How to use and register SUSE Linux Enterprise based add-on products

In order to extend the capabilities of the installed version of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server or SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop Novell offers a range of add-on products such as:

• Open Enterprise Server
• Subscription Management Tool
• Real Time Extension
• Software Development Kit
• High Availability Extension
  

Each add-on product has associated online repositories which are available after installation and registration of the product. This article will explain the procedure that needs to be followed to accomplish this task and gives advise on troubleshooting in case online repositories are not added.

General info

YaST2 provides two modules to maintain installation sources.
On SLE10 this is:

1. Installation Source
2. Add-on Product

and on SLE11 those modules are called:

1. Software Repositories
2. Add-on Product

Installation Source / Software Repositories is being used for maintaining SLES/SLED installation sources in general, Add-on products should be installed using "YaST2 Add-on Product" exclusively as each installation of SLE maintains a product database. This database is queried during the installation to submit product data to Novell Customer Center to retrieve the correct update channels for the setup.

Querying product database on SLE10:

test70:~ # rug pd
S | Name          | Version | Category
--+---------------+---------+---------
  | SUSE_SLES_SP3 | 10.3-0  | add-on
i | SUSE_SLES_SP3 | 10.3-0  | base
test70:~ #

Querying product database on SLE11:

mspiggy:~ # zypper pd
Loading repository data...
Reading installed packages...
S | Repository  | Internal Name | Name                                                   | Version    | Arch   | Is Base
--+-------------+---------------+--------------------------------------------------------+------------+--------+--------
i | @System     | sle-sdk       | SUSE Linux Enterprise Software Development Kit 11 SP1  | 11.1-1.57  | x86_64 | No
i | @System     | sle-smt       | Subscription Management Tool for SUSE Linux Enterprise | 11-1.3     | x86_64 | No
i | @System     | SUSE_SLES     | SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP1                    | 11.1-1.152 | x86_64 | Yes
mspiggy:~ #

If the product has been properly installed, the first column shows "i", else its empty. In case the Add-on product was added not using the appropriate YaST2 module, the product will get listed as installation source only but not as installed product. Thus a registration will not take this product into account when the responsible suse_register process is called.

Installing the add-on product

To install the add-on product:

1. Start YaST2
2. Software -> Add-on Product
3. select the source and provide necessary information in case you use network based installation sources
4. Accept the license
5. Once the product got installed YaST2 Software Management will open and let you install packages.
   If you do not need to install software at this time, please press the "Accept" button to finish. 
6. Finish the Novell Customer Center Configuration to (re-)register the system using the current installed products.