The RPM Package Manager (RPM) is an open-source package management system for the Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), as well as other Linux flavors like Fedora and openSUSE.
RPM helps simplify the process of installing, uninstalling, updating, and managing software packages. With .rpm files, users can download packages from a centralized repository and install them with just a few clicks. Software installed using RPM can later be uninstalled cleanly without touching other software or files, leaving no trace of the application on your system. In addition to the RPM manager itself, .rpm files can also be used with front-end package management utilities such as YUM. Although RPM is a strong choice for individual Linux machines, using RPM alone will cause issues when scaling up to larger deployments. For this reason, it’s wise for larger enterprises to go with a full-scale package management solution like Packagecloud.
So how can Packagecloud enhance your use of RPM?
Large-scale, unified interface
RPM can only perform operations on a single machine or server. Trying to install or uninstall packages across multiple servers is no easy feat. You’ll either need manual, time-consuming, repeated work on each server or in-depth technical knowledge of scripting or automation.
Packagecloud provides a third alternative that is fast, simple, and user-friendly. With Packagecloud, you have a single centralized interface for managing all of your software packages across multiple environments. Each server or machine can run RPM operations independently and automatically.
All your packages, all together
Red Hat and other Linux distributions using RPM (such as Fedora, openSUSE, and CentOS) occupy a healthy share of the market. However, they’re far from the only options available. Highly popular alternatives such as Ubuntu and Debian have their own methods of package management without using RPM: apt for Ubuntu, and dpkg for Debian.
Larger enterprises may run multiple Linux distros within their IT environment. These organizations need a package management solution that can work with highly diverse operating system configurations.Packagecloud allows users to interact with their software repositories in nearly every Linux distribution. What’s more, Packagecloud supports a wide range of programming languages and package types, from Java and Python to Ruby and Node.js. You can all your packages, all together. Including Helm charts.
Support you can depend on
RPM is a free and open-source solution for Linux package management. This has obvious benefits because companies don’t have to pay RPM. However, while RPM has a healthy developer community, businesses may struggle to get prompt assistance with the challenges and technical issues surrounding their use of the tool.
Packagecloud comes with built-in customer support and assistance, including a Slack channel and Twitter account. The Packagecloud service also includes a great deal of documentation for users to easily learn about the platform.
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