# Image Packaging System > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Image_Packaging_System > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Image_Packaging_System.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_Packaging_System > Source revision: 1348706297 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Cross-platform package management system This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article contains promotional content. Please help improve it by removing promotional language and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from a neutral point of view. See our advice if the article is about you and read our scam warning in case someone asks for money to edit this article. (July 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Image Packaging System" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (May 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message) The **Image Packaging System**, also known as **IPS**,[1] is a [cross-platform](/source/Cross-platform) [package management system](/source/Package_management_system) created by the [OpenSolaris](/source/OpenSolaris) community in coordination with Sun Microsystems. It is used by [Solaris](/source/Solaris_(operating_system)) 11 and several [Illumos](/source/Illumos)-based distributions: [OpenIndiana](/source/OpenIndiana), OmniOS, XStreamOS[2] and a growing number of layered applications, including [GlassFish](/source/GlassFish), across a variety of operating system platforms. IPS is currently written in the [Python](/source/Python_(programming_language)) programming language, but a rust implementation intended to succeed it is in progress.[3] ## Features IPS enables a [superuser](/source/Superuser) to search for, install, and remove [software packages](/source/Software_package_(installation)) from the Solaris system.[4] - Use of [ZFS](/source/ZFS), allowing multiple boot environments and easy package operation rollbacks - Transactional actions - Support for multiple platform architectures within a single package - Legacy support for SVR4 packages - Extensive search grammar - Remote search capability - Changes-only based package updates - Network package repository - File and network-based package publication - Package operation history - On-disk package format (p5p) - Multi-platform ports for layered applications: - Broad platform support: [Windows](/source/Windows), [Linux](/source/Linux), [OS X](/source/OS_X), [Darwin](/source/Darwin_(operating_system)), [Solaris](/source/Solaris_(operating_system)), [OpenSolaris](/source/OpenSolaris), [Illumos](/source/Illumos) and [AIX](/source/AIX_(operating_system)) - Cross-platform update notification and package management [Graphical user interfaces](/source/Graphical_user_interfaces). ## Considerations Due to the fact that IPS delivers each file in a separate shelf[*[clarification needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Please_clarify)*] with a separate checksum, a package update only needs to replace files that have been modified. When dealing with [ELF](/source/Executable_and_Linkable_Format) binaries, IPS computes checksums only from the loaded parts of an ELF binary[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*]. This means in practice that when only the ELF comment section has been changed, there would be no need to update it. However, this method of delivery can cause slower operation when the input source is on a medium with high latency (e.g. internet with higher round trip time or CD/DVD media with slow seeks). ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Packaging and Delivering Software With the Image Packaging System in Oracle Solaris 11.1"](http://docs.oracle.com/cd/E26502_01/html/E21383/preface-1.html). *Oracle Solaris 11.1 Information Library*. Retrieved 18 December 2012. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Distributions - illumos - illumos wiki"](http://wiki.illumos.org/display/illumos/Distributions). *Illumos wiki*. Retrieved 12 May 2015. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Toasterson. ["ips"](https://codeberg.org/Toasterson/ips). *Codeberg.org*. Retrieved 2026-04-13. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Bhuse, Vijay; Hekhuis, Kyle (9 March 2018). ["Support for Secure Code Execution in Server Operating Systems"](https://books.google.com/books?id=eHpTDwAAQBAJ&dq=%22Image+Packaging+System%22&pg=PA21). *ICCWS 2018 13th International Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security*. Academic Conferences and Publishing Limited: 21–30. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-911218-73-9](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-911218-73-9) – via Google Books. ## External links - [GitHub Project: Image Packaging System](https://github.com/oracle/solaris-ips/) - [Multi-Platform Packaging for Layered Distros](https://wikis.oracle.com/display/IpsBestPractices/Multi-platform+Packaging+for+Layered+Distros) - [GlassFish Update Center Toolkit](https://java.net/projects/updatecenter) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20170404221423/https://java.net/projects/updatecenter) 2017-04-04 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine) - [Update Center 2.0 (multiplatform IPS)](https://java.net/projects/updatecenter2/) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20170404221412/https://java.net/projects/updatecenter2/) 2017-04-04 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine) v t e Package managers (format) Compiled Gaming console DSi Shop Nintendo eShop PlayStation Store Wii Shop Channel Xbox Games Store Unix-like, Linux dpkg APT aptitude dselect Synaptic Ubuntu Software Center Purely functional Nix Guix RPM YUM DNF APT-RPM up2date urpmi ZYpp tarball slapt-get slackpkg netpkg swaret Other AppImage Autopackage Flatpak Homebrew Horizon Store PackageKit pacman PBI PETget PISI Portage Snap Upkg pkgsrc Helm macOS Mac App Store Homebrew pkgsrc Munki z/OS SMP/E Mobile operating systems Amazon Appstore App Store Aptoide Cafe Bazaar Cydia F-Droid GetJar Google Play Huawei AppGallery Microsoft Store RPM SlideME Windows Phone Store Multi-platform OpenPKG pkgsrc Solaris, illumos IPS OpenCSW pkgsrc Web browsers Chrome Web Store Mozilla Add-ons Windows Allmyapps Cygwin Microsoft Store Npackd NSIS NuGet Chocolatey ProGet Scoop Windows Package Manager wpkg Uncompiled BSD ports collection FreeBSD Ports pkgsrc C++ Gradle vcpkg Java Maven Ivy Gradle JavaScript npm Kubernetes Helm Linux ABS apt-build Compile Portage Sorcery BitBake pkgsrc macOS Fink MacPorts pkgsrc .NET NuGet Perl CPAN PHP PEAR Composer Python PyPI pip Anaconda Enthought Canopy Ruby RubyGems Rust Cargo Scala sbt List Commons Category v t e Oracle Corporation Corporate directors Jeffrey Berg H. 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