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+user.yaml
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+# initialization of DVS repository / `dvs init` / `dvs::dvs_init`
+
+Goal: Prepare shared storage and initialize DVS in directory
+
+dvs initialization will create a `dvs.toml` and a directory as specified by the
+storage area in the init command. The shared directory may also need to `chown` the directory
+to specify certain permissions. For example, for sensitive projects, setting
+ownership to a particular group, allowing write access for the group, and limiting
+read access to those not in the group.
+
+The storage directory will should not be regarded as a shared backend amongst
+multiple projects. Achieving and snapshotting a project state will become
+complicated, if storage directory was shared amongst other projects, concerning
+different datasets (beyond those that are common amongst projects).
+
+## User site assumptions
+
+- Always operating within a repository/project/workspace.
+- Git repository is not a requirement for a DVS repository.
+- 
+- We assume that storage directory is detached from project-tree. The data will
+  is located in-tree, and thus the storage, which is a backend storage,
+  should not appear there, under most typical projects.
+
+
+## CLI
+
+The initialization command will have further subcommands.
+
+```shell
+dvs init --- Initialize a new DVS repository
+
+Usage:
+  dvs init <BACKEND> [OPTIONS]
+
+Backends:
+  fs     Local, on-disk storage backend
+
+Options:
+  -h, --help    Show help for command (e.g. `dvs init --help`)
+```
+
+### fs
+
+```shell
+dvs init fs --- Initialize a DVS repository via on-disk storage
+
+Usage:
+  dvs init fs <storage-path> [OPTIONS]
+
+Required:
+  <storage-path>    path to the local storage locations (e.g. `/data/dvs/projx`)
+
+Options:
+  --json
+      Output results as JSON
+  --root <PATH> specify the location that the DVS repository ought to be set
+  --metadata-folder-name <METADATA_FOLDER_NAME>
+      If you want to use a folder name other than `.dvs` for storing the metadata files
+  --permissions <PERMISSIONS>
+      Unix permissions for storage directory and files (octal, e.g., "770")
+  --group <GROUP>
+      Unix group to set on storage directory and files
+  --no-compression
+      Disable compression of stored files. Compression defaults to zstd
+  --compression
+      type of compression to use zstd (default), gz
+  -h, --help
+          Print help
+```
+
+Example output:
+
+```shell
+$ dvs init /data/dvs/projx
+DVS Repository created with storage path located at <ABSOLUTE STORAGE PATH>
+```
+
+this will instantiate a DVS repository in the current directory, while setting om a local file-system backend, for which more than one projects may be stored. The example shows a system-wide directory called `/data` that is meant to be the root to dvs file system backends.
+
+## R function
+
+```r
+dvs_init <- function(
+  storage_path,
+  backend_config = fs_storage(), #default to file system storage
+  metadata_folder_name = NULL,
+  ...,
+  dir = getwd() # default to creating in wd
+  )
+```
+
+```
+fs_storage <- function(
+  permissions = NULL, 
+  group = NULL 
+) {...} 
+```
+
+```r
+> dvs_init("/data/dvs/projx")
+> A DVS project was initialized in "/Users/elea/Documents/projectA" with storage location at "/data/dvs/projx"
+```
+
+```r
+#' @param storage_config choose the storage backend, see [`dvs::fs_storage()`], [`dvs::s3_storage`], etc.
+dvs_init <- function(
+  storage_path,
+  storage_config = s3_storage(...), # different config functions can provide typed
+  compression = NULL, # use dvs default compression, which is zstd
+  )
+```
+
+would result in the following toml config:
+
+```toml
+compression = "zstd"
+
+[backend]
+path = "/path/to/shared/storage
+```
+
+### Backend / Storage configuration
+
+#### Local / `fs` backend
+
+```r
+fs_storage <- function(
+  permissions = NULL, # dvs defaults to "770"
+  group = NULL
+)
+```
+
+Remains to specify other backends. 
+
+## Journey 1: Initial Setup with defaults
+
+Expected outcomes:
+
+- `dvs.toml` created in the ancestral directory that contains `.git`, or other heuristics.
+- shared dir created in specified path, with default permissions of 664
+
+Known Caveats:
+
+- certain linux `umask` setups cause folders to have default permissions like 600, or 644
+where other collaborators could not write by default, therefore,
+
+### CLI flow
+
+1. initialize dvs from a project directory
+
+```bash
+dvs init /data/dvs/example-proj
+```
+
+### R package flow
+
+1. Initialize DVS in the repo
+
+```r
+dvs_init("/data/shared/project-x-dvs")
+```
+
+## Journey 2: Initial Setup with shared folder locked down to group
+
+- set permissions to writeable by group, not readable if not in group (660)
+- group name projx
+
+Expected outcomes:
+
+- dvs.toml created in working directory
+- shared dir created in specified path, with permissions of 660 and owned by group projx
+
+Edge cases:
+
+- group must resolve to known gid on system
+
+### CLI flow
+
+1. initialize dvs from a project directory
+
+```bash
+dvs init /data/dvs/sensitive-projx --permissions "660" --group projx
+```
+
+### R package flow
+
+1. Initialize DVS in the repo
+
+```r
+dvs_init("/data/shared/project-x-dvs", permissions = "660", group = "projx")
+```