[tor-bugs] #29792 [Core Tor/Tor]: practracker problems and CI broken on master

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#29792: practracker problems and CI broken on master
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 Reporter:  asn                           |          Owner:  (none)
     Type:  defect                        |         Status:  new
 Priority:  High                          |      Milestone:  Tor:
                                          |  0.4.1.x-final
Component:  Core Tor/Tor                  |        Version:
 Severity:  Normal                        |     Resolution:
 Keywords:  practracker tech-debt tor-ci  |  Actual Points:
Parent ID:                                |         Points:
 Reviewer:                                |        Sponsor:
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Comment (by teor):

 Here's my suggested combination of fixes:

 e) Disable practracker in CI, when a release becomes a release candidate:
   * we get practracker on master, where it is most useful
   * we keep practracker in alphas, where we still get some large code
 changes
   * we don't have to worry about practracker for backports:
     * we rely on the existing backport triage process to maintain code
 quality in backport branches
     * we don't need practracker for backport branches, because we
 (usually) don't make large changes to backport branches

 f) Add practracker as a post-commit git hook for frequent coders
   * it might still be annoying, but it's less annoying than having CI fail
   * we can fix issues for infrequent coders at the CI or merge stage
   * reviewers can see the practracker diff and decide if it's reasonable

 g) Add practracker as a pre-push git hook for merges
   * all mergers know about practracker anyway
   * it might still be annoying, but it's less annoying than having CI fail
   * we can fix practracker issues at merge time, in a separate commit,
 without another review

 h) Add a "tolerance" argument to practracker, which makes it create an
 exceptions file with N% higher allowances
   * at the start of every new release, regenerate the file with a 10%
 tolerance
   * it would be nicer if we could review practice violations on a commit-
 by-commit basis

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Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/29792#comment:6>
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