Set packaging information that will be used when a patch is packaged.

When you use the Software Update Management dialog box for packaging, a separate package must be created for each patch.

The package name and package ID are set automatically. The package name is the file name with a DPT- prefix added and the .exe extension deleted. If the file name without the .exe extension is 47 characters or longer, characters from the 47th character on are deleted. For the package ID, the package name is set. If the package name is 45 characters or longer, characters from the 45th character on are deleted.

To set package information, you must navigate to the Packaging Settings page from the Software Update Management dialog box.

To display the Packaging Settings page:

1. Click the Setup button.
   The Setup dialog box appears.
   
2. Choose the Packaging Settings tab.
   The Packaging Settings page appears.
   

   Figure 7-3 Packaging Settings page

   

The settings on the Packaging Settings page are explained below.

(a) Password for the connection destination for Packager

Password for an administrator user

Specify the password that will enable Packager to connect to the server, as up to 30 bytes.

If you are using the user management feature, specify the password for the database connection that was set during installation of JP1/Software Distribution Manager.

(b) Cabinet name

Select the method used to set the name of the cabinet in which to store a package.

Set automatically from the release date of the software update

Select this option if you want the cabinet name to be set automatically.

The cabinet name is set as a series of numeric digits indicating the year and month when the patch was released by Microsoft. For example, if the patch release date was March 2007, the cabinet name would be set to 200703.

Specify a value

Select this option if you want to specify a cabinet name of your choosing.

A cabinet name will be specified as from 1 to 32 bytes. Note that neither the space nor any of the following characters can be used:

\ / * " : ;

(c) Cabinet ID

Select the method used to set the cabinet ID of the cabinet in which a package will be stored.

Set automatically from the release date of the software update

Select this option if you want the cabinet ID to be set automatically.

The cabinet ID is set as combination of a numeric digit and an alphabetic character indicating when the patch was released by Microsoft. The digit is the last digit of the year, and the character indicates the month, with January to December represented by the letters A to L, respectively. For example, if the patch release date was March 2007, the cabinet ID would be set to 7C. The default is that this option is selected.

Specify a value

Select this option if you want to specify a cabinet ID of your choosing.

Specify the cabinet ID with two alphanumeric characters.

If you specify a cabinet ID that already exists, the created package will be stored in the existing cabinet. In such a case, the cabinet name specified on the Packaging Settings page is displayed in the software update management window.

(d) Package version/revision

Select the method used to set the package version and revision numbers.

Set automatically from the release date of the software update

Select this option if you want the version/revision of the downloaded patch's executable file to be set automatically. The default is that this item is selected. If acquisition of the executable file's version/revision fails, 0000 will be set.

Specify a value

Select this method if you want to specify a version/revision of your choosing.

For each of the version and revisions numbers, you can specify from 1 to 6 bytes of alphanumeric characters, with the version number and the revision number separated by a slash (/). The default is 0.

(e) Package generation number

Specify the package generation number.

Generation number

Specify the package generation number as from 1 to 4 bytes of alphanumeric characters. The default is 0.

To package a downloaded patch, select in the List of software updates the check box for the desired patch and click the Package button. You can select multiple patches at the same time. If you select a patch that has not been downloaded yet and click the Package button, that patch will be downloaded and then packaged.

When you first start the computer, you must start Packager and log into the system before you can click the Package button to perform packaging. Once you have logged into the system, you can quit Packager at any time.

When packaging of patches begins, a dialog box is displayed showing the packaging status. As packaging progresses, packages are created in order on the basis of the settings made on the Packaging Settings page. To interrupt packaging, click the Cancel button. When the current packaging is completed, processing terminates without performing any more packaging. If the cabinet contains a package with the same name, that package is not created, but packaging processing continues.

Once packaging is completed, a dialog box is displayed showing the packaging results.

When packaging of a patch is completed, the package is stored in the specified cabinet. The package includes the script file needed to install the patch. The contents of a script file are explained below. The settings can be changed as necessary.

• Silent installation
  This setting specifies that the installation dialog box is not displayed during patch installation. In addition, the dialog box indicating that remote installation is underway is also not to be displayed.
  
• Suppression of program restart
  This setting specifies that the client is not restarted when package distribution is completed. If you want the client to be restarted automatically after patch installation, select the Restart computer after installation check box in the package settings and then distribute the packages.
  
• Deleting the patch executable file after installation
  This setting specifies that when patch installation at a client is completed, the patch executable file is deleted.
  

The installation destination directory is set in the package to C:\NETMDMWK_DPT. A script file has been specified in an external program to be started after installation. For this reason, a patch can be installed at clients by distributing the package without special settings.

Before distributing a patch, you can create a host group of only those clients at which the patch has not yet been installed, so that you don't expend resources on distributing the patch to clients at which it has already been installed. The following explains the procedure for creating a group of clients to which a patch is to be distributed.

1. Acquire patch information from clients.
2. Use Inventory Viewer to determine the application status of the patch you wish to distribute.
   Determine the clients at which the patch has not been installed.
   
3. Create a host group of clients at which the patch has not been installed.
   You can use the count results in Inventory Viewer to create a host group.
   
4. Distribute the patch to the host group you created.

Once there is a buildup of patches whose packaging and distribution to clients has been completed, Hitachi recommends that you delete patches once you have determined that they are no longer needed, to free up space in the database.