A decentralised cross-distribution software installation system
Zero Install is a handy and reliable application designed to allow installing software easily and without the need for root privileges. It enables software developers to publish programs directly from their own web-sites, while supporting features familiar from centralised distribution repositories such as shared libraries, automatic updates and digital signatures.
If you have a web-site, you can distribute your software:
· Create one package that works everywhere
· With dependency handling and automatic updates
· There is no central point of control
Security is central:
· Users don't need administrator access just to install a word-processor
· Digital signatures are always checked before new software is run
· Users share libraries without having to trust each other
· Use of sandboxes and virtualisation is routine
You control your own computer:
· You don't have to guess what happens during installation
· Mix and match stable and experimental programs on a single system
If you have a web-site, you can distribute your software:
· Create one package that works everywhere
· With dependency handling and automatic updates
· There is no central point of control
Security is central:
· Users don't need administrator access just to install a word-processor
· Digital signatures are always checked before new software is run
· Users share libraries without having to trust each other
· Use of sandboxes and virtualisation is routine
You control your own computer:
· You don't have to guess what happens during installation
· Mix and match stable and experimental programs on a single system
Here are some key features of "Zero Install":
· Decentralised; anyone can distribute software
· Security is central
· You control your own computer
· Conflict free - if two programs want the same version of a library, they'll share it. Otherwise, they'll use separate copies.
Shared binaries/cache:
· 0install supports sharing of binaries (the implementation cache) between users and between virtual machines.
· Cross-Platform and Cross-Distribution
· Automatic updates
· Binary and source packages - supports both compiling applications from source and downloading binaries.
Native package manager integration:
· If you have already installed a package using your distribution's installer then 0install can use that instead of downloading a second copy.
Run without granting root privileges:
· When installing a package, most installation systems execute pre- and post-install scripts inside the package as root, giving the package full access to your machine. Even if they didn't, the fact that the package can unpack files to directories such as /usr/bin or /usr/lib effectively gives them root access anyway.
· By contrast, when 0install installs (caches) a package, it does not run any code from the pacakge and it does not write to any of the traditional software directories like /usr/bin or /usr/lib. Instead it simply puts each unpacked archive into its own directory.
Run without being root:
· Since installing software with 0install does not allow it to affect the system as a whole, there is no need to restrict it to users with root privileges. Therefore, there is no need to give users root privileges just so that they can install software.
· Decentralised; anyone can distribute software
· Security is central
· You control your own computer
· Conflict free - if two programs want the same version of a library, they'll share it. Otherwise, they'll use separate copies.
Shared binaries/cache:
· 0install supports sharing of binaries (the implementation cache) between users and between virtual machines.
· Cross-Platform and Cross-Distribution
· Automatic updates
· Binary and source packages - supports both compiling applications from source and downloading binaries.
Native package manager integration:
· If you have already installed a package using your distribution's installer then 0install can use that instead of downloading a second copy.
Run without granting root privileges:
· When installing a package, most installation systems execute pre- and post-install scripts inside the package as root, giving the package full access to your machine. Even if they didn't, the fact that the package can unpack files to directories such as /usr/bin or /usr/lib effectively gives them root access anyway.
· By contrast, when 0install installs (caches) a package, it does not run any code from the pacakge and it does not write to any of the traditional software directories like /usr/bin or /usr/lib. Instead it simply puts each unpacked archive into its own directory.
Run without being root:
· Since installing software with 0install does not allow it to affect the system as a whole, there is no need to restrict it to users with root privileges. Therefore, there is no need to give users root privileges just so that they can install software.
Requirements:
· .NET Framework 2.0 or newer
· Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Redistributable Package
· .NET Framework 2.0 or newer
· Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Redistributable Package
What's New in This Release:
· Tweaked GUI design in main window
· Wildcard support for 0install import
· Fixed OverflowException in Cache management on 32bit versions of Windows
· Tweaked GUI design in main window
· Wildcard support for 0install import
· Fixed OverflowException in Cache management on 32bit versions of Windows
| Publisher | : | Zero Install |
|---|---|---|
| License | : | Freeware |
| Size/OS: | : | 4.4 MB / Windows 2K / XP / 2003 / Vista / 2008 / 7 / 7 x64 / 2008 R2 / 8 32-bit |
| Date | : | February 14th, 2013 |
Download | : | Zero Install 1.14.2 |
