Quick Start Guide

Otherwise, .rpmsave is used. In other words, .rpmorig results from updating from a
foreign format to RPM. .rpmsave results from updating from an older RPM to a newer
RPM. .rpmnew does not disclose any information as to whether the system adminis-
trator has made any changes to the conguration le. A list of these les is available
in /var/adm/rpmconfigcheck. Some conguration les (like /etc/httpd/httpd.conf)
are not overwritten to allow continued operation.
The -U switch is not just an equivalent to uninstalling with the -e option and installing
with the -i option. Use -U whenever possible.
To remove a package, enter rpm -e package . rpm, which only deletes the package if
there are no unresolved dependencies. It is theoretically impossible to delete Tcl/Tk,
for example, as long as another application requires it. Even in this case, RPM calls
for assistance from the database. If such a deletion is, for whatever reason, impossible
(even if no additional dependencies exist), it may be helpful to rebuild the RPM
database using the option --rebuilddb.
9.2.3 RPM and Patches
To guarantee the operational security of a system, update packages must be installed
in the system from time to time. Previously, a bug in a package could only be elimi-
nated by replacing the entire package. Large packages with bugs in small les could
easily result in this scenario. However the SUSE RPM oers a feature enabling the
installation of patches in packages.
The most important considerations are demonstrated using pine as an example:
Is the patch RPM suitable for my system?
To check this, rst query the installed version of the package. For pine, this can
be done with
rpm -q pine
pine-4.44-188
Then check if the patch RPM is suitable for this version of pine:
rpm -qp --basedon pine-4.44-224.i586.patch.rpm
pine = 4.44-188
pine = 4.44-195
pine = 4.44-207
This patch is suitable for three dierent versions of pine. The installed version in
the example is also listed, so the patch can be installed.
Which les are replaced by the patch?
The les aected by a patch can easily be seen in the patch RPM. The rpm param-
eter -P allows selection of special patch features. Display the list of les with the
following command:
122 Start-Up