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Systems Management: Distributed Software Administration
Copyright © 1997 The Open Group

NAME

swpackage - Package distribution

SYNOPSIS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

DESCRIPTION

This utility may be used to perform the following tasks:

Both outputs use the same software packaging layout, but in different formats (directory versus serial).

OPTIONS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

OPERANDS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

EXTERNAL EFFECTS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

EXTENDED DESCRIPTION

A target distribution may only be the first step in creating a CD-ROM, either as a serial or directory distribution. There is no special support provided by swpackage for the creation of CD-ROM.

Distribution tapes are created in POSIX.1 extended cpio or extended tar format. To create the tape, swpackage first builds the products into a temporary distribution. (It is removed when swpackage completes.) To conserve space, all files may exist as references to the real source files. After the distribution is constructed, swpackage then archives it, along with the real files, onto the tape device.

The swpackage command supports two methods for making additions and/or modifications to an existing distribution:

  1. Modify the PSF used to package some or all of the products in the existing distribution. Then invoke swpackage and specify the appropriate software_selections on the command line. Each specified software selection should correspond to a modified product, subproduct, or fileset definition within the PSF. If new filesets are being added to an existing product, swpackage will identify the product and add the filesets. If product, subproduct, or fileset attributes are being modified, swpackage will match them and do the replacements.

  2. Create a new delta PSF for the products being modified. Send this delta file as the source PSF, and swpackage will repackage all of the specified products. The smallest unit that can be changed is the fileset. If a file within a fileset is added, modified, or deleted, the new fileset would replace the existing fileset. Enough product information needs to be given to correctly identify the product in which this fileset is located. When swpackage reads the delta PSF, it parses and deals only with the differences.

    As the delta PSF comes closer to the original PSF, the repackage process will take as much time or more as the original packaging.

If a modified product, subproduct, or fileset specification redefines any attributes, the new attribute values will replace the existing values.

EXAMPLES

Package the products specified in /develop/product_list onto a distribution located at the default location:
swpackage -s /develop/product_list

Package the same products onto the distribution located at /develop/cd, from where they can printed onto a master CD-ROM as follows:

swpackage -x media_type=directory -d /develop/cd\ -s /develop/product_list

Create a tape media on a 1300 MB DDS tape loaded at /dev/dat as follows:

swpackage -x media_type=serial -x media_capacity=1300 -d /dev/dat\ -s /develop/product_list

EXIT STATUS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

CONSEQUENCES OF ERRORS

No additional rationale is required under this heading.

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