Tutorial

The Eclipse platform provides an installation and update mechanism called p2. This update mechanism allow to update Eclipse applications and to install new functionality into them.

The update and installation of functionality with p2 is based on Eclipse Features. Features basically describe a list of plug-ins and other features and represent a logical grouping of plug-ins.

During the export of a product you can select if a metadata repository should be created. If you select this, a p2 update site will be created in the export directory. You find this in folder "repository".

To avoid dependency problems the version number from your features in the Dependency tab of the product. You can do this via the "Properties" button.

This directory is your update site and could get copied to a webserver so that user could update their Eclipse application.

p2 also supports file based update sites which can be be used for testing. For local testing just copy the application to another folder and configure p2 to use this update site.

You could configure p2 at runtime with the new update site but you can also define existing update site via a p2.inf file. The content of the file points to pre-defined locations. They can be file or web based.

p2 can update complete products or individual features.

If features should be just then the should be categorized via categories. The p2 update manager groups features per default based on categories. Therefore it is usually good advice to create also a category for your feature(s) via File → New → Other → Category Definition .

Here you can press "New Category" and create a category. The name you select will be visible in the update manager. Add the required features to this category.

Create a Eclipse RCP project "de.vogella.rcp.p2.base" based on the "Eclipse RCP with a view" template.

Create an Eclipse feature project "de.vogella.rcp.p2.base.feature" which includes the plugin "de.vogella.rcp.p2.base".

Add a product configuration file (product) called "p2base.product" to your "de.vogella.rcp.p2.base" plugin. Select that this product will be based on "features" and add the features "org.eclipse.rcp", "org.eclipse.equinox.p2.rcp.feature" and "de.vogella.rcp.p2.base.feature" to your product.

Start the product from the IDE and verify that the application works correctly.

Remove the version number from your features in the Dependency tab of the product. You can do this via the "Properties" button.

Export your product and ensure that it still starts as expected.

Create a menu "Update" in your application and add the following pre-defined commands to it:

Export your product via the "Eclipse Product export wizard" on the overview tab of p2base.product. Make sure to select the "Generate metadata repository" flag on the export dialog.

Copy the application to a different folder. Start it and use the p2 commands to point to the initial export location with "repository" added to the path. This is the metadata repository.

Make some changes in the UI, e.g. change the name of the View.

Export again your product and again include the flag "Generate Meta-data repository".

Start your product again from the copy you made earlier. Check for updates with p2. p2 should report an update of your product and perform this update.

http://wiki.eclipse.org/Equinox_p2 The Eclipse p2 update wiki

http://wiki.eclipse.org/Equinox/p2/Adding_Self-Update_to_an_RCP_Application Adding p2 update to an RCP application

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