Package feeds

As we discussed in Chapter 4, Grasping the BitBake Tool, the packages play a central role as images and SDKs rely on them. In fact, do_rootfs uses a local package repository to fetch. This repository is known as package feed.

There is no reason for this repository to be used just for the images or SDK build steps. In fact, there are several valid reasons to make this repository remotely accessible internally in our development environment or publically for use in the field. Some of these reasons are listed, including the following:

• Easy testing of an updated application during development stage, without the need of a complete system reinstallation

• Make additional packages more flexible so that they can be installed in a running image

• Update products in the field

To produce a solid package feed, we must ensure that we have consistent increments in the package revision every time the package is changed. It is almost impossible to do this manually, and the Yocto Project has a service...