Subject: Re: bug#23776: Perl's .pod files include timestamps, making Perl package builds non-deterministic

From: [email-masked] (Ludovic Courtès)
Date: Sat, 18 Jun 2016 22:35:40 +0200

Leo Famulari <[email-masked]> skribis:

> On Fri, Jun 17, 2016 at 10:11:21AM +0200, Ludovic Courtès wrote:
>> Leo Famulari <[email-masked]> skribis:
>> 
>> > On Thu, Jun 16, 2016 at 01:33:46PM +0200, Ludovic Courtès wrote:
>> >> The problem is described in <git://git.debian.org/git/reproducible/notes.git>:
>> >> 
>> >> --8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
>> >> timestamps_in_documentation_generated_by_podman:
>> >>   description: |
>> >>     The module Pod::Man includes timestamps in its embedded manpages:
>> >>     http://sources.debian.net/src/perl/latest/cpan/podlators/lib/Pod/Man.pm/?hl=1700#L977
>> >>     They should be based on the mtime of the original file.
>> >>   url: https://wiki.debian.org/ReproducibleBuilds/TimestampsInManpagesGeneratedByPodMan
>> >
>> > According to the information on this page, we should set POD_MAN_DATE
>> > while building. Should we make the perl-build-system export this
>> > variable? Set to SOURCE_DATE_EPOCH?
>> 
>> Yes, that sounds like a good idea.
>
> Should I add a phase to %standard-phases in perl-build-system.scm [0]?
>
> Should I define a new procedure set-POD_MAN_DATE [1] and add that
> perl-build-system.scm's %standard-phases?

Yes, sounds like the right approach to me.

Thank you.

Ludo’.