[fpc-pascal] Remote FreePascal compile service, feedback requested

[Tom Verhoeff]

We (still) use FreePascal quite a bit in our first/second-year education,
in particular, in <PEACH.win.tue.nl>, our Programming Education And
Contest Hosting verification system.

I was thinking of adding a remote FreePascal service along the following
lines.  You go to its web interface, browse for your source files
(possibly a whole zip archive) on your local machine, enter command-line
options, and let our server compile your stuff with a (selectable)
version of fpc (under Linux), then you get back the results (possibly
also in a zip archive).  Mabye we can support cross compiles as well.

Why do this?  Because that way people can use/try FreePascal without
installing anything.

Furthermore, we plan to support several versions of FreePascal in
parallel.  That way, it may also be useful to the FreePascal community.
E.g. when diagnosing a problem.

Here are some questions:

  1.  Do you think this service would be useful?

  2.  Do you think the interface described above is good enough?
      Suggestions for refinements would be appreciated.

  3.  Are there any security risks that we may have overlooked?
      Of course, we will impose certain limitation to avoid resource
      hogging.  But maybe there are ways to put together a malicious
      source file that makes the compiler misbehave ...

  4.  Whatever else comes to your mind ...

Best regards,

	Tom Verhoeff
-- 
E-MAIL: T.Verhoeff @ TUE.NL     | Fac. of Math. & Computing Science
PHONE:  +31 40 247 41 25        | Eindhoven University of Technology
FAX:    +31 40 247 54 04        | PO Box 513, NL-5600 MB Eindhoven
http://www.win.tue.nl/~wstomv/  | The Netherlands