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Quick Start Guide

Genuitec’s Secure Delivery Center (SDC) is a software distribution manager that assists administrators in providing software to various groups in their organization with little to no intervention by end users. This guide provides instructions on getting Secure Delivery Center up and running so you can begin distributing software to your users. You will learn the general lifecycle steps for delivering software with SDC:

  • Get your software
  • Create a new package
  • Try out your local changes
  • Commit local changes
  • Promote committed changes
  • Roll out via the portal

1. Start with Success

Whether you’re evaluating Secure Delivery Center or you’ve already recognized how SDC can meet your software delivery needs, we want you to have a successful experience. Genuitec offers the Succeed with SDC program that provides you with help to get up and going with SDC.

By joining the Succeed with SDC opt-in program, you receive a credit for a Success Consultation during evaluation and a second credit on purchase.* Each Success Consultation credit entitles you to a 60-minute phone call with a consultation expert who will help you get the most from SDC.


Succeed with SDC opt-in

In return for Success Consultation credits, we ask for a tiny bit of anonymous data about how you use SDC. This will help us make SDC even better! We would receive information in an XML file such as:

  • Overall total SDC usage
  • Admin Console usage (last 30 days)
  • Number of packages installed and used (last 30 days)
  • Number of package commits and promotes (last 30 days)
  • Number of support tickets submitted and closed (last 30 days)

On the Succeed with SDC opt-in window, you can click the Show me what you’ll send link to view how submitted information appears. Change program settings on the System page, Succeed with SDC tab.

*Customers purchasing SDC after May 11, 2014 will receive Success Consultation credits based on the size of license purchased. Existing customers can opt in to receive a free Success Consultation credit.

2. Install Secure Delivery Center

To run SDC, you must first install the SDC delivery hub (server) software and the Admin Console. If you want to deliver complete, custom IDEs, you must also install the software packs you want to distribute to your users. Software packs represent the software you are distributing. The software pack is not a stand-alone, installable version, rather it contains the pieces required to build an end-user installer based on packages you create using the Admin Console. If you want to deliver only secure software catalogs to your existing Eclipse-based installations (on-demand delivery), you are not required to install software packs. See the Secure Delivery Center Installation Guide for more information on installation requirements.

2.1 Enabling a License Key

To use SDC to its full extent, you are required to provide a license key, either a temporary trial license key or a purchased license key. You need a key for Secure Delivery Center and for the software you want to distribute. After you install the delivery hub (server) software, the Admin Console and the packs, log into the Admin Console to provide license keys. To acquire an evaluation license, select System under Administration in the Admin Console navigation. Click request_license_icon on the License tab to request an evaluation or replacement license. Or, click the link in the Notifications section to acquire an evaluation license. The license key information is provided to you in the form of a .licensepack file. See Managing Licenses.

3. Create a Package

Two types of packages can be managed using SDC. First, a secure IDE software package allows you to tailor and deliver complete Eclipse or MyEclipse IDEs, including security policy enforcement, add-on software, and other customizations. An admin installs MyEclipse or Eclipse IDE software obtained from Genuitec, as well as add-on software, onto the secure hub. From there, complete custom IDEs and secure catalogs are created, maintained, and delivered to end users.

Second, On-Demand Delivery packages allow you to deliver Secure Marketplace catalogs and/or security policy enforcement to existing Eclipse-based IDE installations. The Eclipse-based IDE is obtained from an outside source and installed apart from using SDC. An admin installs add-on software onto the secure hub and delivers Secure Marketplace catalogs of tested and approved software, as well as security policies, to Eclipse users.

3.1 Creating a Secure IDE Software Package

Creating a package involves several decisions based on the requirements of your target users, or delivery groups. You must choose the software, the add-on components, the security and access policies, workspace configuration defaults, etc. to tailor your package to fit the needs of your users. When you first generate a package, many of these settings are defaulted for you.

The example below demonstrates the basics of creating an Eclipse package. The steps for creating a MyEclipse package are similar. See the Packages Learning Center for documents on creating the various types of packages.

  1. In the Secure Packages list in the Admin Console navigation, click Eclipse IDE Packages.


    Creating an Eclipse IDE package

    The software package list appears. This page displays usage information – a usage trend graph, versions being used, and general usage statistics.


    Software packages list

  2. Click addIcon in the Packages section.
    1. Enter a title for the package. This title will be displayed on the portal web page if you choose to use that method for distributing software. Choose one or more delivery groups for the package. If no groups are selected, the package appears on the portal home page, if using the default access policy. Click Next.


