[rhn-users] RHN Housekeeping

[Clifford Perry]

Daryl Herzmann wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Just curious on a number of RHN hosted issues this fine Friday afternoon.
>
> 1) Still no RHN 5.0.1 release notes on the website?
>
>    https://rhn.redhat.com/rhn/help/release-notes/hosted/index.jsp
>
>    Perhaps they are only going to be released via email now?
>    https://www.redhat.com/archives/rhn-users/2007-May/msg00034.html
>
> 2) I'm getting duplicate "System Profile deleted" messages when deleting
>    a system profile on RHN hosted.  I filled a bz about this almost 3
>    months ago and the only action made on the ticket was to set
>    OtherBugsDependingOnThis to bz entries I can't see :(
>
>    https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=236604
>
> 3) RHN apidocs page contains a header bar and side bar that changes based
>    on the last page you visited or the last phase of the moon.
>
>    https://rhn.redhat.com/rhn/apidoc/
>
>    We actually filed a Customer Service Request on it, but haven't heard
>    anything back.  I sort of wonder how this bug showed up, perhaps there
>    was a silent code push on RHN hosted again :(
>
> 4) From the main system overview page, there is no link to the
>    "Connection" page, but that link appears once you select something
>    else in the bar.  Another 3 month bug in NEW status and with links
>    to other bugs I can't see :(
>
>    https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=236045
>
>
> The procedure to get these issues is very frustrating, it invariably 
> goes like this:
>
> 1. Find bug in new release of RHN code
> 2. File bugzilla entry, don't get a response
> 3. File a Customer Service Request, get a lame response
> 4. Go on IRC to complain about #2 and #3, get helpful response
> 5. Wait on #2 or #3, watch bug get fixed with update to bugzilla, nothing
>    sent to customer service request.
> 6. Go to email list to complain about the entire thing :)
>
> While these issues are rather small, it continues to be disappointing 
> how long it takes to get them fixed.  This is not what we expect from 
> Open Source software, but again, RHN hosted is not open source.
>
>
> daryl
>
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> rhn-users at redhat.com
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The 'best' way to me, is to file a support ticket, once the person in 
support has revalidated the bug/issue as valid, it gets escalated up 
through the internal support structure till the issue is placed into 
bugzilla, at that time, the issue will be triaged for the next product 
release. Engineers review the bug/issue and determine if they agree to 
fix it. Developer fixes bug, waits for a QA push, QA tests, some time 
later moves to stage, then production release. This is not a quick 
process and RHN has not been one to ever fix and release quickly, but to 
release multiple fixes at the same time, along with some new feature 
(typically) - along with minor releases, which are more bugfix centric, 
such as 5.0.1. Not sure when/if 5.0.1 Release notes will be released.

If you do not go through the support process, but open bugs directly, 
they can often be over looked, as the right tracking/flags were not set 
on the bug, and the developer who owns the bug will typically have so 
many bugs that the ones he will review to fix are only the ones 
aligned/tracked for the next release. This forces you into step #4, at 
which point someone sets the right flags.

Since releases do have cut off dates for all but the most urgent of 
issues, as well as a limited capacity for how many bugs within a given 
time period can be fixed, bugs that was reported prior to a release, may 
not always get fixed in the next release. If though they are being 
tracked, then at least they will not be forgotten about.

Cliff.


-- 
Clifford Perry
Team Lead, Satellite Sustaining Engineering
Red Hat, Inc. 
http://www.redhat.com/
+1 919 754 4403
RHCE# 803004507210710