[tor-bugs] #20323 [Metrics/metrics-lib]: avoid httpurl connection and use more robust approach

[Tor Bug Tracker & Wiki]

#20323: avoid httpurl connection and use more robust approach
---------------------------------+-----------------------------------
 Reporter:  iwakeh               |          Owner:  karsten
     Type:  defect               |         Status:  needs_information
 Priority:  High                 |      Milestone:  metrics-lib 1.6.0
Component:  Metrics/metrics-lib  |        Version:
 Severity:  Normal               |     Resolution:
 Keywords:                       |  Actual Points:
Parent ID:                       |         Points:
 Reviewer:                       |        Sponsor:
---------------------------------+-----------------------------------
Changes (by karsten):

 * status:  new => needs_information


Comment:

 Hmm, I briefly looked into this issue and tried to reproduce it, but
 failed.  Here's what I did: I placed a large file (100MB) on
 `people.torproject.org`, which is powered by Apache, and attempted to
 download it using `HttpURLConnection`.  This would take less than a minute
 under normal circumstances.  I removed the file from the server a few
 seconds after starting, but the download succeeded without problems.  I
 assume Apache was so kind to cache the file for me.

 But do we really need to analyze this problem, or could we as well kick
 out all mentions of `HttpURLConnection`?  As far as I can see this would
 only affect `DescriptorCollectorImpl` and `DirectoryDownloader`, and we
 could quite easily deprecate both of those.  Wouldn't that fix this issue,
 too?

--
Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/20323#comment:5>
Tor Bug Tracker & Wiki <https://trac.torproject.org/>
The Tor Project: anonymity online