[Bug-tar] RFE? tar doesn't copy file attributes or ACL's (full permissions)

[Linda A. Walsh]

Had a 'feature deficit' that I thought of for tar...;^)

Would it be possible to get tar to copy (or ignore) file attributes, 
and to copy ACL's if they exist ( maybe via an option)?

Some attr's I really like to keep on files, and end up having to use 
something a host of different utils (depending on fs and os), but
common examples are the '+d" 'don't dump' attribute -- something I
usually set on large multi-gig scratch files I'm using for testing,
or temporary copies of DVD's on my disk (certainly don't need to back
up such things as the original is the DVD -- much better than trying
to use backup space).

ACL's -- those would be most useful for me under Cygin-Windows.  Cygwin
uses Windows ACL's itself for emulating the standard unix rwx permisions
for groups, but native ACL's are also set for existing files that 
it would be nice if they could be kept in a backup. (Since Window's
native backup seems to die about 165G into its backup attempt (I think
it is actually 'finished', and dies during final 'housekeeping').

I'd rather save it in a standard format if I could (i.e. tar)...

Of course on Win, it has underlying file attribs as well, (HSRA...)

Dunno how possible...but certainly the ext2+xfs 'd' attribs
and file ACLS's -- it'd be up to the support libraries to actually
be available to be able to pull the values in so 'tar' could store
them.  

_Maybe_ for Backwards compat such info could be stored ahead of a file
in some variation of the filename?  Like if fn="filename", then 
store attribs in .filename#.%attrib%.<hex-numbered ext>, if need to avoid 
fn collisions?  

Just a thought...?  
Linda