.8905823373792865984.stgit@klimt.1015granger.net/T/#u

Ah, now that I read the RFE text more closely, I see awilliam was asking for just such a thing.

Anyway, I will have to convert or delete each Message-Id: tag, which takes away some convenience.

[jpgrayson]

This is great context @chucklever, thank you. I think I was a bit too cavalier in turning-on this message-id copying behavior by default, sorry about that. I'm also guilty of overlooking key details in @awilliam's original request--sorry about that too.

Some options for the path forward:

1. Add a command line option to enable this behavior, e.g. --message-id to mirror the git-mailinfo option name.
2. Add a configuration option, e.g. stgit.import.messageid to enable this behavior. Default to disabled.
3. Add a configuration option(s) to specify how to transform the message-id reference as @awilliam originally indicated (and that I overlooked).

Adding basic configurability (1 and 2) seems like a no-brainer. I'll take care of those.

But I'm not feeling super confident about designing 3. Seems like we'd need configuration options covering:

• Regex to transform the message-id reference (stgit.import.msgidXlateRegex?). What form would we want this regex to take? Examples would be helpful.
• Trailer name to go with the transformed reference (E.g. "Link") (stgit.import.msgidXlateTrailer)
• An option to disable this behavior (stgit.import.msgidXlate)? Or is the absence of a regex sufficient?
• Command line option variants of the above (to supplement the config options)?
• Capability to do multiple transformations?

I'm looking for help specifying the desired behaviors as well as suggestions for naming of the config options.

[chucklever]

Thank you for reconsidering.

You probably want a hook for translating a message-id into a URL. The b4 tool appears to have a simple translation scheme. For example:

1633645823-31235-1-git-send-email-dwysocha@redhat.com

is converted into

https://lore.kernel.org/r/1633645823-31235-1-git-send-email-dwysocha%40redhat.com

Maybe a subcommand could be added to b4 to do only this translation, then stg mail could run that when needed? Other projects might provide a hook script to do this the way they like.