Rpm Program Installation - Tips

For those who don't know it exists (maybe good for a sticky ?):

To install RPM files with Yast, simply type the following at the command line : yast -i blabla.rpm

Afterwards you can easily remove these packages from within Yast.

If you downloaded source code from a program (tar.gz files) you can quickly make an RPM file from it to install it later on your or another pc (if dependencies are OK).
To do this, first of all install the package checkinstall from the SuSE 9.x dvd (I don't know if it exists on other suse versions)..
Then unpack you source package and cd to the directory where you unpacked the tar.gz file.
Run the following two commands:

./configure
make

But now instead of running make install you run checkinstall.
Answer the questions, edit some values if they are not appropriate and let the program run.
When finished, you'll find your uninstalled RPM in /usr/src/packages/RPMS/i686

Now you can install it where you want with yast - i your_package.rpm or with rpm -i your_package.rpm. This allows you to easily uninstall it afterwards because it's impossible or almost impossible to completely uninstall packages installed from source.

SWEET.

I've been wondering how to do that kind of thing (take source and bump it into an easily installed / uninstalled RPM). This sticky was a lifesaver.

~~ Andrew D.
linuxnoob@wi.rr.com

OK
before I read this post I installed Mozilla 1.6 rpm on suse 9.0 just by clicking on the package

I cannot find any trace i Yast now to uninstall it

what am I gone do now ?

thanks

Just use the search function in the Install and Remove programs module. Of course you must have installed an rpm...other binary installers and installing from source aren't tracked by the rpm database.

Originally posted by Neo@Aug 18 2004, 12:19
(maybe good for a sticky ?)

good for a sticky? yeah right! this post was freakin' awesome! thanks a ton! like you said, installing from source is nearly impossible to catch all the files ( but oh how i love my source ) at least now i can compile it to my own processor instead of using i386.rpms -- i now have i686.rpms hahaha... i shall rule the world with my i686 packages... :lol: well... then again...

thanks for the awesome post ( again )!

That rocks, thanks

I assume all the packages that I have been making are i386 since they are placed in the i386 folder? How would you make i686 packages?

I just created a package for the new Gaim 0.82.1 and when I went to install it via Yast, it said the package size was 42 mb. Isn't that a little large for a program like Gaim? Installing version 0.81 from Guru's site only says 7.8 mb.

I suppose you left the power windows and power door locks options on?

Actually that does seem like a pretty big discrepancy.

ok, i downloaded the checkinstall from the yast ftp and installed it, then followed your instructoins doing ./configure and then make, but when i run checkinstall it says command not found. i know its installed cause i reinstalled it to be sure. any ideas?