The software described in this documentation is either no longer supported or is in extended support.
Oracle recommends that you upgrade to a current supported release.
Chapter 2 Spacewalk Concepts
The following are some basic Spacewalk concepts. For more information about these concepts, as well as step-by-step instructions and examples, see the Spacewalk for Oracle® Linux Documentation.
Activation key
Is a tag that you can associate with a given server configuration, for example, a database server on an Oracle Linux 7 (x86_64) system. When a client system registers with a Spacewalk server, it specifies an activation key to select the characteristics that are bound to that key, such as to which software channels the client should be subscribed. You can also use activation keys to trigger Spacewalk to install specific packages and deploy a specialized configuration upon registration.
Software channel
Are subscribed to by Spacewalk client systems subscribe to obtain software packages and errata. A base or parent channel provides packages for a specific Oracle Linux release and architecture. This channel can have a number of child channels that provide additional packages.
Oracle also uses the term channel to refer to the software distribution channels that the Unbreakable Linux Network (ULN) provides. A Spacewalk channel is the subscription mechanism by which clients can obtain software packages, patches, and updates.
You do not necessarily need to associate an upstream repository with a software channel. For example, you might want instead to add custom-built, local packages and errata by using the web interface or by using the rhnpush command.
Entitlement
Is used to enable additional functionality that is supported by Spacewalk. Note that starting with Spacewalk 2.6, most entitlements were removed. The only entitlement that is currently supported is the Virtualization entitlement, which installs additional packages on the target host so that Spacewalk is able to manage virtual guests on that host.
System group
Enables you to perform management operations on multiple client systems that are organized into groups at the same time. A client system can be a member of more than one group. Typically, the member systems of a group are of the same Oracle Linux release, system architecture, and a kickstart profile. You can also group systems by function (for example, web, application, or database servers), by physical location or by responsible administrator.
Organization
Provides a useful way to tier or segment your Spacewalk implementation. By defining multiple organizations, you can establish management entities that correspond to different corporate divisions or administrative groups. Organizations provide a way to logically delegate system management responsibilities and allocate entitlements. Depending on organizational trust relationships, organizations can also share system and software entitlements.
Starting with Spacewalk 2.6, you must define at least one Spacewalk organization immediately after you install a Spacewalk server.
Repository
Is used to provision packages for software channels. Spacewalk usually provisions packages for software channels by using repositories from an upstream source. For Oracle Linux, you can use the repositories that are provided by either the Oracle Linux yum server at https://yum.oracle.com or ULN at https://linux.oracle.com.
Some repository content, such as update-level specific patch and Ksplice packages, is available from ULN but not from the Oracle Linux yum server. Spacewalk provides a ULN plugin that enables it to synchronize Spacewalk repositories with ULN without needing to register the Spacewalk server directly with ULN. Unless you are an experienced Spacewalk administrator, Oracle recommends that you associate only one repository with each channel to obtain upstream packages. Otherwise, the channel attempts to pull packages from multiple sources.
Ksplice Offline packages are available from ULN as part of an Oracle Linux Premier Support contract. For more information, see Oracle® Linux: Ksplice User's Guide.