Introduce 'git backfill' to get missing blobs in a partial clone (#5172)

This change introduces the `git backfill` command which uses the path
walk API to download missing blobs in a blobless partial clone.

By downloading blobs that correspond to the same file path at the same
time, we hope to maximize the potential benefits of delta compression
against multiple versions.

These downloads occur in a configurable batch size, presenting a
mechanism to perform "resumable" clones: `git clone --filter=blob:none`
gets the commits and trees, then `git backfill` will download all
missing blobs. If `git backfill` is interrupted partway through, it can
be restarted and will redownload only the missing objects.

When combining blobless partial clones with sparse-checkout, `git
backfill` will assume its `--sparse` option and download only the blobs
within the sparse-checkout. Users may want to do this as the repo size
will still be smaller than the full repo size, but commands like `git
blame` or `git log -L` will not suffer from many one-by-one blob
downloads.

Future directions should consider adding a pathspec or file prefix to
further focus which paths are being downloaded in a batch.

.gitignore

@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@
 /git-apply
 /git-archimport
 /git-archive
+/git-backfill
 /git-bisect
 /git-blame
 /git-branch

Documentation/git-backfill.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+git-backfill(1)
+===============
+
+NAME
+----
+git-backfill - Download missing objects in a partial clone
+
+
+SYNOPSIS
+--------
+[verse]
+(EXPERIMENTAL) 'git backfill' [--batch-size=<n>] [--[no-]sparse]
+
+DESCRIPTION
+-----------
+
+Blobless partial clones are created using `git clone --filter=blob:none`
+and then configure the local repository such that the Git client avoids
+downloading blob objects unless they are required for a local operation.
+This initially means that the clone and later fetches download reachable
+commits and trees but no blobs. Later operations that change the `HEAD`
+pointer, such as `git checkout` or `git merge`, may need to download
+missing blobs in order to complete their operation.
+
+In the worst cases, commands that compute blob diffs, such as `git blame`,
+become very slow as they download the missing blobs in single-blob
+requests to satisfy the missing object as the Git command needs it. This
+leads to multiple download requests and no ability for the Git server to
+provide delta compression across those objects.
+
+The `git backfill` command provides a way for the user to request that
+Git downloads the missing blobs (with optional filters) such that the
+missing blobs representing historical versions of files can be downloaded
+in batches. The `backfill` command attempts to optimize the request by
+grouping blobs that appear at the same path, hopefully leading to good
+delta compression in the packfile sent by the server.
+
+By default, `git backfill` downloads all blobs reachable from the `HEAD`
+commit. This set can be restricted or expanded using various options.
+
+OPTIONS
+-------
+
+--batch-size=<n>::
+	Specify a minimum size for a batch of missing objects to request
+	from the server. This size may be exceeded by the last set of
+	blobs seen at a given path. Default batch size is 16,000.
+
+--[no-]sparse::
+	Only download objects if they appear at a path that matches the
+	current sparse-checkout. If the sparse-checkout feature is enabled,
+	then `--sparse` is assumed and can be disabled with `--no-sparse`.
+
+SEE ALSO
+--------
+linkgit:git-clone[1].
+
+GIT
+---
+Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite

Documentation/technical/api-path-walk.txt

@@ -65,9 +65,18 @@ better off using the revision walk API instead.
 	the revision walk so that the walk emits commits marked with the
 	`UNINTERESTING` flag.
 
+`pl`::
+	This pattern list pointer allows focusing the path-walk search to
+	a set of patterns, only emitting paths that match the given
+	patterns. See linkgit:gitignore[5] or
+	linkgit:git-sparse-checkout[1] for details about pattern lists.
+	When the pattern list uses cone-mode patterns, then the path-walk
+	API can prune the set of paths it walks to improve performance.
+
 Examples
 --------
 
 See example usages in:
 	`t/helper/test-path-walk.c`,
+	`builtin/backfill.c`,
 	`builtin/pack-objects.c`

