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HP OpenVMS systems documentation |
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| Previous | Contents | Index |
This chapter defines some key terms and concepts. Read this chapter before creating your installable kit.
This chapter describes the following topics:
If you are familiar with the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility terms and concepts, you can
start with Chapter 3.
2.1 The Product Database
The product database (PDB) is a set of binary files located in SYS$SYSDEVICE:[VMS$COMMON] with a .PCSI$DATABASE file extension. The POLYCENTER Software Installation utility automatically creates the PDB the first time a product is installed or registered on the system, such as when the OpenVMS operating system is installed. Once created, the utility updates the database as operations are performed to install, reconfigure, register, or remove products.
The PDB is the single source of information about operations performed on products using the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility. This information includes a history of operations performed, which products are installed, which files and other managed objects are owned by each product, software dependencies among products, and so forth.
The PDB consists of three permanent files:
A product-specific database file is created each time a product kit is installed or registered, and deleted when the product is removed. For example, the layered product TNT V3.0 for OpenVMS VAX might have a database file named DEC-VAXVMS-TNT-V0300.PCSI$DATABASE.
The format and content of the database files are controlled by the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility. If an OpenVMS system manager uses the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility to install your product, the utility will expect the database files to exist from that point on. Caution your product's users not to delete these files or the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility will not be able to detect and manage your product. The complete set of database files must be intact for the utility to access the information in the database. |
As a software provider, you can use PDL statements to query the product database to dynamically determine the version of an installed product. The following example illustrates how installation choices are made based on the installed version of OpenVMS on an Alpha system:
if (<software DEC AXPVMS VMS version minimum V6.2> AND
<software DEC AXPVMS VMS version below A6.3>) ;
file [SYSEXE]TNT$SERVER.EXE generation 5
source [000000]TNT$SERVER_V62.EXE ;
file [SYSEXE]TNT$UTILITY.EXE generation 1
source [000000]TNT$UTILITY_V62.EXE ;
file [SYSTEST.TNT]TNT$SERVER_IVP.EXE generation 5
source [000000]TNT$SERVER_IVP_V62.EXE ;
end if;
if (<software DEC AXPVMS VMS version minimum V7.0> AND
<software DEC AXPVMS VMS version below A7.1>) ;
file [SYSEXE]TNT$SERVER.EXE generation 5
source [000000]TNT$SERVER_V70.EXE ;
file [SYSEXE]TNT$UTILITY.EXE generation 1
source [000000]TNT$UTILITY_V70.EXE ;
file [SYSTEST.TNT]TNT$SERVER_IVP.EXE generation 5
source [000000]TNT$SERVER_IVP_V70.EXE ;
end if;
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OpenVMS users can use the DCL command PRODUCT SHOW either to query the product database to show what products are installed and the dependencies between them, to list the files and other objects that make up each product, or to show the history of installation and upgrade activity.
If your installation procedure or the OpenVMS user removes a product,
information about the files and objects associated with the product are
removed from the database. However, the history of the product's
activity from installation to removal is retained in the database.
2.2 Software Product Kit Formats
The installable kit (also called a software product kit) you create can be in one of two POLYCENTER Software Installation utility formats:
Figure 2-1 shows how the package operation uses the PDF, PTF, and product material to create a product kit in reference or sequential format.
Figure 2-1 Package Operation
The POLYCENTER Software Installation utility adheres to the following file-naming conventions when
either creating a software product kit or processing PDF and PTF files.
2.3.1 Sequential Format
A software product kit created in sequential format is a single file whose name is in the following format:
producer-base-product-version-kittype.PCSI |
For example:
DEC-AXPVMS-DWMOTIF-V0102-6-1.PCSI |
Note that the file name is constructed of components delimited by
hyphens (-). The version component is further divided into subfields
and includes an additional hyphen as explained in Section 2.3.4.