      Naming the new package

    2. Select the base Eclipse package, and click Next.


      Selecting the base Eclipse package

    The Package Details page opens to the Overview tab. The status of capabilities that can be defined for the package displays in the Capabilities section. The first four are set up by default. You can tailor these to fit your needs by clicking the Configuration tab or the corresponding items in the Admin Console navigation. You can also view usage metrics for this package.

      Note: You can choose to deliver a custom Eclipse RCP product by selecting the RCP Delivery checkbox. This adds an RCP Product tab to the package setup. See Creating an RCP Product Package for more information.


      Package overview

      At this point, the package is created with default access, environment, and security policies.

      3.2 Adding an On-Demand Package

      Creating a package involves several decisions based on the requirements of your target users, or delivery groups. You must choose the add-on components, the security and access policies, workspace configuration defaults, etc. to tailor your package to fit the needs of your users. When you first generate a package, many of these settings are defaulted for you.

      1. In the Secure Packages list in the Admin Console navigation, click On-Demand Secure Delivery. The software details page appears displaying packages you have created for the selected software, if any.


        Selecting on-demand delivery

      2. Click addIcon on the Packages section.
      3. Enter a title for the package. The title will be displayed on the included portal web page, if you choose to use that method for distributing software. Any groups that are set up appear in the Groups list. You can select one or more target groups for this package. See Configuring Delivery Groups. Click Next.


        Naming the new package

      4. Select a Secure Marketplace catalog to associate with the package.


        Selecting a marketplace catalog

        The package opens to the Overview tab.


        Package overview

      At this point, the package is created with default access, security, and environmental policies.

      4. Try Out Your Local Changes

      As you put a package together, you can test the package before making it available to end users. You can change the software you include, for example, and test the installer you build until you are satisfied that it is ready for rollout.

      Note: On-demand delivery packages don’t generate installers; therefore, you don’t need to test installation.

      1. Click the Testing tab.


        Verifying, building, and installing for testing purposes
      2. Click Verify to validate the software you included with your package, confirming compatibility.
      3. Click Build to build an installer for the package you created. This is a local network-based installer you use for testing your build.
      4. Click Install to install the build by following the prompts in the Installation wizard.

      This is the point at which you test the software installation, make changes to the package, if necessary, and verify and build again.

      5. Commit Local Changes

      Committing changes indicates you are happy with the package and the corresponding installer, if applicable. Committing saves the package to the SDC hub so other administrators can access it in their Admin Console. Committing also archives your work. You can view and restore archives from the Timeline tab.

      1. Click the Modified locally notification in the Notifications section.

        Note: You can click the local changes Details button at the top right corner to commit/promote at any point after the package is created.


        Local changes ready to commit

      2. Select the package you want to commit, and click Commit Changes. If you have previously committed changes and want to revert to the latest version on the hub, click Revert Changes.

      6. Promote Committed Changes

      Promoting package changes makes software available to your users. The first time you promote a software package, SDC builds installers for users. The package configuration, i.e. the access policy, determines if it is available as a bundled or network-based installer, and if it is available from the included software portal web page.

      1. After changes have been committed, click the Promotable Changes notification in the Notifications section to open the Promotable Items page.


        Promotable items

      2. Select the item you want to promote, and click Promote Changes. Promoting a new software package triggers SDC to build either a network-based or bundled installer or both, depending on the configuration of the access policy chosen for the package. When promoting software updates, you can choose to either build new installers at the time of promotion, or postpone building updated installers.

      The Timeline tab allows you to track the promotion state of a package. You can see which installers are available and if they are up to date, and you can view statistics on when a package was last promoted.


      Timeline tab showing the live package and up-to-date installers

      7. Access Promoted Packages

      After a software package is promoted and installers built, it is available for your users to install. It appears on the portal web page if you choose to use this method of delivery. The Timeline tab for the package in the Admin Console displays the promotion status and provides a link to access the portal page. As an alternative, you might have your own method of delivery in place that provides your users with a link to either a network-based installer or a bundled installer. On the Timeline tab, select an installer, and click copy_url_icon to copy the installer file’s URL to the clipboard so you can notify your users of the installer location.

      sdc17portalhomesmall
      Portal page displaying promoted software

      For on-demand delivery packages, users can access the URL for the update site and add it to their Eclipse installation.

      on-demand-portal
      Drag-to-install enabled and update site path for adding to Eclipse

      Now that you’ve seen the basics of delivering software, take a look at the Packages Learning Center for documents on customizing packages.