Software Directory Management


The software directory management feature (see Figure 6.18, shown just a bit later) is a powerful tool. A Software Distribution Directory object represents a directory on a file server that contains GroupWise software. These objects can be assigned to post offices, but each post office can be assigned to only one Software Distribution Directory.

Figure 6.18. Defining a Software Distribution Directory


Your scheme for managing software distribution directories can have a huge impact on your successful rollout of the GroupWise client, or on upgrading the GroupWise client. Chapter 12, "Administering the GroupWise Client," goes into a significant amount of detail on leveraging the software distribution directories to your advantage.

There are several things you might want to do with software distribution directories as part of your GroupWise administration:

  • Create a new directory

  • Move an existing directory to a new path

  • Patch or update an existing directory

  • Delete an existing directory

Creating a Software Distribution Directory is straightforward. Chapter 12 will give you a better understanding as to why you should create a Software Distribution Directory.

Creating New Software Distribution Directories

Clicking the Create button from the Software Distribution Directory Management window results in the dialog box shown in Figure 6.18. Software distribution directories describe a directory that typically exists. When you first installed GroupWise 7, you most likely established a Software Distribution Directory (SDD). The purpose for defining an SDD is to associate the SDD to post offices so that the users of that post office can update their GroupWise clients when upgrades happen.

The following are the fields you fill in when defining a Software Distribution Directory:

  • Name: You must assign a unique name to each Software Distribution Directory object. You might choose to name the object based on the server on which it will reside.

  • Description: This optional field can be populated with the name and number of the individual responsible for maintaining the software in this directory. Input a detailed description. This description is used when assigning a Software Distribution Directory to a GroupWise post office.

  • UNC Path: This is the path to the directory. If a drive has been mapped already, you can browse to the directory. The field will be populated with a drive-based path, but when you click OK, GroupWise administrator converts that path to UNC format.

  • AppleTalk Path: Only users of the GroupWise 5.2 Macintosh client who cannot browse to UNC paths will use this optional path.

  • Linux Path: This is the path to a Software Distribution Directory on a Linux server. This should not be a UNC path from a SAMBA mount. This should be a path such as /data/gw70sdd.

  • Copy Software From: If you check this box, you're indicating that you want to populate the UNC path that you specified from another Software Distribution Directory. If you do not already have a GroupWise 7 Software Distribution Directory, run SETUP.EXE from the GroupWise 7 Administration CD to create one.

Note

The process responsible for this copy operation is ConsoleOne, running on your workstation. It might not be wise to use this feature to populate software distribution directories across a wide area network (WAN). In these cases, you should not use the Copy software from this feature. Instead, have someone local to that server manually copy the GroupWise 7 Admin & Client software from CDs into the directory you specified.


Editing or Moving Existing Directories

Moving a Software Distribution Directory is simple, and is accomplished by following these two steps:

1.

Using Explorer or a command prompt, move or copy the software from the current location to the new location.

2.

Edit your existing Software Distribution Directory and change the UNC Path field and the Name field, if needed.

Note

Be careful about editing SDDs; this causes a number called the bump number to be incremented on all post offices that point to this defined SDD. This could cause users to start receiving prompts that there is new GroupWise software available. You'll find more about this subject in Chapter 12.


Deleting Existing Directories

The Software Distribution Directory Management window can be used to delete the SDD object, but the directory itself must be deleted manually. This action prevents accidental deletion of software in cases in which SDD objects share physical directories.

Patching or Updating Existing Directories

The Update tool (shown in Figure 6.19) is used only after a patch or an upgrade has been applied to an SDD somewhere on the system. For instructions regarding applying patches, refer to the readme file or files associated with that particular patch.

Figure 6.19. The Update Software Distribution Directory dialog box


After one directory on the system has been updated, you can use this interface to copy the updated files from the updated directory to other directories.

Note

Again, be careful about using this to distribute software across the WAN. It is probably a wiser use of bandwidth to patch or update a remote SDD while on location.


The Force Auto-Update Check by GroupWise Components check box exists to alert the GroupWise client that new software is available. When you check this box and click OK, the new software bump number associated with this SDD is incremented by one. Therefore, this is not something to be undertaken lightly! Every GroupWise client that attaches to any post office assigned to this SDD must browse to the UNC path and determine whether the code in the directory is newer than the code on the user's workstation. If the UNC path is not available (that is, the user has no rights to the directory), and SETUPIP is not configured, an error will be reported.

This subject, along with SETUPIP, is covered in Chapter 12.



NOVELL GroupWise 7 Administrator Solutions Guide
Novell GroupWise 7 Administrator Solutions Guide
ISBN: 0672327880
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 320
Authors: Tay Kratzer

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