package resource

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Use the package resource to manage packages. When the package is installed from a local file (such as with RubyGems, dpkg, or RPM Package Manager), the file must be added to the node using the remote_file or cookbook_file resources.

This resource is the base resource for several other resources used for package management on specific platforms. While it is possible to use each of these specific resources, it is recommended to use the package resource as often as possible.

For more information about specific resources for specific platforms, see the following topics:

• apt_package
• bff_package
• cab_package
• chef_gem
• chocolatey_package
• dnf_package
• dpkg_package
• freebsd_package
• gem_package
• homebrew_package
• ips_package
• macports_package
• openbsd_package
• pacman_package
• paludis_package
• portage_package
• rpm_package
• smartos_package
• solaris_package
• windows_package
• yum_package
• zypper_package

Syntax

A package resource block manages a package on a node, typically by installing it. The simplest use of the package resource is:

package 'httpd'

which will install Apache using all of the default options and the default action (:install).

For a package that has different package names, depending on the platform, use a case statement within the package:

package 'Install Apache' do
  case node[:platform]
  when 'redhat', 'centos'
    package_name 'httpd'
  when 'ubuntu', 'debian'
    package_name 'apache2'
  end
end

where 'redhat', 'centos' will install Apache using the httpd package and 'ubuntu', 'debian' will install it using the apache2 package

The full syntax for all of the properties that are available to the package resource is:

package 'name' do
  allow_downgrade            true, false # Yum, RPM packages only
  arch                       String, Array # Yum packages only
  default_release            String # Apt packages only
  flush_cache                Array
  gem_binary                 String
  homebrew_user              String, Integer # Homebrew packages only
  notifies                   # see description
  options                    String
  package_name               String, Array # defaults to 'name' if not specified
  response_file              String # Apt packages only
  response_file_variables    Hash # Apt packages only
  source                     String
  subscribes                 # see description
  timeout                    String, Integer
  version                    String, Array
  action                     Symbol # defaults to :install if not specified
end

where:

• package tells the chef-client to manage a package; the chef-client will determine the correct package provider to use based on the platform running on the node
• 'name' is the name of the package
• action identifies which steps the chef-client will take to bring the node into the desired state
• allow_downgrade, arch, default_release, flush_cache, gem_binary, homebrew_user, options, package_name, response_file, response_file_variables, source, recursive, timeout, and version are properties of this resource, with the Ruby type shown. See “Properties” section below for more information about all of the properties that may be used with this resource.

Gem Package Options

The RubyGems package provider attempts to use the RubyGems API to install gems without spawning a new process, whenever possible. A gems command to install will be spawned under the following conditions:

• When a gem_binary property is specified (as a hash, a string, or by a .gemrc file), the chef-client will run that command to examine its environment settings and then again to install the gem.
• When install options are specified as a string, the chef-client will span a gems command with those options when installing the gem.
• The Chef installer will search the PATH for a gem command rather than defaulting to the current gem environment. As part of enforce_path_sanity, the bin directories area added to the PATH, which means when there are no other proceeding RubyGems, the installation will still be operated against it.

Warning

Gem package options should only be used when gems are installed into the system-wide instance of Ruby, and not the instance of Ruby dedicated to the chef-client.

Specify with Hash

If an explicit gem_binary parameter is not being used with the gem_package resource, it is preferable to provide the install options as a hash. This approach allows the provider to install the gem without needing to spawn an external gem process.

The following RubyGems options are available for inclusion within a hash and are passed to the RubyGems DependencyInstaller:

• :env_shebang
• :force
• :format_executable
• :ignore_dependencies
• :prerelease
• :security_policy
• :wrappers

For more information about these options, see the RubyGems documentation: http://rubygems.rubyforge.org/rubygems-update/Gem/DependencyInstaller.html.

Example

gem_package 'bundler' do
  options(:prerelease => true, :format_executable => false)
end

Specify with String

When using an explicit gem_binary, options must be passed as a string. When not using an explicit gem_binary, the chef-client is forced to spawn a gems process to install the gems (which uses more system resources) when options are passed as a string. String options are passed verbatim to the gems command and should be specified just as if they were passed on a command line. For example, --prerelease for a pre-release gem.