Makefile

@@ -1213,6 +1213,7 @@ BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/am.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/annotate.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/apply.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/archive.o
+BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/backfill.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/bisect.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/blame.o
 BUILTIN_OBJS += builtin/branch.o

builtin.h

@@ -120,6 +120,7 @@ int cmd_am(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *r
 int cmd_annotate(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
 int cmd_apply(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
 int cmd_archive(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
+int cmd_backfill(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
 int cmd_bisect(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
 int cmd_blame(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);
 int cmd_branch(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo);

builtin/backfill.c

@@ -0,0 +1,146 @@
+#define USE_THE_REPOSITORY_VARIABLE /* for core_apply_sparse_checkout */
+
+#include "builtin.h"
+#include "git-compat-util.h"
+#include "config.h"
+#include "parse-options.h"
+#include "repository.h"
+#include "commit.h"
+#include "dir.h"
+#include "environment.h"
+#include "hex.h"
+#include "tree.h"
+#include "tree-walk.h"
+#include "object.h"
+#include "object-store-ll.h"
+#include "oid-array.h"
+#include "oidset.h"
+#include "promisor-remote.h"
+#include "strmap.h"
+#include "string-list.h"
+#include "revision.h"
+#include "trace2.h"
+#include "progress.h"
+#include "packfile.h"
+#include "path-walk.h"
+
+static const char * const builtin_backfill_usage[] = {
+	N_("(EXPERIMENTAL) git backfill [--batch-size=<n>] [--[no-]sparse]"),
+	NULL
+};
+
+struct backfill_context {
+	struct repository *repo;
+	struct oid_array current_batch;
+	size_t batch_size;
+	int sparse;
+};
+
+static void clear_backfill_context(struct backfill_context *ctx)
+{
+	oid_array_clear(&ctx->current_batch);
+}
+
+static void download_batch(struct backfill_context *ctx)
+{
+	promisor_remote_get_direct(ctx->repo,
+				   ctx->current_batch.oid,
+				   ctx->current_batch.nr);
+	oid_array_clear(&ctx->current_batch);
+
+	/*
+	 * We likely have a new packfile. Add it to the packed list to
+	 * avoid possible duplicate downloads of the same objects.
+	 */
+	reprepare_packed_git(ctx->repo);
+}
+
+static int fill_missing_blobs(const char *path UNUSED,
+			      struct oid_array *list,
+			      enum object_type type,
+			      void *data)
+{
+	struct backfill_context *ctx = data;
+
+	if (type != OBJ_BLOB)
+		return 0;
+
+	for (size_t i = 0; i < list->nr; i++) {
+		off_t size = 0;
+		struct object_info info = OBJECT_INFO_INIT;
+		info.disk_sizep = &size;
+		if (oid_object_info_extended(ctx->repo,
+					     &list->oid[i],
+					     &info,
+					     OBJECT_INFO_FOR_PREFETCH) ||
+		    !size)
+			oid_array_append(&ctx->current_batch, &list->oid[i]);
+	}
+
+	if (ctx->current_batch.nr >= ctx->batch_size)
+		download_batch(ctx);
+
+	return 0;
+}
+
+static int do_backfill(struct backfill_context *ctx)
+{
+	struct rev_info revs;
+	struct path_walk_info info = PATH_WALK_INFO_INIT;
+	int ret;
+
+	if (ctx->sparse) {
+		CALLOC_ARRAY(info.pl, 1);
+		if (get_sparse_checkout_patterns(info.pl))
+			return error(_("problem loading sparse-checkout"));
+	}
+
+	repo_init_revisions(ctx->repo, &revs, "");
+	handle_revision_arg("HEAD", &revs, 0, 0);
+
+	info.blobs = 1;
+	info.tags = info.commits = info.trees = 0;
+
+	info.revs = &revs;
+	info.path_fn = fill_missing_blobs;
+	info.path_fn_data = ctx;
+
+	ret = walk_objects_by_path(&info);
+
+	/* Download the objects that did not fill a batch. */
+	if (!ret)
+		download_batch(ctx);
+
+	clear_backfill_context(ctx);
+	return ret;
+}
+
+int cmd_backfill(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix, struct repository *repo)
+{
+	struct backfill_context ctx = {
+		.repo = repo,
+		.current_batch = OID_ARRAY_INIT,
+		.batch_size = 16000,
+		.sparse = 0,
+	};
+	struct option options[] = {
+		OPT_INTEGER(0, "batch-size", &ctx.batch_size,
+			    N_("Minimun number of objects to request at a time")),
+		OPT_BOOL(0, "sparse", &ctx.sparse,
+			 N_("Restrict the missing objects to the current sparse-checkout")),
+		OPT_END(),
+	};
+
+	if (argc == 2 && !strcmp(argv[1], "-h"))
+		usage_with_options(builtin_backfill_usage, options);
+
+	argc = parse_options(argc, argv, prefix, options, builtin_backfill_usage,
+			     0);
+
+	repo_config(repo, git_default_config, NULL);
+
+	if (ctx.sparse < 0)
+		ctx.sparse = core_apply_sparse_checkout;
+
+	return do_backfill(&ctx);
+}

command-list.txt

@@ -60,6 +60,7 @@ git-annotate                            ancillaryinterrogators
 git-apply                               plumbingmanipulators            complete
 git-archimport                          foreignscminterface
 git-archive                             mainporcelain
+git-backfill                            mainporcelain           history
 git-bisect                              mainporcelain           info
 git-blame                               ancillaryinterrogators          complete
 git-branch                              mainporcelain           history

dir.c

@@ -1088,10 +1088,6 @@ static void invalidate_directory(struct untracked_cache *uc,
 		dir->dirs[i]->recurse = 0;
 }
 
