OpenSuSE build service and thenon-distro projects.
●

What is a “non-distro project”?
– too small or unknown to be included in major

distros. example: peless●

you are trying to get your project into the major distros.

– or– can not be included in major distros for legal

reasons. example Mplayer, mp3 players.
●

Sometimes the distros feature a “crippled” version, but
you want to supply an original version. (packman)

Things are complicated.
●

They say all you need to do is:– ./configure– make– make install●

What about dependencies?
– -devel packages needed to make ./configure, makework.

-devel packages.
●

●
●

●

different sets of -devel packages are needed for
different distros.
They have different names.
you can not tell your users to navigate thesewaters. Joe Sixpack will never make it.
So the project developer gets seduced into
becoming a packager!

Being a packager is a nightmare!
●●you need a build host for every platform =distro/architecture combination!
you need to create repositories for eachplatform!

●

you need to be a master of RPM spec files.

●

debian packages are completely different!

●

you need to know the dependencies of yourpackage for every platform!

Open SuSE build service solves
some of these problems.
●

●

●

●

You don't need no skinken' build hosts! (Theyare part of the build service.)
The repositories are created and published bythe build service.
You still need to be a master of RPM and/or
debian packaging.
You still need to know your build dependencies.

Novel is not the devil!
●●●

just a corporation! You may have heard
otherwise. Water flows downhill, but the leakhas been plugged.
Novel makes many contributions to many
important free software / open source projects.
Those calling for Novell's blood should ask
themselves:– Do you really want there to be only one corporate

Linux Distribution? Does anyone remember the gcc
2.96 fiasco?

The OpenSuSE build service
software has been GPLed!
●●

This means the software can never be coopted
by the “dark side” no matter what else happens!
Documented at:– http://en.opensuse.org/Build_Service

How to use.
●●

●Big corporations will want to have their own
instance of the OBS.
Small developers will just want to use
OpenSuSE's version.
follow the steps in:– http://en.opensuse.org/Build_Service_Tutorial

Apply for an account.
●Get a wiki login.

●

Fill in form to apply for account.
– tell them about the free software projects you wantto package.

●follow the directions to create your package.
– upload you tar ball, patches and .spec file.

●

check the log file for any platforms that fail tobuild. Edit the .spec file as needed. Iterate,
when all platforms build successfully, you aredone.

Open SuSE build service will
expose bugs in you spec file.
●It will try to build under a minimal system with
only those dependencies mentioned in yourspec file. Thus it will find missing dependencies
that you never thought about or knew you wereusing.

Web interface for your package.
●

The opensuse build service search page:– http://software.opensuse.org/search

●
●

●

●

will search for your package for all distros.
You can search for your project with “All”
distros. Then “Permanent link to this result”.
Put the URL of the result into your project's own
home page!
This gives you a link to RPMs for all
distros/architectures.

I believe that Sites like Packman
should have their own instance ofOpen SuSE build service.
●

They host some packages that can not be put
on Novell's OBS for legal reasons!