Skip to content

Include guidelines how to backfill with /messages and /context #1281

@MadLittleMods

Description

@MadLittleMods

Link to problem area:

https://spec.matrix.org/v1.1/server-server-api/#backfilling-and-retrieving-missing-events

Issue

As brought up in matrix-org/complement#492 (review) and matrix-org/matrix-spec-proposals#3030 (comment), there is no right answer for when and how to backfill events.

The spec just says this:

Since users in that room are able to request the history by the /messages client API endpoint, it’s possible that they might step backwards far enough into history before the homeserver itself was a member of that room.

To cover this case, the federation API provides a server-to-server analog of the /messages client API, allowing one homeserver to fetch history from another. This is the /backfill API.

-- https://spec.matrix.org/v1.1/server-server-api/#backfilling-and-retrieving-missing-events

But it should probably also mention that /context should backfill at the very least. And have some heuristics for when exactly to backfill. Is it acceptable to have gaps (MSC3871)? etc

Metadata

Metadata

Assignees

No one assigned

    Labels

    A-S2SServer-to-Server API (federation)clarificationAn area where the expected behaviour is understood, but the spec could do with being more explicit

    Type

    No type

    Projects

    No projects

    Milestone

    No milestone

    Relationships

    None yet

    Development

    No branches or pull requests

    Issue actions