-static int add_patterns_from_buffer(char *buf, size_t size,
-				    const char *base, int baselen,
-				    struct pattern_list *pl);
-
 /* Flags for add_patterns() */
 #define PATTERN_NOFOLLOW (1<<0)
 
@@ -1181,9 +1177,9 @@ static int add_patterns(const char *fname, const char *base, int baselen,
 	return 0;
 }
 
-static int add_patterns_from_buffer(char *buf, size_t size,
-				    const char *base, int baselen,
-				    struct pattern_list *pl)
+int add_patterns_from_buffer(char *buf, size_t size,
+			     const char *base, int baselen,
+			     struct pattern_list *pl)
 {
 	char *orig = buf;
 	int i, lineno = 1;

dir.h

@@ -467,6 +467,9 @@ void add_patterns_from_file(struct dir_struct *, const char *fname);
 int add_patterns_from_blob_to_list(struct object_id *oid,
 				   const char *base, int baselen,
 				   struct pattern_list *pl);
+int add_patterns_from_buffer(char *buf, size_t size,
+			     const char *base, int baselen,
+			     struct pattern_list *pl);
 void parse_path_pattern(const char **string, int *patternlen, unsigned *flags, int *nowildcardlen);
 void add_pattern(const char *string, const char *base,
 		 int baselen, struct pattern_list *pl, int srcpos);

git.c

@@ -509,6 +509,7 @@ static struct cmd_struct commands[] = {
 	{ "annotate", cmd_annotate, RUN_SETUP },
 	{ "apply", cmd_apply, RUN_SETUP_GENTLY },
 	{ "archive", cmd_archive, RUN_SETUP_GENTLY },
+	{ "backfill", cmd_backfill, RUN_SETUP },
 	{ "bisect", cmd_bisect, RUN_SETUP },
 	{ "blame", cmd_blame, RUN_SETUP },
 	{ "branch", cmd_branch, RUN_SETUP | DELAY_PAGER_CONFIG },

path-walk.c

@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 #include "hex.h"
 #include "object.h"
 #include "oid-array.h"
+#include "repository.h"
 #include "revision.h"
 #include "string-list.h"
 #include "strmap.h"
@@ -119,6 +120,23 @@ static int add_children(struct path_walk_context *ctx,
 		if (type == OBJ_TREE)
 			strbuf_addch(&path, '/');
 
+		if (ctx->info->pl) {
+			int dtype;
+			enum pattern_match_result match;
+			match = path_matches_pattern_list(path.buf, path.len,
+							  path.buf + base_len, &dtype,
+							  ctx->info->pl,
+							  ctx->repo->index);
+
+			if (ctx->info->pl->use_cone_patterns &&
+			    match == NOT_MATCHED)
+				continue;
+			else if (!ctx->info->pl->use_cone_patterns &&
+				 type == OBJ_BLOB &&
+				 match != MATCHED)
+				continue;
+		}
+
 		if (!(list = strmap_get(&ctx->paths_to_lists, path.buf))) {
 			CALLOC_ARRAY(list, 1);
 			list->type = type;

path-walk.h

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@
 
 struct rev_info;
 struct oid_array;
+struct pattern_list;
 
 /**
  * The type of a function pointer for the method that is called on a list of
@@ -46,6 +47,16 @@ struct path_walk_info {
 	 * walk the children of such trees.
 	 */
 	int prune_all_uninteresting;
+
+	/**
+	 * Specify a sparse-checkout definition to match our paths to. Do not
+	 * walk outside of this sparse definition. If the patterns are in
+	 * cone mode, then the search may prune directories that are outside
+	 * of the cone. If not in cone mode, then all tree paths will be
+	 * explored but the path_fn will only be called when the path matches
+	 * the sparse-checkout patterns.
+	 */
+	struct pattern_list *pl;
 };
 
 #define PATH_WALK_INFO_INIT {   \