Distribution Scripts - Documentation?
Distribution Scripts - Documentation?
- Subject: Distribution Scripts - Documentation?
- From: Mike Fischer <email@hidden>
- Date: Sat, 12 May 2007 22:49:34 +0200
Hi,
I'm currently trying to evaluate if distribution scripts will make
certain things easier in building an installer (meta-)package.
Have I been missing something or is the documentation in this area
really sparse?
I have looked at:
- Software Delivery Guide (<http://developer.apple.com/documentation/
DeveloperTools/Conceptual/SoftwareDistribution/index.html>)
- Installer Release Notes for 10.4 (<http://developer.apple.com/
releasenotes/DeveloperTools/Installer.html>)
But that seems to be it in terms of documentation?
So far I have accumulated some concrete questions that I had hoped
could be answered by reading the appropriate documentation. But I
didn't see the answers to these questions anywhere:
- Is it possible to use distribution scripts in conjunction with a
user-selectable install destination?
I have a distribution package containing several plain packages
(.pkg) which all have IFPkgFlagRelocatable set to Yes. This works
fine in a metapackage (it shows a button to allow the user to select
the destination folder in the "Select Destination" pane after
choosing a destination volume) but it seems to be ignored in the
distribution package.
- Why does the Installer use a resizable window when using
distribution scripts?
The same package built as a plain (Info.plist) metapackage gets a
fixed size window. This is relevant because the Installer uses a
background image which looks bad when stretched. (And it would also
look bad when used in a larger window and fixed to any corner.)
- Would distribution scripts help to require admin authentication
only when it is really needed?
By default the install goes into /Applications so it needs admin
authentication. But non-admin users should be allowed to install into
their home directory (see first question) without being asked for
admin credentials. I am looking at distribution scripts to see if
they can help solve this problem.
- What is the preferred/supported way to test for the processor
architecture (PPC vs. Intel) in a distribution script?
Currently I compare the output of system.sysctl('hw.machine') to
"Power Macintosh" and "i386". But strangely this sysctl selector is
not included in the presets that PackageMaker provides. This make me
wonder if that is the best way to test this. Would testing
system.gestalt('sysa') for result '2' or
'10' (gestaltSysArchitecture is gestaltPowerPC or gestaltIntel) be a
better way to do this?
- Should a dispribution package (.mpkg containing a distribution.dist
file) generate an appropriate error message when opened on a pre 10.4
system? If not, how can I achieve this?
My tests so far seem to indicate, that no error message is presented
to the user on a 10.3.9 system, but that the Installer will launch
without any open window when a distribution package is opened in the
Finder. That is a very bad user experience IMHO and seems to be a
design flaw in the Apple Installer?
Thanks!
Mike
--
Mike Fischer Softwareentwicklung, EDV-Beratung
Schulung, Vertrieb
Web: <http://homepage.mac.com/mike_fischer/index.html>
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