WebDAV extension for Nautilus - GNOME gvfs - Riccardo Tribbia

[Riccardo Tribbia <ricky tribbia gmail com>]

Hi all!

I'm Riccardo Tribbia from Italy for the University of Bergamo. I wish ask you some question about the way to extend webdav client implementation in gnome / nautilus, 'cause we (my team) are developing a system for a fully secure outsourcing system using WebDAV (it's a research project).

We're using a WebDAV server implementation through Milton (java webdav server) on an Apache Tomcat and works fine.
Now we would integrate a little WebDAV client in a real desktop environment which users already use every day and 'cause our target system is Linux, for now, the specific target is Nautilus - GNOME.

If I have understood a bit of the GNOME evolution, the software component that make all webdav stuff is gvfs backend dav, isn't it?
And gvfs is the abstraction layer for all implemented protocols that offers file system support, isn't it?

So the question is: Which way can we follow to extend this module?

The functionalities that our implementation has are:
-> after authorization request (webdav username+password) if the user select a "Crypted folder" (in particular OverEncrypted folder) the server answers with a "CHECKPIN" request (no webdav standard request, our implementation, obviously).
        So the extended module would prompt a popup to the user with PIN request and after that the client have to react in consequence.
        (wonderful is that this PIN can be saved in keyring for the entire session.. :-) )
->PUT / COPY webdav commands would also encrypt/decrypt resources in article specified way.

Have you any advice for us?
Or any specific documentation or link for this question?
Are we following the right way?

And last but phisically the most important: Which is the way to install a single gvfs new module? Have we to recompile all gvfs lib? other package or lib?

Sorry for my english and for our long questions,
any help would be appreciate.

Thanks a lot!

And our best compliments for the open-source high level work.

Riccardo Tribbia