particle-os-tools/docs/apt-layer/rpm-ostree/experimental

Experimental Features

This section covers experimental features in rpm-ostree that are under development or not yet ready for production use. These features provide advanced capabilities but may have limitations or instability.

Overview

Experimental features in rpm-ostree represent cutting-edge functionality that extends the core capabilities of the system. These features are provided for testing and feedback but should be used with caution in production environments.

Topics

DEPRECATED: Wrapping other CLI entrypoints

Learn about the deprecated CLI wrapping feature that allowed rpm-ostree to wrap other command-line tools. This feature has been superseded by more modern approaches.

Declarative system changes

Explore the experimental declarative system changes feature that allows system modifications to be defined declaratively rather than imperatively.

override replace --experimental

Understand the experimental override replace functionality that provides advanced package replacement capabilities with additional options and features.

Applying a new package using CoreOS layering

Learn about the experimental CoreOS layering feature that provides advanced package layering capabilities for complex deployment scenarios.

Key Concepts

Experimental Status

Experimental features are:

• Under development: May change significantly
• Not production-ready: May have bugs or limitations
• For testing: Intended for evaluation and feedback
• Subject to change: API and behavior may evolve

Feature Flags

Experimental features are controlled by:

• Command-line flags: --experimental or similar
• Configuration options: Settings in config files
• Environment variables: Runtime feature toggles
• Build-time options: Compile-time feature selection

Stability Levels

Experimental features have different stability levels:

• Alpha: Early development, major changes expected
• Beta: Feature complete, minor changes possible
• Release Candidate: Near stable, minimal changes
• Deprecated: No longer maintained, removal planned

Usage Guidelines

When to Use Experimental Features

1. Testing and evaluation: Understand new capabilities
2. Development environments: Safe testing environments
3. Proof of concepts: Demonstrate advanced functionality
4. Feedback contribution: Help improve features

When Not to Use Experimental Features

1. Production systems: May cause instability
2. Critical workloads: Risk of data loss or downtime
3. Long-term deployments: Features may change
4. Enterprise environments: May not meet stability requirements

Best Practices

1. Test thoroughly: Validate in safe environments
2. Monitor closely: Watch for issues and instability
3. Provide feedback: Report bugs and suggest improvements
4. Plan for changes: Be prepared for API evolution

Feature Categories

CLI Enhancements

• Command wrapping: Intercept and modify other commands
• Advanced options: Extended command-line capabilities
• Interactive modes: Enhanced user interaction

System Management

• Declarative configuration: System state as code
• Advanced overrides: Complex package management
• Layering systems: Multi-layer package composition

Integration Features

• Container enhancements: Advanced container integration
• Build system extensions: Extended build capabilities
• Deployment tools: Advanced deployment features

Development and Feedback

Contributing to Experimental Features

1. Test features: Use and evaluate experimental capabilities
2. Report issues: Provide detailed bug reports
3. Suggest improvements: Share ideas and requirements
4. Contribute code: Help implement and improve features

Feedback Channels

• GitHub Issues: Report bugs and request features
• Mailing Lists: Discuss design and implementation
• IRC/Slack: Real-time discussion and support
• Documentation: Improve and extend documentation

Development Process

1. Feature proposal: Discuss new experimental features
2. Implementation: Develop and test features
3. Documentation: Create comprehensive documentation
4. Feedback collection: Gather user feedback and improve

Migration and Compatibility

Feature Evolution

Experimental features may:

• Become stable: Graduate to production-ready status
• Be deprecated: Marked for removal
• Change significantly: Major API or behavior changes
• Be replaced: Superseded by better alternatives

Migration Paths

1. Stable graduation: Features become production-ready
2. Alternative features: New features replace experimental ones
3. Deprecation warnings: Notifications about feature removal
4. Migration guides: Instructions for transitioning away

Compatibility Considerations

• API stability: Experimental APIs may change
• Data formats: File formats and data structures may evolve
• Configuration: Config file formats may change
• Dependencies: External dependencies may be added or removed

Security Considerations

Experimental Feature Security

1. Limited testing: Security may not be fully validated
2. New attack vectors: May introduce security vulnerabilities
3. Privilege escalation: May have unexpected privilege implications
4. Data exposure: May expose sensitive data or configurations

Security Best Practices

1. Isolated testing: Test in isolated environments
2. Access control: Limit access to experimental features
3. Monitoring: Monitor for security issues
4. Reporting: Report security vulnerabilities promptly

Performance Impact

Performance Considerations

Experimental features may:

• Increase resource usage: Higher CPU, memory, or disk usage
• Slow operations: Reduced performance compared to stable features
• Add overhead: Additional processing or I/O operations
• Impact scalability: May not scale as well as stable features

Performance Monitoring

1. Resource monitoring: Track CPU, memory, and disk usage
2. Performance testing: Measure impact on system performance
3. Benchmarking: Compare with stable alternatives
4. Optimization: Identify and address performance issues

Documentation and Support

Documentation Standards

Experimental features should have:

• Clear descriptions: What the feature does and why
• Usage examples: How to use the feature
• Limitations: Known issues and restrictions
• Migration paths: How to transition to stable features

Support Levels

1. Community support: User community provides help
2. Limited official support: Minimal official support
3. Best effort: Support provided when possible
4. No guarantees: No promises about functionality or stability

Future Directions

Feature Roadmap

Experimental features may:

• Graduate to stable: Become production-ready features
• Be enhanced: Improved with additional capabilities
• Be integrated: Combined with other features
• Be replaced: Superseded by better alternatives

Community Involvement

1. Feature requests: Suggest new experimental features
2. Testing and feedback: Help improve existing features
3. Documentation: Contribute to feature documentation
4. Code contributions: Help implement and maintain features

---

Experimental features provide a glimpse into the future of rpm-ostree and offer advanced capabilities for testing and evaluation. Use them responsibly and provide feedback to help improve the project.