Porting a Linux console program to access somehow in C#.NET - source available

**This job/competition has three elements:** 1. Basic Research 2. Compilation of programs from Linux to work in C#.NET (or conversion to a .DLL file for use in C#.NET) 3. Possible programming to fix drama's from step 2. A client of ours wishes to have a GUI around a linux backup console program called rdiff-backup. It is a bit like rsnapshot. Both use the rsync protocol. It reads your command line arguments to do its job such as the file paths you want to back up. [login to view URL] myfilehere destinationfolderhere (etc...) ==> [login to view URL] rdiff-backup uses a library called librysnc ==> [login to view URL] We are already creating a GUI to wrap around the above program. Our GUI is in C#.NET. However, we would prefer to be able to access the rdiff-backup source code instead and integrate it into the client's software versus our current usage which is just calling the [login to view URL] file via an invisible command line interface from our C#.NET program and reading the output. **The Problem and what we need solved - read the detailed description below!** ## Deliverables **The Problem and what we need solved:** rdiff-backup is coded in Python and was made for POSIX file systems (linux) but it seems it has become compatible with Windows file systems more or less since 2 years ago. However rdiff-backup uses a popular free library coded in C which was made for POSIX file systems called librsync, and from what we know, that is not compatible with Windows at the moment. There is a Visual Studio addon called IronPython which we semi-got to work with rdiff-backup (using cygwin related dll's). We would like to see the open source program above "rdiff-backup" (written in Python for Linux) converted / ported / "hacked" / whatever it takes so we can call it easily from our .NET managed code. **What we would like from you:** We would like to be able to better integrate rdiff-backup into our C#.NET app and call it directly (mainly instead of running it via the command prompt we call its non-existant "main method" directly. What we would like (from best to worst scenario) is as follows: **1 (best).** Have the rdiff-backup (and any needed library code like librsync) included as attached project(s) in Visual Studio 2010 that we can easily edit it if desired. And of course being attached in this manner our software compiles it all into one neat .exe for our client's private backup software. **or 2.** Have the rdiff-backup (and its required library librsync) in a .DLL file or other kind of library file we can easily call from our C#.NET code. **or 3.** We are open to other solutions... explain your strategy and we will award you the winner if its good enough for our purposes (and you do it). **or 4.** Run the [login to view URL] from our C#.NET code, which we already do, so this is not an option we want from you. We also would prefer to avoid [login to view URL] (if it is any kind of solution to get towards option 1 and 2), but it's still acceptable. We lack the C/Python skills to make the above happen and need an expert in C/Python to figure out whats possible and make it happen and document what was done. We do not think you need to program anything heavy, but you may need to tweak files for compabitility with Windows, .NET, something else? **Bid on this project ONLY IF you think you have a good chance for success to achieve option 1, option 2, or option 3.**