Software package overview

When you package software, you identify a source file and provide the necessary commands to install and uninstall that software unattended on remote hosts. If an install or uninstall command references additional files, those files are also included in the software package.

BMC Server Automation provides built-in support for packaging the following types of software. Built-in support means BMC Server Automation provides you with the standard install and uninstall commands for that type of software. In addition, you can also create a completely custom software package by providing your own install and uninstall commands, along with any necessary parameters and file references.

For a description of how to package software, see Adding software to the Depot. Manually adding Windows patches and service packs to the Depot requires a slightly different procedure as described in Adding a hotfix to the Depot.

When you package software, the package is stored in the Depot. However, the source files for the software can either reside on the file server or a network location. When you use a Deploy Job to deploy software, the job can push software to designated servers and then run the install command for that software. Alternatively, the Deploy Job can instruct the agent on a target server to mount (for UNIX) or map (for Windows) the server that holds the source files and deploy the source files directly from there. For more information, see Creating a Deploy Job.

BMC Server Automation lets you uninstall software, even from servers where you did not originally install it. To uninstall software, you must first package the software and store the package in the Depot. Then you can run an uninstall job for that package. The uninstall job is actually a Deploy Job that pushes the software package to a server, where it runs the uninstall command rather than the install command. For more information, see Uninstalling software.

Related BladeLogic ZipKits on BMC Communitites

The following BladeLogic ZipKits provide instructions for creating specific software packages for Windows environments. Additional ZipKits for other software packages are available from the Blade ZipKits Currently Available BMC Communities article.

The following BladeLogic ZipKits provide instructions for creating specific software packages for UNIX and Linux environments. Additional ZipKits for other software packages are available from the Blade ZipKits Currently Available BMC Communities article.