Creating a "Software Update"

[twyg]

Hello all,

I was just wondering if anyone has experience creating a package file (installer) that will then be usable via our Software Update server.

I've found the location of where all the repositories are, the .dist files, as well as the index.sucatalog, but would like someone to help bounce some questions off of.

My goal here is to use Software Update as a mechanism to "ride" installs into the computer vs. ARD. Apple has done a lot of the heavy lifting that used to be manually scripted in an installer, and their Software Update tool has a lot of features I'd like to use as a foundation.

For example, when a software update is tagged as requiring a restart the client downloads the update in the background, and when the user is ready to update they are prompted to restart the computer. When they click restart the computer is dropped into a UI that shows only a progress bar, and the computer can "focus" with out the user needing to help the machine along. This is the type of install I'm looking for, and it's something that Apple's got finely tuned.

Anyone out there able to help?
Thanks,
John "twyg"

[ElDiabloConCaca]

Software Update and the Software Update service only do Apple-specific software.

As far as I know, there isn't a way to "hack" the Software Update service to allow you to use it to install software that did not originate from Apple.

You can use the regular Installer service with pkg or mpkg files to facilitate a software install of custom software (or non-Apple software). The installer can be as interactive or as automatic as you like, depending on how you configure your installer options.

[twyg]

Hey there ElDiablo,

The issue I had with the Package Maker is getting it to restart the computer post install, or better yet, get the system into an "isolated" mode. I know I can post a message to the user, but those oft go ignored.

I'll keep sifting around, I know what I'm doing is certainly not asked often, so I figured I'd stop back in to see if I could find interest in a strange request.

[ElDiabloConCaca]

Yeah, that "isolation" mode you speak of is something new to Leopard (and, hence, Snow Leopard) and I've only ever seen it used with Apple-official updates.