rBuilder Online
From rPath Wiki
rBuilder is the first and only development tool that simplifies and automates the creation of software appliances and virtual appliances. rBuilder combines combines powerful features with innovative packaging techniques to yield a repeatable appliance creation process. Appliance development makes use of rBuilder's project structure to organize appliances and their software, and it employs rBuilder to generate appliance images and to release complete appliance products.
Two rBuilder Environments
rPath provides two rBuilder entities:
- rBuilder Online (rBO) (available at www.rpath.com/rbuilder) is an rPath website where users can find, develop, and share appliances and associated Conary packages in a collaborative environment. Project contents on rBO are considered public and available for anyone to access and use:
- Use the links at the left to step through the rBuilder user guide
- rBuilder Online Appliance-Building Tutorial
- rBuilder Appliance (rBA) is rPath's licensed rBuilder product that can be installed and run on a customer's internal network, behind a firewall. rBA provides appliance-building features while protecting licensed software and other sensitive information. The rBA web interface is similar to rBO and includes many of the same features. rBA also provides command-line interface (CLI) tools to help with further automating tasks:
- rBuilder Appliance user guide | rBuilder Appliance Administration Guide | rBuilder Appliance Release Notes
Appliance Development with rBuilder
rPath recommends developing appliances with rBuilder and rMake together. rMake is a command-line tool used to build software consistently across varied developers' environments. Application to Appliance: A Hands-on Guide introduces the products and steps through rPath's recommended appliance development process.
rBuilder includes a Group Builder feature in its web interface for quick, easy-to-assemble appliances. Though Group Builder is useful for creating a simple appliance image, it is not recommended for professional appliance development work.