Image Packaging System (IPS) !!!

Let us discuss about Package Management in Solaris 11.

Unlike in Solaris 10 there is no concept of Patch Administration (Kernel Jumbo Patch) in Solaris 11.

In Oracle Solaris 11, we use Image Packaging System (IPS) which is a network based package management system.

Through IPS we can perform installation, upgrades and removal of software packages.

For this Package Administration, we need repository data and it can downloaded from Oracle.This repo is called as Support Repository Updates.These SRU's will be released monthly by Oracle.

For Installing a package or Updating SRU, a server will contact a Package Publisher.This Publisher contains sync of repo data. A Publisher can be url of repo data or iso image of sru.

Example of a publisher : (url of Oracle IPS repo)

# pkg publisher
PUBLISHER TYPE STATUS URI
solaris  origin online https://pkg.oracle.com/solaris/support/

For this we need to download key and certificate from Home Page of Oracle's IPS Package Repository. This Publisher helps to update packages directly by redirecting to given url through internet

Copy the downloaded key and certificate to the location /var/pkg/ssl/

-k --- to specify key
-c --- to specify certificate

pkg set-publisher \
-k /var/pkg/ssl/Oracle_Solaris_11_Support.key.pem \
-c /var/pkg/ssl/Oracle_Solaris_11_Support.certificate.pem \
-g https://pkg.oracle.com/solaris/support/ \
-G http://pkg.oracle.com/solaris/release/ solaris

Other method is by downloading the ISO file of IPS.

This is used to update without internet connection.Usually downloaded SRU ISO file is maintained in a individual server and package publisher will be created using that server's location.

Or we can copy the iso file and can create a publisher from it.

root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# cd /opt
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/opt# ls -lrth
total 9720689
drwxr-xr-x   3 root     root          11 Nov 17  2010 145880-02
drwxr-xr-x   4 root     root           5 Jun  1  2011 OVM_Server_SPARC-2_1
-rw-r--r--   1 root     root        2.7G Nov  7  2012 sol-11-1111-sru13-04-incr-repo.iso          ------ this is my sru iso file...
-rw-rw-r--   1 root     root         90K Nov 21  2012 readme.html
-rw-rw-r--   1 root     root         73K Nov 21  2012 readme.txt
-rw-r--r--   1 root     root        2.0G May 12  2013 p15879286_1100_SOLARIS64.zip
root-mysrv1:/opt#
root-mysrv1:/opt# cd /
root-mysrv1:/#

Mount SRU image file

root-mysrv1:/# mount -F hsfs /opt/sol-11-1111-sru13-04-incr-repo.iso /mnt
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# cd /mnt
root-mysrv1:/mnt#
root-mysrv1:/mnt# ls -lrth
total 20
drwxr-xr-x   3 root     root        2.0K Nov  7  2012 repo
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root     root        1.3K Nov  7  2012 NOTICES
-rw-r--r--   1 root     root        3.2K Nov  7  2012 COPYRIGHT
-rw-r--r--   1 root     root        3.0K Nov  7  2012 README
root-mysrv1:/mnt#
root-mysrv1:/mnt#
root-mysrv1:/mnt# cd /
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# pkg publisher
PUBLISHER                             TYPE     STATUS   URI
root-mysrv1:/#

As of now, no publisher is there in my server. Let us set one.....

root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# pkg set-publisher -G '*' -g file:///mnt/repo/ solaris
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# pkg publisher
PUBLISHER                             TYPE     STATUS   URI
solaris                               origin   online   file:///mnt/repo/
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/#

Now you can use this publisher to update our packages(SRU).

root-mysrv1:/# pkg update
Creating Plan \
.....
..... output truncated
.....
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/# pkg info entire         
        Name: entire
       Summary: entire incorporation including Support Repository Update (Oracle Solaris 11 11/11 SRU 13.4).   Description: This package constrains system package versions to the same
                build.  WARNING: Proper system update and correct package
                selection depend on the presence of this incorporation.
                Removing this package will result in an unsupported system.  For
                more information see https://support.oracle.com/CSP/main/article
                ?cmd=show&type=NOT&doctype=REFERENCE&id=1372094.1.
      Category: Meta Packages/Incorporations
         State: Installed
     Publisher: solaris
       Version: 0.5.11 (Oracle Solaris 11 SRU 13.4)
 Build Release: 5.11
        Branch: 0.175.0.13.0.4.0
Packaging Date: November  6, 2012 07:46:23 PM
          Size: 5.45 kB
          FMRI: pkg://solaris/entire@0.5.11,5.11-0.175.0.13.0.4.0:20121106T194623Z
root-mysrv1:/#
root-mysrv1:/#
 
Hence Package Management made so easy in Solaris 11 with the help of Image Packaging System (IPS) concept.

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