CheckInstall

checkinstall is a program that can make packages for gtsvn and other linux machines. This way installed programs are registered in the rpm database, and administrators can easily install, update and uninstall these programs. Checkinstall is used instead of make install to trace which files are installed by that command

Usage/tutorial

We will use vislcg3 as an example on how to use checkinstall

1. Check out vislcg3, and replace sudo make install with sudo checkinstall -R

2. This appears:

   checkinstall 1.6.0, Copyright 2002 Felipe Eduardo Sanchez Diaz Duran
           This software is released under the GNU GPL.
   
   
   The package documentation directory ./doc-pak does not exist.
   Should I create a default set of package docs?  [y]:
   

   Press enter

3. Next is to write a description of the program

   Please write a description for the package.
   End your description with an empty line or EOF.
   >>
   

   Write your description, it should contain the word giellatekno to ease the search for packages installed locally, e.g. giellatekno packaging of vislcg3. Press enter twice.

4. The next step is to change the info for the package:

   1 -  Summary: [ giellatekno packaging of vislcg3 ]
   2 -  Name:    [ src ]
   3 -  Version: [ 20100426 ]
   4 -  Release: [ 1 ]
   5 -  License: [ GPL ]
   6 -  Group:   [ Applications/System ]
   7 -  Architecture: [ i386 ]
   8 -  Source location: [ src ]
   9 -  Alternate source location: [  ]
   10 - Requires: [  ]
   11 - Provides: [ src ]
   
   Enter a number to change any of them or press ENTER to continue:
   

5. Enter 2, and write vislcg3

6. Enter 3, write svn<Revision number>

7. Enter 10, write libicu (which is the library that vislcg3 depends on)

Local changes

The file /usr/local/lib/checkinstall/checkinstallrc is used to customise the behaviour of checkinstall. The line telling telling whether packages should be installed automatically or just created has been changed so that programs are installed immediately.