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+.. _datasources:
+
+=========
+Datasources
+=========
+----------
+ What is a datasource?
+----------
+
+Datasources are sources of configuration data for cloud-init that typically come
+from the user (aka userdata) or come from the stack that created the configuration
+drive (aka metadata). Typical userdata would include files, yaml, and shell scripts
+while typical metadata would include server name, instance id, display name and other
+cloud specific details. Since there are multiple ways to provide this data (each cloud
+solution seems to prefer its own way) internally a datasource abstract class was
+created to allow for a single way to access the different cloud systems methods 
+to provide this data through the typical usage of subclasses.
+
+The current interface that a datasource object must provide is the following:
+
+.. sourcecode:: python
+    
+    def get_userdata(self, apply_filter=False)
+    
+    @property
+    def launch_index(self)
+    
+    @property
+    def is_disconnected(self)
+    
+    def get_userdata_raw(self)
+    
+    # the data sources' config_obj is a cloud-config formated
+    # object that came to it from ways other than cloud-config
+    # because cloud-config content would be handled elsewhere
+    def get_config_obj(self)
+    
+    def get_public_ssh_keys(self)
+    
+    def device_name_to_device(self, name)
+    
+    def get_locale(self)
+    
+    @property
+    def availability_zone(self)
+    
+    def get_instance_id(self)
+    
+    def get_hostname(self, fqdn=False)
+    
+    def get_package_mirror_info(self)
+
+---------------------------
+EC2
+---------------------------
+
+TBD
+
+---------------------------
+Config Drive
+---------------------------
+
+.. include:: ../../sources/configdrive/README.rst
+
+---------------------------
+Alt cloud
+---------------------------
+
+.. include:: ../../sources/altcloud/README.rst
+
+---------------------------
+No cloud
+---------------------------
+
+.. include:: ../../sources/nocloud/README.rst
+
+---------------------------
+MAAS
+---------------------------
+
+TBD
+
+---------------------------
+CloudStack
+---------------------------
+
+TBD
+
+---------------------------
+OVF
+---------------------------
+
+See: https://bazaar.launchpad.net/~cloud-init-dev/cloud-init/trunk/files/head:/doc/sources/ovf/
+
+---------------------------
+Fallback/None
+---------------------------
+
+TBD