RPM Targets

Overview

An RPM target represents the group of RPMs that must exist on the server for a specific service to function properly.

What is an RPM target?

The rpm.versions system uses the target setting to determine whether to install or uninstall that target’s specific RPMs. The target_settings section of the /usr/local/cpanel/etc/rpm.versions file contains the cPanel-provided default status for each target.

For example, the cPanel-provided distribution of ClamAV consists of three RPMs:

  • cpanel-clamav
  • cpanel-clamav-virusdefs
  • cpanel-perl-522-File-Scan-ClamAV

In the /usr/local/cpanel/etc/rpm.versions file, the setting for the clamav RPM target controls how the rpm.versions system manages all three of these components.

More:

For more information about the /usr/local/cpanel/etc/rpm.versions file, read our The rpm.versions File documentation.

RPM target states

The RPM targets on your server may exist in any of the following states:

  • installed — The rpm.versions system ensures that the RPMs for that target are installed and functional.
  • uninstalled — The rpm.versions system ensures that the RPMs for that target are uninstalled.
  • unmanaged — The rpm.versions system ignores the RPMs for that target, regardless of whether they are installed on the server.
Warning:

You may experience problems with certain services if cPanel & WHM does not manage them:

  • The rpm.versions system does not update unmanaged RPMs. These RPMs require manual upgrades and maintenance.
  • If you upgrade a server with unmanaged FTP targets, problems may occur in cPanel’s FTP-related interfaces. For more information, read our How to Restore Missing FTP Interfaces in cPanel documentation.
  • Unmanaged RPM targets may become upgrade blockers for a future version of cPanel & WHM.
  • If a MySQL® RPM target is unmanaged, the system also blocks MariaDB on the server. To successfully use a cPanel-managed installation of either MySQL or MariaDB, the rpm.versions system must manage both RPM targets.

Legacy RPMs

The RPMs that cPanel, L.L.C. provided prior to the implementation of the rpm.versions system are now legacy RPMs. The settings in the /var/cpanel/cpanel.config file control these legacy RPMs.

  • The system stores these settings in the /usr/local/cpanel/etc/rpm.versions file.
  • The files in the /var/cpanel/rpm.versions.d/ directory can override the target_settings configuration.

Configuration file settings

The following table lists the settings in the /var/cpanel/cpanel.config file that control the actions of legacy RPMs:

  • mysql-version — MySQL55, MySQL56, MariaDB100
  • local_nameserver_type — bind, mydns, ned, powerdns
    Warning:

    We deprecated the MyDNS and NSD nameservers in cPanel & WHM version 78 and plan to remove them a future release. We strongly recommend that you migrate to PowerDNS. For more information, read our cPanel Deprecation Plan.

  • mailserver — dovecot, exim
  • ftp-server — pure-ftpd, proftpd
More:

For more information, read our The cpanel.config File documentation.