2.3.2 Reference Format
A software product kit created in reference format consists of a directory tree populated with product files used during installation. The directory structure mirrors the directory structure of the product on the user's disk after installation. The top-level directory contains the PDF and PTF. The presence of the PDF identifies this as a kit in reference format. There is no .PCSI container file for a kit in reference format. The PDF and PTF are named as follows:
producer-base-product-version-kittype.PCSI$DESCRIPTION producer-base-product-version-kittype.PCSI$TLB |
For example:
DEC-AXPVMS-DWMOTIF-V0102-6-1.PCSI$DESCRIPTION DEC-AXPVMS-DWMOTIF-V0102-6-1.PCSI$TLB |
The fields in a kit name are position-dependent and provide useful information about the kit. There are a few general naming rules:
The fields are defined as follows:
The POLYCENTER Software Installation utility uses the version field to determine which kit is the most recent and therefore which kit supersedes another kit for the same product. The version field is in the format tmn-ue. This format is described in Table 2-1.
| t | The type of version (a single uppercase alphabetic character A through V; the letters W, X, Y, and Z are reserved for use by HP). Evaluated by ascending ASCII value. Pre-release versions of a product usually begin with the letters A through U and V is used to indicate the formal release version. |
| m | The major version number (decimal integer 01 through 99). |
| n | The minor version number (decimal integer 00 through 99). |
| - | The hyphen is required in all cases. When both update level (u) and maintenance edit level (e) are omitted, the version string will end with a hyphen and the file name will have a double hyphen (- -) preceding the kit type. |
| u | The update level (decimal integer 1 through 999999999). This is optional. If not present, the utility evaluates this component as 0. |
| e | The maintenance edit level (up to 16 alphanumeric characters beginning with an alphabetic character). This is optional. If not present, the utility evaluates this component as a null string. |
When the utility compares the file specifications of two kits for the same product to determine the latest version of the product, it examines the version strings as follows:
Once you use an update level (u) or a maintenance edit level (e) in the product version field, that component must be carried throughout the release cycle of the product to ensure proper evaluation by the utility.
For example, if you release a test version of your product called E7.3-10 (expressed as E0703-10 in tmn-ue format) and then drop the update number in the final version V7.3, the utility will not recognize V7.3 as the latest version. This is what happens:
Once the update level is established, as in E7.3-10, do not omit it (causing it to default to zero (0)) until you increase the major or minor version. Any of the following examples of version numbers would supersede E7.3-10:
The tmn-ue format used in file names is similar to the format used to display versions to OpenVMS users, or as entered by the OpenVMS user with the /VERSION qualifier.
However, when the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility displays a version to the OpenVMS user:
The following version information is contained in the OpenVMS System Manager's Manual. However, it is worth repeating the information here to make sure that you know how the product version is interpreted.
The POLYCENTER Software Installation utility supports the seven kit types described in Table 2-2.
| Value | Type of Kit | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Full | Layered product (application) software. |
| 2 | Operating system | Operating system software. |
| 3 | Partial | An upgrade to currently installed software that replaces or provides new files. Installation of this kit changes the version of the product. |
| 4 | Patch | A correction to currently installed software that replaces or provides new files. Installation of this kit does not change the version of the product. |
| 5 | Platform | An integrated set of software products (also known as a software product suite). |
| 6 | Transition | Product information used to register (in the POLYCENTER Software Installation database) a product that was installed by VMSINSTAL or other mechanism. This kit includes only a PDF and (optionally) a PTF; it does not provide product material. |
| 7 | Mandatory update | A required correction to currently installed software that replaces or provides new files. Installation of this kit does not change the version of the product. Functionally the same as a patch kit. |
The following examples show how the format is used for a sequential format kit and a reference format kit:
DEC-VAXVMS-SOFTWIN-V0101--1.PCSI |
DEC-AXPVMS-VMS-V0602-1H2-2.PCSI$DESCRIPTION |
Although you provide the product description file (PDF) and the product text file (PTF) as input to the package operation, they also exist in modified (output) form in the kit you create. You need to be aware that two versions of these files do exist and that they perform specific tasks.
