Documentation/Labs/Modernizing-Slicer-Extensions-DataStore-TestingData-Packages-Server

Overview

Slicer Extension Manager, Slicer Data Store, Slicer's testing data server, and http://download.slicer.org all depend on https://slicer.kitware.com

As of March 2017, the platform powering https://slicer.kitware.com is based on Midas, this document describes the current services, their limitations and plan to improve them.

This page document limitations of the current infrastructure and our plans to improve it.

This document can be shared using: http://bit.ly/modernize-slicer-extensions-datastore-testingdata-packages-server

Analytic statistics are available here: http://bit.ly/modernize-slicer-extensions-datastore-testingdata-packages-server+

Definitions

• Slicer Extensions server: Store and organize the extension packages and provide the interface allowing to find and install extension from within Slicer. Its front-end is available on http://slicer.kitware.com/midas3/slicerappstore and also through the ExtensionsManager. See also ExtensionsCatalog, ExtensionsServer

• Slicer Data Store server: Store and organize datasets shared by other Slicer users. Its front-end is available on http://slicer.kitware.com/midas3/slicerdatastore and also through the DataStore module.

• Slicer's testing data server: Store testing data downloaded when running Slicer tests. See UploadTestData documentation.

• Slicer application package server: Store Slicer release packages and the backend for http://download.slicer.org

All these servers are one instance and currently hosted on https://slicer.kitware.com

Testing data

TBD

Release packages

Current limitations

• Slicer application and extension package are hosted on Kitware server in NewYork, download of Slicer packages is slow when done on the West Coast of from Europe.

Path forward

Use of GitHub Releases

• Upload existing release as Github release + update download.slicer.org to get release from github
• (Stats from Github release is only a scalar, we would probably need to keep track of the value every day)
• Slicer nightly package would be uploaded as a pre-release

Leverage IPFS

TBD