[jira] [Created] (RAT-265) Wildcard file filter do not work anymore

["Raphael von der Grün (Jira)" <ji...@apache.org>]

Raphael von der Grün created RAT-265:
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             Summary: Wildcard file filter do not work anymore
                 Key: RAT-265
                 URL: https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/RAT-265
             Project: Apache Rat
          Issue Type: Bug
          Components: cli
    Affects Versions: 0.13, 0.14
            Reporter: Raphael von der Grün


Run the following command in the root of the `rat` repo:

 
{noformat}
java -jar apache-rat-0.14-20191120.132901-66.jar -e "*.txt" -d apache-rat-core/src/test/resources/violations/bad.txt{noformat}
This will give the following output on `stderr`:

 

 
{noformat}
Will skip given exclusion '*.txt' due to java.util.regex.PatternSyntaxException: Dangling meta character '*' near index 0
*.txt
^
{noformat}
Furthermore, `bad.txt` will NOT be excluded from the license check.

 

The error that causes this is thrown in [line 132 of `org.apache.rat.Report.java`|[https://github.com/apache/creadur-rat/blob/b271d7ff1bfa1b919fe0ed1e89d8831b30c42750/apache-rat-core/src/main/java/org/apache/rat/Report.java#L132]]. The reason is simple: any glob pattern that starts with `*` or `?` is not a valid regex. When Line 132 throws, the next two lines will also be skipped, so the pattern will not be added at all.

Unfortunately, a solution to this problem is not so simple. In `v0.12` the `-e` option always added wildcard filters while `-E` always added regex filters. The documentation still states the same in the latest `v0.14` snapshot. Beginning with `v0.13` the code tries to add any exclude rule as three different filters. I believe this approach is inherently flawed.

Firstly, the `new NameFileFilter(exclusion)` is redundant if we also add `new WildcardFileFilter(exclusion)`. The files matched by the `NameFileFilter` are a subset of those matched by the `WildcardFileFilter` since any magic character (i.e. `?` or `*`) in `exclusion` also matches itself when used in a `WildcardFileFilter`.

So let's assume we only register the `WildcardFileFilter` and the `RegexFileFilter`. Even if we properly add patterns as wildcard filters that are not a valid RegEx, there are still patterns where we cannot decide what the user's intention was. Consider the pattern `bi.ini`. Should it be interpreted as a wildcard pattern and match only itself or should it be interpreted as a regex and also match `bikini` for example?

My recommendation for a quick patch solution would be to go back to the behavior of `v0.12`.

Beyond that, the nicest solution IMHO would be support for ignore files with the same semantics as `.gitignore` (via `-E`) and support for giving extended shell globs via `-e`.



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