bffcreate Command

Commands Reference, Volume 1

bffcreate Command

Purpose

Creates installation image files in backup format.

Syntax

bffcreate [ -q ] [ -S ] [ -v ] [ -X ] [ -d Device ] [ -t SaveDir ] [ -w Directory ] { -l | PackageName [ Level ] ... | -f ListFile | all }

Description

The bffcreate command creates an installation image file in backup file format (bff) to support software installation operations.

The bffcreate command creates an installation image file from an installation image file on the specified installation media. Also, it automatically creates an installation image file from hyptertext images (such as those on the AIX documentation CD-ROMs). The installp command can use the newly created installation file to install software onto the system. The file is created in backup format and saved to the directory specified by SaveDir. The .toc file in the directory specified by the SaveDir parameter is updated to include an entry for the image file.

The bffcreate command determines the bff name according to this information:

Image Type	Target bff Name
Installation image	package.v.r.m.f.I
3.1 update	package.v.r.m.f.service #
3.2 update	package.v.r.m.f.ptf
*4.X update	fileset.part.v.r.m.f.U

*4.X updates contain one and only one fileset. In addition, Version 4 updates do not contain ptf ids.

package = the name of the software package as described by the PackageName parameter

v.r.m.f = version.release.modification.fix, the level associated with the software package. The PackageName is usually not the same as the fileset name.

ptf = program temporary fix ID (also known as FixID)

The installation image file name has the form Package.Level.I. The Package is the name of the software package, as described for the PackageName parameter. Level has the format of v.r.m.f, where v = version, r = release, m = modification, f = fix. The I extension means that the image is an installation image rather than an update image.

Update image files containing an AIX 3.1 formatted update have a service number extension following the level. The Servicenum parameter can be up to 4 digits in length. One example is xlccmp.3.1.5.0.1234.

Update image files containing an AIX 3.2 formatted update have a ptf extension following the level. One example is bosnet.3.2.0.0.U412345.

AIX Version 4 update image file names begin with the fileset name, not the PackageName. They also have U extensions to indicate that they are indeed update image files, not installation images. One example of an update image file is bos.rte.install.4.3.2.0.U.

The all keyword indicates that installation image files are created for every installable software package on the device.

You can extract a single update image with the AIX Version 4 bffcreate command. Then you must specify the fileset name and the v.r.m.f. parameter. As in example 3 in the Examples section, the PackageName parameter must be the entire fileset name, bos.net.tcp.client, not just bos.net.

Attention: Be careful when selecting the target directory for the extracted images, especially if that directory already contains installable images. If a fileset at a particular level exists as both an installation image and as an update image in the same directory, unexpected installation results can occur. In cases like this, installp selects the image it finds first in the table of contents (.toc) file. The image it selects may not be the one you intended and unexpected requisite failures can result. As a rule of thumb, you should extract maintenance levels to clean directories.

Flags

-d Device	Specifies the name of the device where the original image resides. The device can be a CD, tape, diskette, or a directory. If the image is contained on tape, the tape device must be specified as no-rewind-on-close and no-retention-on-open (/dev/rmt.1 for high-density tape and /dev/rmt.5 for low-density tape). The default device is /dev/rfd0**.
-f ListFile	Reads a list of PackageNames and Levels from ListFile. PackageNames, each optionally followed by a level, should appear one per line of text. Any text following the second set of spaces or tabs on a line is ignored.
-l	Lists the Package, Level, Image Type (I for installation images and U for update images), and Part(s) of all packages on the media.
-q	Suppresses the request for media.
-t SaveDir	Specifies the directory where the installation image files are to be created. The bffcreate command creates the specified directory if it does not exist. If the -t flag is not specified, the files are saved in the /usr/sys/inst.images directory.
-v	Writes the name of the backup format file to standard output.
-w Directory	Specifies the directory where a temporary working directory can be created. The bffcreate command creates the specified directory if it does not exist. The default directory is /tmp.
-S	Suppresses multiple volume processing when the installation device is a CD-ROM. Installation from a CD-ROM is always treated as a single volume, even if the CD-ROM contains information for a multiple volume CD set. This same suppression of multiple volume processing is performed if the INU_SINGLE_CD environment is set.
-X	Automatically extends the file system if space is needed.

Security

Access Control: You must have root authority to run this command.

Examples

To create an installation image file from the bos.net software package on the tape in the /dev/rmt0 tape drive and use /var/tmp as the working directory, enter:
```
bffcreate -d /dev/rmt0.1 
-w /var/tmp bos.net
```
To create an installation image file from the package software package on the diskette in the /dev/rfd0 diskette drive and print the name of the installation image file without being prompted, enter:
```
bffcreate -q -v 
package
```
To create a single update image file from the bos.net.tcp.client software package on the CD in /dev/cd0, enter:
```
bffcreate -d 
/dev/cd0 bos.net.tcp.client 4.2.2.1
```
To list the packages on the CD in /dev/cd0, enter:
```
bffcreate -l 
-d /dev/cd0
```
To create installation and/or update images from a CD in /dev/cd0 by specifying a list of PackageNames and Levels in a ListFile called my MyListFile, enter:
```
bffcreate -d /dev/cd0 
-f MyListFile
```

Files

/usr/sbin/bffcreate	Contains the bffcreate command.
/usr/sys/inst.images	Contains files in backup format for use in installing or updating a complete set or subset of software packages.
/usr/sys/inst.images/.toc	The table of contents file for the default directory where a list of installation image files in the directory is maintained.

Related Information

The installp command, inutoc command.