Re: [PATCH 0/5] Store submodules in a hash, not a linked list

> On Thu, Feb 09, 2017 at 10:23:35PM +0100, Michael Haggerty wrote:
> 
>>>> So push the submodule attribute down to the `files_ref_store` class
>>>> (but continue to let the `ref_store`s be looked up by submodule).
>>>
>>> I'm not sure I understand all of the ramifications here. It _sounds_ like
>>> pushing this down into the files-backend code would make it harder to
>>> have mixed ref-backends for different submodules. Or is this just
>>> pushing down an implementation detail of the files backend, and future
>>> code is free to have as many different ref_stores as it likes?
>>
>> I don't understand how this would make it harder, aside from the fact
>> that a new backend class might also need a path member and have to
>> maintain its own copy rather than using one that the base class provides.
> 
> Probably the answer is "I'm really confused".
> 
> But here's how my line of reasoning went:
> 
>   Right now we have a main ref-store that points to the submodule
>   ref-stores. I don't know the current state of it, but in theory those
>   could all use different backends.
> 
>   This seems like it's pushing that submodule linkage down into the
>   backend.
> 
> But I think from your response that the answer is no, the thing that is
> being pushed down is not the right way for the main ref store and the
> submodules to be linked. In fact, there is no reason at all for the
> main ref store to know or care about submodules. Anybody who wants to
> know about a submodule's refs should ask the hashmap.