Example

gem_package 'nokogiri' do
  gem_binary('/opt/ree/bin/gem')
  options('--prerelease --no-format-executable')
end

Specify with .gemrc File

Options can be specified in a .gemrc file. By default the gem_package resource will use the Ruby interface to install gems which will ignore the .gemrc file. The gem_package resource can be forced to use the gems command instead (and to read the .gemrc file) by adding the gem_binary attribute to a code block.

Example

A template named gemrc.erb is located in a cookbook’s /templates directory:

:sources:
- http://<%= node['gem_file']['host'] %>:<%= node['gem_file']['port'] %>/

A recipe can be built that does the following:

• Builds a .gemrc file based on a gemrc.erb template
• Runs a Gem.configuration command
• Installs a package using the .gemrc file

template '/root/.gemrc' do
  source 'gemrc.erb'
  action :create
  notifies :run, 'ruby_block[refresh_gemrc]', :immediately
end

ruby_block 'refresh_gemrc' do
  action :nothing
  block do
    Gem.configuration = Gem::ConfigFile.new []
  end
end

gem_package 'di-ruby-lvm' do
  gem_binary '/opt/chef/embedded/bin/gem'
  action :install
end

Actions

This resource has the following actions:

:install

Default. Install a package. If a version is specified, install the specified version of the package.

:nothing

Define this resource block to do nothing until notified by another resource to take action. When this resource is notified, this resource block is either run immediately or it is queued up to be run at the end of the Chef Client run.

:purge

Purge a package. This action typically removes the configuration files as well as the package. (Debian platform only; for other platforms, use the :remove action.)

:reconfig

Reconfigure a package. This action requires a response file.

:remove

Remove a package.

:upgrade

Install a package and/or ensure that a package is the latest version.

Properties

This resource has the following attributes:

allow_downgrade

Ruby Type: true, false | Default Value: false

yum_package resource only. Downgrade a package to satisfy requested version requirements.

arch

Ruby Type: String, Array

yum_package resource only. The architecture of the package to be installed or upgraded. This value can also be passed as part of the package name.

default_release

Ruby Type: String

apt_package resource only. The default release. For example: stable.

flush_cache

Ruby Type: Array

Flush the in-memory cache before or after a Yum operation that installs, upgrades, or removes a package. Default value: [ :before, :after ]. The value may also be a Hash: ( { :before => true/false, :after => true/false } ).

Yum automatically synchronizes remote metadata to a local cache. The chef-client creates a copy of the local cache, and then stores it in-memory during the chef-client run. The in-memory cache allows packages to be installed during the chef-client run without the need to continue synchronizing the remote metadata to the local cache while the chef-client run is in-progress.

As an array:

yum_package 'some-package' do
  #...
  flush_cache [ :before ]
  #...
end

and as a Hash:

yum_package 'some-package' do
  #...
  flush_cache( { :after => true } )
  #...
end

Note

The flush_cache property does not flush the local Yum cache! Use Yum tools—yum clean headers, yum clean packages, yum clean all—to clean the local Yum cache.

gem_binary

Ruby Type: String

A property for the gem_package provider that is used to specify a gems binary.

homebrew_user

Ruby Type: String, Integer

homebrew_package resource only. The name of the Homebrew owner to be used by the chef-client when executing a command.

ignore_failure

Ruby Type: true, false | Default Value: false

Continue running a recipe if a resource fails for any reason.

notifies

Ruby Type: Symbol, ‘Chef::Resource[String]’

A resource may notify another resource to take action when its state changes. Specify a 'resource[name]', the :action that resource should take, and then the :timer for that action. A resource may notify more than one resource; use a notifies statement for each resource to be notified.

A timer specifies the point during the Chef Client run at which a notification is run. The following timers are available:

:before

Specifies that the action on a notified resource should be run before processing the resource block in which the notification is located.

:delayed

Default. Specifies that a notification should be queued up, and then executed at the end of the Chef Client run.

:immediate, :immediately

Specifies that a notification should be run immediately, per resource notified.

