[Rdo-list] python3 packaging and version numbering issues

[Javier Pena]

Hi list,

While debugging a build issue for openstack-nova in Delorean (http://trunk.rdoproject.org/f24/72/76/727656d2f59e26a8c86afdad9b3709ab8efde3c1_e5b119db/rpmbuild.log) I have found a very strange behaviour related to package versions, and I need some help understanding what is going on.

If we have a package in Delorean where we recently added a python3 subpackage (https://review.gerrithub.io/#/q/status:merged+topic:py3) *and* there is a package already in the Fedora Rawhide repo *and* that package does not have python2/python3 subpackages, such as python-oslo-db, we see the following:

- The older package release (2.6.0 in this case) gets installed as part of the BuildRequires installation
- However, the proper Provides and Obsoletes are present in the Delorean package
- Actually, when the package is not directly a BuildRequires but a dependency for one of them (e.g. python-oslo-concurrency), the newer package gets installed.

I've been able to reproduce this behaviour locally, by setting up a Fedora machine with the Delorean repo and trying:

# dnf install python-oslo-db (the old version gets installed)
# dnf update python-oslo-db (it fetches the newer python2-oslo-db from Delorean)

Even better, if I edit the openstack-nova spec file to set

BuildRequires: python-oslo-db >= 4.1.0

instead of an unversioned BR, I will get the newer package.

Is this an issue with our packages, a dnf builddep bug, or any other mistake?

Thanks,
Javier