import packages list from docs.rs

Author: pietroalbini

Dockerfile

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+FROM debian:stretch
+
+# Install the packages contained in `packages.txt`
+COPY packages.txt /opt/crates-build-env/packages.txt
+RUN apt-get update && cat /opt/crates-build-env/packages.txt | DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive xargs apt-get install -y

README.md

@@ -1,3 +1,11 @@
 # Build environment for Rust crates
 
-WIP.
+This repository contains the source of the Docker container the Rust project
+uses to build third-party crates. It is based on **Debian 9 Stretch**, and
+contains all the native dependencies used by the Rust crates we know of.
+
+## Adding new dependencies
+
+If your crate fails to build on one of the services that uses this Docker
+image, please either open an issue with the name of the packages you need or
+send a pull request that adds the packages to `packages.txt`.