Yum, a software package manager is a complete change in code from its former version called the Yellowdog Updater (YUP). Designed primarily for Red Hat Linux systems, the use of Yum has extended over to the Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Fedora and many other RPM based Linux systems. The XML repository system used by Yum has now become the standard for RPM based storage containers.
The tool provides a simple and easy way to install, update or remove complete software packages and their dependencies from RPM based systems. This makes it easier for the user to maintain numerous systems usually in a group without having to update each machine individually. Consider the case wherein the user needs to install a software package on the system. Yum immediately computes the dependencies for the software package and determines what operations need to be carried out in order for the particular package to be installed.
Run from the DOS prompt as a command line argument, Yum also provides the user with a Graphical User Interface in the form of a plug in for adding simple features in addition to providing a module interface for python programs. Though Yum uses the standardized online XML repository, provision is made for the user to be able to configure a local repository manually. The recent versions have moved to using a dual approach in the repositories where sqlite meta data pertaining database files can be directly downloaded for optimization purposes.
Some of the features of Yum, with the version 3.2.22 being more stable than others, include:
. Provision for a simple user friendly interface for all operations.
. Support for very fast operations.
. Support provided for simple configuration along with the ability to handle multiple repositories. Individual repositories are grouped together and multiple repository groups are also supported in a package format.
. Presence of RPM consistent behavior along with the provision to calculate dependencies.