You create the input version as input to the package operation, and the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility creates the output version for its own use.
The package operation changes the format of the output PTF file. For more information, see Section 4.2.
The output PDF is in the same format as the input PDF, but the package
operation may modify statements in the output PDF. For example, the
package operation adds the size option to
file statements in the output PDF.
2.4 User-Defined Logical Names
When installing your product, system managers must specify a location where the software kit resides and a location in which to install the software. Two methods are available for identifying these locations:
The system manager can also define logical names, and then override them by using the /SOURCE and /DESTINATION qualifiers.
PCSI$SOURCE defines the location of the software kits to install. By default, the user's default device and directory are used. PCSI$DESTINATION defines the location in which to install the software.
If the system manager does not define PCSI$DESTINATION or use the /DESTINATION qualifier, the utility installs the software product in SYS$SYSDEVICE:[VMS$COMMON] and directories under it. If this is not appropriate for your product, make sure that your installation instructions describe how to specify the /DESTINATION qualifier, or how to define the PCSI$DESTINATION logical name.
When you package your product, the logical names PCSI$SOURCE and PCSI$DESTINATION are not used. You must use the /SOURCE and /DESTINATION qualifiers on the PRODUCT PACKAGE command. |
Several Product Description Language (PDL) statements execute command procedures in the context of a subprocess. The POLYCENTER Software Installation utility defines the logical names PCSI$SOURCE, PCSI$DESTINATION, and PCSI$SCRATCH for use by these command procedures. Note that these logical names are accessible only within the subprocess and do not interfere with similar names that the user may have defined. Note also that the user's definition of PCSI$SOURCE is not the same as that defined by the utility for the command procedure. See the PDL statement definitions for additional information.
With the introduction of the new qualifiers to the PRODUCT INSTALL and PRODUCT RECONFIGURE commands, namely /RECOVERY_MODE and /SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA, new logical names have been added to increase product developers' control over the product installation process. These new logical names are PCSI$$RECOVERY_MODE and PCSI$$SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA. The PCSI$$RECOVERY_MODE logical name represents the /RECOVERY_MODE qualifier while the PCSI$$SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA qualifier represents the /SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA command-line qualifier. They are defined in the system wide logical name table whenever the user specifies their equivalent qualifiers as follows.
For the /RECOVERY_MODE qualifier, the PCSI$$RECOVERY_MODE logical name is defined with a YES value. If the user specifies /NORECOVERY_MODE, the PCSI$$RECOVERY_MODE logical name is defined with a NO value. If the user does not use the /RECOVERY_MODE qualifier at all, the logical name is not defined either. The same process applies to the PCSI$$SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA logical name.
The /RECOVERY_MODE qualifier forces product installation to be performed in recovery mode, which allows recovery from a failed product installation or reconfiguration through a rollback of files and library modules displaced by the failed operation. By default, the installation and reconfiguration are not performed in recovery mode.
The /SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA qualifier applies to patch and mandatory update kits installation only. It is similar to /RECOVERY_MODE in that it forces files displaced during installation to be saved in a specially designated directory tree. Those saved objects can later be used to uninstall patch products by executing the PRODUCT UNDO PATCH command. By default, the patch kit installation does not trigger patch recovery data to be saved for future use. This is the reason the PCSI$$RECOVERY_MODE and PSCI$$SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA logical names have been introduced.
Using these logical names, the product developer can control whether the product installation is performed in recovery mode or whether the patch recovery data is being saved for potential patch kit removal. Using a command procedure supplied with the PDL statement EXECUTE PRECONFIGURE in your PDF, you can examine the logical names and determine if the user has specified the /RECOVERY_MODE or /SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA qualifiers.
If, for example, the user did not use the /SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA qualifier, and you believe that it is important that your patch kit be installed in a manner allowing its uninstallation in case of a problem, you can set the PCSI$$SAVE_RECOVERY_DATA logical name in your EXECUTE PRECONFIGURE command and force the recovery data to be saved for future use.
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