Introduction To Rhn Channels; Base Channels And Child Channels; Subscribing To Channels - Red Hat NETWORK SATELLITE 5.1.0 - CHANNEL MANAGEMENT Manual

Chapter 2.

Introduction to RHN Channels

A Red Hat Network channel is a collection of software packages. Channels help you segregate
packages by sensible rules: a channel may contain packages from a specific Red Hat
distribution, for instance. A channel may contain packages for an application or family of
applications. Users may also define channels for their own particular needs; a company may
create a channel that contains packages for all of the organization's laptops, for example.

1. Base Channels and Child Channels

There are two types of channels: base channels and child channels. A base channel consists of
packages based on a specific architecture and Red Hat Enterprise Linux release. A child
channel is a channel associated with a base channel that contains extra packages.
A system must be subscribed to only one base channel. A system can be subscribed to multiple
child channels of its base channel. A subscribed system can only install or update packages
available through its Red Hat Network channels.
When a system is registered with Red Hat Network, it is assigned to the base channel that
corresponds to the system's version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Once a system is registered,
its default base channel may be changed to a private base channel on a per-system basis via
the RHN website. Alternately, you can have activation keys associated with a custom channel
so that systems registering with those keys are automatically associated with the custom
channel.
On the Red Hat Network website, the Channels page (located under the Channels tab on the
top navigation bar) provides a list of all base channels and their child channels. Clicking on the
name of a channel displays the Channel Details page, which provides a list of all of the
packages in that channel, its errata, and any associated systems.

2. Subscribing to Channels

Subscribe systems to channels in the following ways:
• Registration through activation keys — Because of the simplicity and speed of activation
keys, this is the preferred method for registering systems as clients of either RHN Proxy
Server or RHN Satellite Server. Systems registered using an activation key are subscribed to
all channels associated with that activation key. For more information on activation keys,
consult the Red Hat Network Client Configuration Guide and the Red Hat Network Reference
Guide.
• Install registration — When a system is initially registered through either the Red Hat Update
Agent or the Red Hat Network Registration Client, it is automatically assigned to the base
channel that corresponds to the version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux on the system. Once a
system is registered, its default base channel may be changed to a private base channel on a
per-system basis via the RHN website. Alternately, you can have activation keys associated
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