The syntax for notifies is:

notifies :action, 'resource[name]', :timer

options

Ruby Type: String

One (or more) additional options that are passed to the command.

package_name

Ruby Type: String, Array

The name of the package. Default value: the name of the resource block. See “Syntax” section above for more information.

response_file

Ruby Type: String

apt_package and dpkg_package resources only. The direct path to the file used to pre-seed a package.

response_file_variables

Ruby Type: Hash

apt_package and dpkg_package resources only. A Hash of response file variables in the form of {"VARIABLE" => "VALUE"}.

retries

Ruby Type: Integer | Default Value: 0

The number of times to catch exceptions and retry the resource.

retry_delay

Ruby Type: Integer | Default Value: 2

The retry delay (in seconds).

source

Ruby Type: String

Optional. The path to a package in the local file system.

Note

The AIX platform requires source to be a local file system path because installp does not retrieve packages using HTTP or FTP.

subscribes

Ruby Type: Symbol, ‘Chef::Resource[String]’

A resource may listen to another resource, and then take action if the state of the resource being listened to changes. Specify a 'resource[name]', the :action to be taken, and then the :timer for that action.

Note that subscribes does not apply the specified action to the resource that it listens to - for example:

file '/etc/nginx/ssl/example.crt' do
   mode '0600'
   owner 'root'
end

service 'nginx' do
   subscribes :reload, 'file[/etc/nginx/ssl/example.crt]', :immediately
end

In this case the subscribes property reloads the nginx service whenever its certificate file, located under /etc/nginx/ssl/example.crt, is updated. subscribes does not make any changes to the certificate file itself, it merely listens for a change to the file, and executes the :reload action for its resource (in this example nginx) when a change is detected.

A timer specifies the point during the Chef Client run at which a notification is run. The following timers are available:

:before

Specifies that the action on a notified resource should be run before processing the resource block in which the notification is located.

:delayed

Default. Specifies that a notification should be queued up, and then executed at the end of the Chef Client run.

:immediate, :immediately

Specifies that a notification should be run immediately, per resource notified.

The syntax for subscribes is:

subscribes :action, 'resource[name]', :timer

timeout

Ruby Type: String, Integer

The amount of time (in seconds) to wait before timing out.

version

Ruby Type: String, Array

The version of a package to be installed or upgraded.

Multiple Packages

A resource may specify multiple packages and/or versions for platforms that use Yum, DNF, Apt, Zypper, or Chocolatey package managers. Specifing multiple packages and/or versions allows a single transaction to:

• Download the specified packages and versions via a single HTTP transaction
• Update or install multiple packages with a single resource during the chef-client run

For example, installing multiple packages:

package %w(package1 package2)

Installing multiple packages with versions:

package %w(package1 package2) do
  version [ '1.3.4-2', '4.3.6-1']
end

Upgrading multiple packages:

package %w(package1 package2)  do
  action :upgrade
end

Removing multiple packages:

package %w(package1 package2)  do
  action :remove
end

Purging multiple packages:

package %w(package1 package2)  do
  action :purge
end

Notifications, via an implicit name:

package %w(package1 package2)  do
  action :nothing
end

log 'call a notification' do
  notifies :install, 'package[package1, package2]', :immediately
end

Note

Notifications and subscriptions do not need to be updated when packages and versions are added or removed from the package_name or version properties.

Examples

The following examples demonstrate various approaches for using resources in recipes. If you want to see examples of how Chef uses resources in recipes, take a closer look at the cookbooks that Chef authors and maintains: https://github.com/chef-cookbooks.

Install a gems file for use in recipes

chef_gem 'right_aws' do
  action :install
end

require 'right_aws'

Install a gems file from the local file system

gem_package 'right_aws' do
  source '/tmp/right_aws-1.11.0.gem'
  action :install
end

Install a package

package 'tar' do
  action :install
end

Install a package version

package 'tar' do
  version '1.16.1-1'
  action :install
end

Install a package with options

package 'debian-archive-keyring' do
  action :install
  options '--force-yes'
end

Install a package with a response_file

Use of a response_file is only supported on Debian and Ubuntu at this time. Custom resources must be written to support the use of a response_file, which contains debconf answers to questions normally asked by the package manager on installation. Put the file in /files/default of the cookbook where the package is specified and the chef-client will use the cookbook_file resource to retrieve it.

