zoerusti01

At its most basic level, Package Management Systems are a form of software management or software gestionale. In terms of software parlance, package management systems (PMS’s) are collections of software tools which help to automate (and hence, simplify) the process of upgrading, installing, configuring or even removing the programs for a computer system’s OS (operating system) in a way that is reliable and safe as much as possible. The most fundamental duty of a Package Management system is to maintain accurate tables regarding the different software programs on the computer system, their inter dependencies; and finally their versions. This is essential if the system needs to work smoothly because mismatching software can lead to serious glitches in the system, leading to the organization incurring severe losses. In the context of this subject, a package consists of software programs, different applications and the associated date that the system works on. Often, packages will also contain “data about data”, a concept that is denoted by the software term, ‘meta-data’. Typical examples of meta-data include information about the purpose of the software, its vendor, the current version number; and most importantly, a complete list of dependencies that the software needs for proper functioning. It is a Local Package Database that stores this important information, and is usually saved on the system’s secondary memory upon installation. Linux and Unix based systems will typically comprise of numerous (bordering on hundreds) of software packages. Imaginably, in such cases, package management systems become an integral part of the Operating System. Interestingly enough, it is on Package Management Systems or software gestionale that a significant difference between Linux and Unix systems differ: while package management systems are only desirable for Linux and all Linux based systems; in case of Unix or Unix based systems, it is absolutely essential.