[virt-tools-list] RFC: virt-manager: removing interface object UI

[Cole Robinson]

On 10/03/2018 04:23 PM, Cole Robinson wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
> I'd like to remove the <interface> object UI from virt-manager. This is 
> Edit->Connection Details->Interfaces, the bits that allow 
> starting/stopping/deleting/creating host network interface 
> configurations like bridges, bonds, vlans, and ethernet/wifi configs
> 
> https://imgur.com/a/iyYXawV
> https://imgur.com/a/lGO4QZ0
> 
> Long story short 1) I don't think this UI makes sense to have in 
> virt-manager, 2) no one seems to be using it.
> 
> Most of this UI was added about 8.5 years ago to virt-manager. It has 
> mostly been unchanged since. At the time it seemed kind of compelling 
> that we could use the UI to create a host bridge device. However this 
> never quite 'just worked' often due to interference with NetworkManager 
> which really only learned to handle bridges in 2014ish (even now I don't 
> think it 'just works'). Since that time nm-connection-editor provides a 
> much more advanced UI for configuring host network interfaces of all types.
> 
> virt-manager's UI supports a lot more than just creating bridges though, 
> basically covering the entire <interface> schema in libvirt: so 
> configuring ipv4 and ipv6, various bond modes, etc. However no one uses 
> it. I'd bet good money that there's been 0 non-virt-developer users of 
> the 'Create Interface' wizard for something other than bridge creation. 
> The UI for starting/stopping interfaces may have had more usage but I'm 
> fine telling people to go to the command line if they need to change 
> host interface state. These types of things are not virt specific in any 
> way and have little to specifically do with virt, besides bridges.
> 
> Also as a side point, I don't think any major libvirt users are actually 
> using the libvirt interface APIs aside from maybe listing existing 
> interfaces. I thought vdsm/rhev/ovirt had some interface usage at one 
> point but I looked recently and don't see any...
> 
> virt-manager will still use interface APIs behind the scenes, to get 
> lists of host interfaces for enumerating bridges for example, but that's 
> really all I see for virt-manager going forward
> 

FYI I've removed the UI upstream now:

commit 4096800f7173a51b2b721681e9a858d630b64407 (HEAD -> master, work)
Author: Cole Robinson <crobinso at redhat.com>
Date:   Fri Oct 12 14:24:33 2018 -0400

     Remove interface UI

- Cole