[tor-dev] prop224: What should we do with torrc options?

[Matthew Finkel]

On Thu, Nov 24, 2016 at 08:14:55PM -0500, ckomlo at thoughtworks.com wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> >
> > 2) It also means we create an option that will get deprecated once v2 is
> >    phased out so we are adding a "temporary" option for users to "keep
> >    creating v2 addresses" but then will be useless and we'll deprecate and get
> >    a whole lot confusing if for instance v4 or v5 happens in the next years
> >    for X reasons (unlikely but not impossible).
> 
> It could be useful to have a standard transition/upgrade path when
> releasing new versions after v3. If we know that in the future we will
> have v4, v5, etc, we could design a more general process so users know
> what to expect, can plan for future releases, etc.

Very true, it would be very useful. Many moons ago, when we first began
discussing how the network would switch over to using (what is now) v3, we
discussed having a flag day or a hard cutover between versions, or a soft
migration. Previous us decided this was a hard problem and was a discussion for
a later date. :)

Unfortunately I've lost track of how close v3 is to being ready. If it's
as close as David makes it sound, then I think you're right that this specific
discussion may be a little too late for v3, but really is something that
should be prepared for v4+.