Welcome to the Install Tools section of the Red Hat Developer Network.
Packages are archives of binary and source files of an application.
They also include meta-information about the package itself so the user is able to build, install, query, verify, update, and uninstall applications while remaining in complete control of what is on there system at any time. RPM stands for RPM Package Manager. It is a program that enables the installation, upgrading and removal of packages. Packages are files that contain software, and are written in a particular format that enables the software to be easily installed and removed. RPM is the first and most widely used automated install and package management system for Linux.