Distributions¶
A distribution is a build that Midair deploys onto a node or a device. There are three kinds, and each area has its own Distributions screen:
- Testing
The test environment that a test run is built against.
- Analysis
The analyser that an analysis run deploys.
- Monitoring
The agent that runs on a monitored device.
Each screen has two halves: the marketplace above, and the local registry below.
The marketplace¶
The marketplace lists what the releases portal offers for this area: the products, their versions with the newest first, the files of the newest version, and the release notes. A product that is open source also carries a git pointer.
The browser never talks to the portal. The server asks the portal, reduces the answer, and caches it for a few minutes. A distribution list moves a few times a week, so nobody needs it fresher.
A row in the marketplace is not a download link. A click asks the server to pull the file into the local registry.
The local registry¶
The registry holds what the marketplace has pinned:
archives that Midair fetched from the portal, with the bytes on local disk and the SHA-256 checksum on the record;
git sources, pinned at the commit that their branch pointed at;
anything that somebody uploaded by hand.
A deploy references the registry. The portal is where a build comes from; the registry is what a build reproduces against. A deploy that pointed at the portal would reproduce only while the portal kept the file.
A git source means something in the Testing section only. A test environment is built from a checkout, so a repository pinned at a commit is how it is versioned. An analyser and a monitoring agent are binaries, and what runs on the node is the archive.
Each section has its own collection. This is what keeps a test environment archive from being deployed to a node as an analyser.
A row leads with its friendly name, which you can edit in place. The technical name is what matches a product on the portal, and it stays the same across every release of that product.
Which build a run uses¶
A test template names the test environment build.
An analysis template names the analyser build. The picker offers the builds that match the architecture and the operating system of the node of the workspace.
A node with the analysis role selects an analyser automatically: Midair matches the architecture and the operating system, and it takes the newest upload. An explicit distribution path on the node replaces that choice.
A device names the agent build for its own platform.
Which products are listed¶
Three settings name the portal folders that each section shows. Open Settings, then Integrations, then Releases. An empty field means the default list. The same screen holds the portal token, which decides whether the private products are listed.