To install a package with a response_file:

package 'sun-java6-jdk' do
  response_file 'java.seed'
end

Install a specified architecture using a named provider

yum_package 'glibc-devel' do
  arch 'i386'
end

Purge a package

package 'tar' do
  action :purge
end

Remove a package

package 'tar' do
  action :remove
end

Upgrade a package

package 'tar' do
  action :upgrade
end

Use the ignore_failure common attribute

gem_package 'syntax' do
  action :install
  ignore_failure true
end

Avoid unnecessary string interpolation

Do this:

package 'mysql-server' do
  version node['mysql']['version']
  action :install
end

and not this:

package 'mysql-server' do
  version "#{node['mysql']['version']}"
  action :install
end

Install a package in a platform

The following example shows how to use the package resource to install an application named app and ensure that the correct packages are installed for the correct platform:

package 'app_name' do
  action :install
end

case node[:platform]
when 'ubuntu','debian'
  package 'app_name-doc' do
    action :install
  end
when 'centos'
  package 'app_name-html' do
    action :install
  end
end

Install sudo, then configure /etc/sudoers/ file

The following example shows how to install sudo and then configure the /etc/sudoers file:

#  the following code sample comes from the ``default`` recipe in the ``sudo`` cookbook: https://github.com/chef-cookbooks/sudo

package 'sudo' do
  action :install
end

if node['authorization']['sudo']['include_sudoers_d']
  directory '/etc/sudoers.d' do
    mode        '0755'
    owner       'root'
    group       'root'
    action      :create
  end

  cookbook_file '/etc/sudoers.d/README' do
    source      'README'
    mode        '0440'
    owner       'root'
    group       'root'
    action      :create
  end
end

template '/etc/sudoers' do
  source 'sudoers.erb'
  mode '0440'
  owner 'root'
  group platform?('freebsd') ? 'wheel' : 'root'
  variables(
    :sudoers_groups => node['authorization']['sudo']['groups'],
    :sudoers_users => node['authorization']['sudo']['users'],
    :passwordless => node['authorization']['sudo']['passwordless']
  )
end

where

• the package resource is used to install sudo
• the if statement is used to ensure availability of the /etc/sudoers.d directory
• the template resource tells the chef-client where to find the sudoers template
• the variables property is a hash that passes values to template files (that are located in the templates/ directory for the cookbook

Use a case statement to specify the platform

The following example shows how to use a case statement to tell the chef-client which platforms and packages to install using cURL.

package 'curl'
  case node[:platform]
  when 'redhat', 'centos'
    package 'package_1'
    package 'package_2'
    package 'package_3'
  when 'ubuntu', 'debian'
    package 'package_a'
    package 'package_b'
    package 'package_c'
  end
end

where node[:platform] for each node is identified by Ohai during every chef-client run. For example:

package 'curl'
  case node[:platform]
  when 'redhat', 'centos'
    package 'zlib-devel'
    package 'openssl-devel'
    package 'libc6-dev'
  when 'ubuntu', 'debian'
    package 'openssl'
    package 'pkg-config'
    package 'subversion'
  end
end

Use symbols to reference attributes

Symbols may be used to reference attributes:

package 'mysql-server' do
  version node[:mysql][:version]
  action :install
end

instead of strings:

package 'mysql-server' do
  version node['mysql']['version']
  action :install
end

Use a whitespace array to simplify a recipe

The following examples show different ways of doing the same thing. The first shows a series of packages that will be upgraded:

package 'package-a' do
  action :upgrade
end

package 'package-b' do
  action :upgrade
end

package 'package-c' do
  action :upgrade
end

package 'package-d' do
  action :upgrade
end

and the next uses a single package resource and a whitespace array (%w):

package %w{package-a package-b package-c package-d} do
  action :upgrade
end

Specify the Homebrew user with a UUID

homebrew_package 'emacs' do
  homebrew_user 1001
end

Specify the Homebrew user with a string

homebrew_package 'vim' do
  homebrew_user 'user1'
end