What's ze-easy-install ? It's, as we can understand, a easy way to install and upgrade ze-filter. It's a replacement to binary packages, such as *.deb, *.rpm and so.

ze-easy-install is it better than yum, pkgadd and similar tools ? Yes !!! In fact, it's impossible to create packages for every operating system and every release/flavour of each operating system. ze-easy-install is a common solution to all OSs and OSs versions. When you launch ze-easy-install, it grabs the last release of the filter in the distribution server, configures it with the same options used in the last configure run, compiles it and install it with just a single command line. After everything is done, it shows you some of the configuration changes between the old installed version and the new one. For the mail administrator point of view, it's the same as typing yum upgrade ze-filter (if he could do so).

ze-easy-install is a perl script which will execute a sequence of actions, usually done when trivially installing/upgrading the filter :

1. Check the distribution server for the current stable and snapshot version
2. Get the last one - you can choose if you want a stable of snapshot version
3. Configure and compile the new version using the same configuration options from the last run
4. Stop the filter
5. Execute pre install actions : dump data from databases, save data tables (not yet implemented), …
6. Install new software
7. Execute post install actions : restore databases from previously dumped data, update data tables with default data (not yet implemented).
8. Restart the filter
9. Do trivial checks on configuration files, such as, removed and new options, missing MTA configuration options (macros, …).

If you use any option different from default ones, you can define them at the configuration file : /etc/ze-easy-install.conf. The easiest way to create it is to launch the command :

# ze-easy-install setup > /etc/ze-easy-install.conf

This will create a complete default configuration file. You can now edit it and make the changes you want.

# ze-easy-install [force] install (stable|snapshot)

These options are trivial.

• If the already installed version is the same or newer than the proposed new one, the script will refuse to install it unless you use the force option.
• You can choose among the last stable or the last snapshot (development) version.
• install grabs the last wanted source code, configure, compile and install it.

# ze-easy-install [force] upgrade (stable|snapshot)

The difference between install and upgrade is the way the new release will be installed. The script will execute pre-install (stop the filter, dump databases, …) and post-install actions (restore databases, update some configuration files, restart the filter, …).

# ze-easy-install [force] compile (stable|snapshot)

Here, the ze-easy-install will just grab the new version, configure and compile without installing it. Useful if, for some reason, you want to install the software by hand.

# ze-easy-install clean (src|build|all)

This is useful after installing the filter, to remove all build directories…

# ************************************************************
#
# Package installer configuration
#
# ************************************************************
#
#tar           /usr/local/gnu/bin/tar
#
#wget          /usr/bin/wget
#
#SrcDir        /var/src/ze-filter
#
#VersionsURL   http://foss.jose-marcio.org/VERSIONS
#
#RCPath        /etc/init.d/ze-filter
#
#
# ************************************************************
#
# Filter configuration
#
# ************************************************************
#
# These options control how the configure script is launched.
#
# If these options aren't defined or if their definitions are
# empty, then default configure options are used.
#
# You shall understand what you're doing if you want to
# set this options to something different from default ones.
#
# Lauch "configure --help" to check default options.
#
prefix        
User
Group
WorkDir       
GreyDir       
SpoolDir      
ConfDir       
RcDir         
#

Here or inside tools directory of ze-filter tarball.

• Be able to define a sequence of pre/post install actions, other than stopping/restarting the filter.