WebDAV API for Drupal

Student: Fabiano Sant'Ana, http://www.wundo.net
Mentor: James Walker

Synopis:
The WebDAV API module will be an interface to Drupal. It will allow the users to access the Drupal database(contents and configs) from an WebDAV interface. Each Drupal Module will need a hook to work with the WebDAV API, this can be done inside the module or outside using an "complement" module (like in blog and blogapi modules).

What the Drupal earns with this? (Benefits to the Drupal Community)
Freedom.
An backup method, if I'm a Drupal Admin I could copy all the configs and information that are in my site direct from my Windows Explorer (or whatever you use to navigate in folders) to an local folder.
Usability.
A better user interface, 'cause sincerely it's too much better way just open my text editor and write my post then just save this in my Mapped Drupal WebDav directory than write it in my editor then copy and past into Drupal page.
Elegance.
It's very elegant to control the content from my site like if it is a local folder. And I don't need to code, see html tags, or whatever that a dummy don't know how to do. But if you want you can see anyway. :)
Uncountable uses.
My proposal is to do an API (not just it), I really don't know all the things that can be done with this.

Deliverables:
The WebDAV API module.
And Example module, "UploadWebDAV" hook. (The API interface for the upload module)

Project Details:
My proposal is to implement an interface to Drupal using the WebDAV protocol, what allows the users a more friendly way to manage/publish the contents of the system. Based in the RFC 2518 (HTTP Extensions for Distributed Authoring - WebDAV (http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2518.txt)) the module will authenticate using the Drupal Database. The root WebDAV folder will have collections(collections is the name of WebDAV folders) and each collection is a hook to another module.
WebDAV will make the low level things and transmit it to the "hook module". The "hook module" will make the interaction between the "real" module and all the logic work.
For example:
The root folder has a collection named "uploads", when the user try to access it the DAV module will call the "hook module" asking if the user can access it, and if yes, what DAV should show to the user there.
Suppose that there is an file "bio.txt" in the user files, and the user delete it, the DAV module will call the delete procedure in hook module, and the hook module will remove it from the system.
Also I'll make a module to show how to work with the API (What matter if we have a API but no one uses/knows how to use it? ;) ). This module will be a hook to the upload module, and will be the same as it.

Project Schedule:
Until 06/19 - Structure the basics of API.
Until 07/02 - Implement the first WebDAV Request Methods (GET, PUT, POST, MKCOL, etc).
Until 07/16 - Implement the extended WebDAV Methods (PROPFIND, PROPPATCH)
Until 07/30 - Implement Locking related WebDAV Methods (LOCK, UNLOCK)
Until 08/13 - Debug/Implement the Sample Module (uploads WebDAV module)
Until 08/20 - Finish the Sample Module
Until 08/27 - Final Tests/Debug