Packaging and sending your own software products using System i Navigator
In addition to sending IBM® products from one IBM i system or logical partition to another IBM i system or logical partition, you can also use System i Navigator to package and send your own software products.
Product packaging enables you to make your application programs into a packaged product that is installed and maintained in the same manner as the IBM licensed programs. Once your application has been packaged as a product, you can manage all of the objects for that application as a single entity. Several methods are available that allow you to package your own products:
- Product and package function in System i Navigator
- IBM System Manager for i licensed program
- Software Product APIs
One of the advantages to packaging your application with System i Navigator is that it is part of the IBM i operating system; and therefore, involves no additional cost. With System i Navigator, you can distribute your applications and fixes in the same way that you distribute IBM i licensed programs. You can track your fixes the same way as you track IBM fixes. A product definition contains all the information that you need to send and install a product across multiple systems.
You need to create a product definition before you can package, or convert, your application into a product that your system recognizes as a product. The source system on which you create the product definition is used to manage the product. To package and distribute a product, do the following tasks.
Because the product is installed on the source system, the product is available to be managed. A status of Managed means that the definition can no longer be changed. To make any changes to the product for the current release requires that you generate a fix.
After you have installed the product on the source system, you can generate fixes to that product. For information on how to do this, see Generating fixes for installed products using Management Central.
Detailed task help is available from the System i Navigator window. Click Help from the menu bar and select Help Topics. Select What can I do with . . .? to find out what you can do and where you need to be in the System i Navigator window to make it happen.
What to do next:
After you package and send your own software products, send your fixes that you have generated. For specific information, see Sending and installing fixes.