Preinstalling content

Downstreams may wish to ship a variety of apps or content preinstalled for their users. This section describes the mechanisms for doing so.

Preinstalled click packages

The Savvy API allows for the pre-installation of click packages. These can include preinstalled applications, online account plugins, location providers, etc. To ship a pre-installed click package, it should be installed to:

src/system/custom/click

Note: click packages cannot simply be unpacked in the above directory. They must actually be installed using the click framework. The sequence for doing so is:

$ sudo click install --force-missing-frameworks --root=(src/system/custom/click) --all-users foo.click
$ sudo click register --all-users packagename-version

The example click packages shipped in the savilerow project are already installed properly.

Preinstalled sample content

This mechanism is used for pre-seeded content. For example, a downstream may wish to include sample pictures and videos to help a new user explore the Ubuntu Gallery app and Ubuntu Media Player. To pre-seed content, place files in:

src/system/custom/home/

Any files in the above directory will be copied to each user's home directory on the first boot. If the user deletes this pre-seeded content, it will stay deleted and will not be re-copied by the system on the next boot. However, if the user issues a factory reset, the pre-seeded content will appear on first use, until it is deleted by the user again.