apt-file update complains about missing Contents-i386.gz

According to https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/apt-file/+bug/220396/comments/3 some mirrors drop the Contents-*.gz files in order to save space. But the Contents-*.gz files seem to be missing on the master servers, too.

Subscribing ubuntu-mirror-admins to get their attention. Where should a bug like this be filed, properly speaking?

I believe that Contents-*.gz files are not generated for ddebs.u.c; it is naturall that these should 404.

If the 404s are to be expected for certain URLs then apt-file(1) should expect them. It isn't the user that should know which 404s are OK and which aren't.

They also don't exist for Hardy on http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/dists/hardy/ and a couple of other "high-ranking" mirrors I checked (hence my claim above that they don't exist on the master servers); however, http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/hardy/ does have them.

As I understand it; the Contents-*.gz are only generated for the primary Ubuntu archive (everything on archive.ubuntu.com, they are not generated for PPAs, partner, ).

era: Can you please give examples of which high-ranking mirrors these are not present on?

These files appear to be on de., fr., gb., se.archive.ubuntu.com and mirror.anl.gov for some examples of high-ranking mirrors.

I may be misunderstanding the question, but running `sudo apt-file update' on 8.04 now, there's an additional 404 for archive.canonical.com.

    $ sudo apt-file update
    Can't get http://ddebs.ubuntu.com/dists/hardy/Contents-i386.gz (404)
    Can't get http://ddebs.ubuntu.com/dists/hardy-updates/Contents-i386.gz (404)
    Can't get http://ddebs.ubuntu.com/dists/hardy-security/Contents-i386.gz (404)
    Can't get http://ddebs.ubuntu.com/dists/hardy-proposed/Contents-i386.gz (404)
    Can't get http://archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/dists/hardy/Contents-i386.gz (404)
    $

The ones I had checked seem to be mirrors of archive.canonical.com. I take it archive.ubuntu.com is supposed to be authoritative.

Should apt-file be somehow responsible for picking a fallback server if the one in /etc/apt/sources.list does not carry Contents-<arch>.gz, or should all mirrors be required to also mirror the Contents files?

@ubuntu-mirror-admins: any opinion on this?

See also bug #179899! (Should ubuntu-mirror-admins be subscribed to that one as well?)