Chapter 8. Installing Software Using the RPM Package Manager
This chapter explains the
Red Hat Package Manager (RPM), a tool that facilitates installing,
uninstalling, and upgrading software for your Red Hat Linux system.
The chapter explains how to use RPM to find the package associated
with an application and how to quickly and easily install the
package. It also explains how to use RPM to upgrade packages and
query the status of installed
packages.
An RPM package (or more simply, an RPM or a
package)
is a file that contains executable programs, scripts, documentation,
and other files needed by an application or software unit.
RPM packages are generally named
using a convention that lets you determine the name of the package,
the version of the software, the release number of the software, and
the system architecture for which the application is intended. Figure 8-1 shows how the components of a package name are
arranged.
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