[Bug 260399] freebsd-update is just horrible, it fails and fails and WHY?

https://bugs.freebsd.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=260399

            Bug ID: 260399
           Summary: freebsd-update is just horrible, it fails and fails
                    and WHY?
           Product: Base System
           Version: Unspecified
          Hardware: Any
                OS: Any
            Status: New
          Severity: Affects Some People
          Priority: ---
         Component: bin
          Assignee: bugs@FreeBSD.org
          Reporter: somesignup@icloud.com

I've just about had it with freebsd-update (and portsnap for much the same
reasons).

I want to update several machines to 12.3-RELEASE. Fine. I've done this sort of
thing before, and it's always a total pain. Not because of the process, but
because freebsd-update is a horrible terrible nasty piece of work.

Snippet 1:
Preparing to download files... done.
Fetching 1760 patches....
..1750....1760 done.

Snippet 2:
Applying patches... done.
Fetching 962 files... ....10.
....960. failed.

Well I've seen this before, so run it again.

Snippet 3:
Fetching 921 patches.....10....20
...920 done.


Question: why does this have to download 921 more patches? Has it not already
downloaded all the patches? What new patches is it downloading?

Snippet 4:
Fetching 880 files...
..880 failed.

Repeat until I am lucky enough to hit the precise nanosecond when this seems to
work, and it seems to fail often (just like portsnap).

I really don't understand the logic of downloading the same patches over and
over again when this happens. Are you really trying to tell me that all the
patches are in some way corrupted or broken? If yes, I will say prove it!
Because I don't believe it. 

I have never had problems downloading files directly myself using simple
http/ftp type clients on any FreeBSD machine. The problem is solely with the
truly horrible freebsd-update and its horrible cousin portsnap.

These two things (I cannot with any integrity refer to them as 'programs') are
the biggest most horrible and nasty aspects of FreeBSD. They frequently fail.
Don't try to suggest doing something with portsnap.conf or freebsd-update.conf.
It's not that. It's these two horrible fail-at-the-drop-of-a-hat programs which
should not be in the base system at all.

I don't have a problem with patching systems. But these two tools do not belong
in the FreeBSD toolbox. 

Anyone thinking of replying "they work for me", good for you. But they do
frequently fail for people as is shown through bug reports and posts here and
there.

Seriously, in 2021, how hard is it to download some files reliably?

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