Remote repository hosting

[AusTEX]

I'm look for recomendations, suggestions, experiences, etc. folks have had using remote repository hosting with places such as bitbucket or sourceforge, etc. I'm thinking of switching to remote hosting and I would like to hear how this has worked out for others. I'll probably be using Mercurial for my source code control. Are there any useful advantages to using places like Bitbucket as opposed to just having a remote directory out there in the 'cloud' somewhere for repository hosting?

[Jordan Kuehn]

The advantage to using a more comprehensive service rather than just a folder on a server somewhere is mostly web access and viewing. You can even begin to integrate things like bug tracking into it. Bitbucket is nice and free and is probably the best option if you are using Mercurial. If you'd like to set something up for yourself on your own server, RhodeCode is a very nice and free package that will let you do that.

[jcarmody]

I'm happy with my svn repository on xp-dev.com. I've been using them on and off for a few years.

[Daklu]

Many free online repositories require you to grant the host varying degrees of license to your code. Be sure read the fine print.

[JackDunaway]

I have used both Bitbucket and Kiln, and could recommend either for Hg hosting. Take a look at both their feature sets, and see which makes more sense for you (e.g., is this for personal use? how many people will share the repo? do you need to allow public access to the repo?) And all-day all-night, I would recommend either these services over "a remote directory out there in the 'cloud' ".

[Ton Plomp]

Using a full service (like Bucket, Kiln, Google Code, Microsoft codeplex or Sourceforge) has quite some advantages, it allows you to grant access to other people, use an issue tracker and setup a front page for your project.

Ton

[todd]

The hosts I've looked at so far don't allow the repos to be hidden from the hosts' admins. Does anyone know of a "secure" hosting solution?

[Jordan Kuehn]

The hosts I've looked at so far don't allow the repos to be hidden from the hosts' admins. Does anyone know of a "secure" hosting solution?

 

I don't know of any like that, and would point you to doing it yourself if you wanted to truly trust it.  RhodeCode that I mentioned before would be at the top of my list.

[todd]

Thanks, Jordan.

 

Just to follow up on the security aspect, I learned that the keywords are along the line of "What is the 'at rest' state of my data?" One way to think about security is to consider whether the host is HIPAA-compliant. Those hosts charge plenty, though, and typically don't have all the features of SCC, issue-tracking and FTP-like functionality.