Installation files overview

Every product is packaged and delivered differently. You can download installation files for a product or you can obtain product discs that contain installation files. When you insert a disc into a local computer, the IBM® Installation Manager starts automatically. If you are not using a disc on a local computer, you must start the installation process yourself. Extract the downloaded files or copy the disc files to a common location, and then you can determine the files to use to start the installation.
Note: Consult the product documentation for specific details on starting your product installation.

Starting a product installation with the launchpad

  1. Open the directory that contains the product installation files.
  2. Double-click launchpad.
    • Some products use launchpad to open the main window of Installation Manager, some products open the Install wizard in Installation Manager, and other products require that you set a repository connection before proceeding with a wizard. If your product requires you to add repository, select the diskTag.inf file in the installation files. See Repository preferences for more information about adding repositories.
  3. Use the Install, Update, Modify, Roll Back, or Uninstall wizards in Installation Manager to continue.


Starting a product installation with an executable program or other types of installation files

  1. Open the directory that contains the product installation files.
  2. Run the executable program or other type of installation file that the product installation files contain. Installation Manager opens.
  3. Use the Install, Update, Modify, Roll Back, or Uninstall wizards in Installation Manager to continue.


Starting from an installed version of Installation Manager to access product installation files in a common repository

A common repository location contains the product installation files. The files can be obtained from a product download or copied from a disc.

  1. Start Installation Manager.
  2. Add a repository by specifying the location of the directory, HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, .jar, or .zip files that contain the diskTag.inf or repository.config files.
  3. Use the Install, Update, Modify, Roll Back, or Uninstall wizards in Installation Manager to continue.


Starting with the installer package to install Installation Manager

Install Installation Manager to use for installing and managing packages on your computer.

  1. Download the latest version of Installation Manager. For more information about downloading this program, see Installation Manager downloads.
  2. Extract the installation files to a temporary location.
  3. Run one of these commands to start the installation:
    • Windows: install.exe
    • Linux and UNIX: ./install
    You can use the userinst command to install packages for the logged-in user only. You can use the groupinst command to install packages for users running in group mode on Linux and UNIX platforms. For information on installation modes and commands, see Installing as an administrator, nonadministrator, or group. For information on group road maps and the GUI, see Group road maps and the user interface
  4. Use the Installation Manager Install wizard to continue.
You can install Installation Manager without using the GUI:


Starting with the installer package for Installation Manager to use without installing

Use Installation Manager to install a package without installing Installation Manager on your computer.

  1. Download the latest version of Installation Manager. For more information about downloading this program, see Installation Manager downloads.
  2. Extract the installation files to a temporary location.
  3. Make a back up copy of the install.ini file.
    Note: For a nonadministrator install, make a back up copy of userinst.ini. For group install on Linux and UNIX platforms, make a back up copy of groupinst.ini. For information on installation modes or on performing a silent installation, see Installing as an administrator, nonadministrator, or group.
  4. Open the install.ini file with a text editor and delete the following lines:
        input
        @osgi.install.area\install.xml
  5. Run the command to start the installation:
    • Windows: install.exe
    • Linux and UNIX: ./install
  6. Use the Installation Manager Install wizard to continue installing a package.