Software distribution: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 10:00, 21 December 2024

Revision as of 10:02, 21 December 2024

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{{Short description|Process of delivering software to the end user}}

{{About|the distribution of software|collections of software components|Software distro|and|Distro (disambiguation){{!}}Distro}}

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'''Software distribution''' is the process of delivering software to the end user.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vEHe8PdtMKwC&dq=%22Software+distribution+is%22&pg=PA281 |title=Beyond computing and connectivity: Where is communications technology taking US? ; Proceedings of the 4th Annual Connectivity and Technology Symposium ; January 1993, Center for Connectivity & Data Bases, West Chester University |date=1993 |publisher=DIANE Publishing |isbn=978-1-56806-279-2 |language=en}}</ref>

A '''distro''' is a collection of [[software component]]s built, assembled and configured so that it can essentially be used "as is". It is often the closest thing to [[turnkey]] form of [[free software]]. A distro may take the form of a ''binary distribution'', with an [[executable]] installer which can be downloaded from the [[Internet]]. Examples range from whole operating system distributions to [[Server (computing)|server]] and [[interpreter (computer science)|interpreter]] distributions (for example [[WAMP]] installers). ''Software distribution'' can also refer to [[careware]] and [[donateware]].

In recent years, the term has come to refer to nearly any "finished" software (i.e. something that is more or less ready for its intended use, whether as a complete system or a component of a larger system) that is assembled primarily from open source components.

==Examples of distros==

Examples of software distributions include [[Berkeley Software Distribution|BSD-based distro]] [[Comparison of BSD operating systems|descendants]] (such as [[FreeBSD]], [[NetBSD]], [[OpenBSD]], and [[DragonflyBSD]])<ref>{{Cite web |last=Proven |first=Liam |date=6 January 2023 |title=Fancy a quick tour of DragonFly BSD 6.4? |url=https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/06/dragonfly_bsd_6_4/ |access-date=28 October 2024 |website=The Register}}</ref> and [[Linux distribution|Linux-based distro]]s (such as [[openSUSE]], [[Debian]], and [[Fedora (operating system)|Fedora]]).

==Distro support==

Technical support is a key issue for end-users of distributions, since the distribution itself is typically free and may not be "owned" in a commercial sense by a vendor. Depending on the distribution, support may be provided by a commercial support vendor, the developers who created the distribution or by the user community itself.

==Free software distribution tools==

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