1

I am using Chocolatey to make installers for a bunch of different tools, but the versions I need for some of these tools are considered outdated and are not available as packages on the Chocolatey package repository. What should I do?

DeZLearnsPCs
  • 81
  • 2
  • 9
  • You can always try [contacting the maintainers](https://chocolatey.org/docs/package-triage-process#questions-about-a-package-or-software) of a package, or if no package at all is available [the community](https://chocolatey.org/docs/package-triage-process#package-request-package-missing). – Jeroen Mostert Feb 12 '20 at 15:08
  • https://stackoverflow.com/q/60302932/12512570?sem=2 – DeZLearnsPCs Feb 19 '20 at 14:56

1 Answers1

1

If you are part of an organization, I (and Chocolatey.org) recommend setting up your own Chocolatey feed and building your own packages for internal use. This way, you control the package versions and their sources. Another benefit is that you can host the source internally or embed any installation files in the installer without worrying about distribution rights (as long as the feed is only available internally).

Unfortunately, you can't squeeze blood from a stone. Many packages in the public Chocolatey feed are "unofficial" from the software's point of view (as in, not maintained by the vendor) and as such it's tough to rely on the public feed. If you can't get the package maintainer to update the package, and you don't want to maintain your own feed, then as long as you can commit to keeping the package up to date for the community then consider creating your own community package to maintain.

codewario
  • 19,553
  • 20
  • 90
  • 159
  • Thank you for the advice. I was hoping this wasn't the only answer but it's looking like it is. My organization wants me to create local installers that require no internet access using Chocolatey, but so far, I haven't been able to successfully create a single local package and have tried for about a dozen different tools. – DeZLearnsPCs Feb 12 '20 at 15:41
  • I'd recommend asking a new question for this, but for any package you'll need to know how to install it with no user input (e.g. silent install), and within your `chocolateyInstall.ps1` script you'll need to make use of the [`Install-ChocolateyPackage`](https://chocolatey.org/docs/helpers-install-chocolatey-package) cmdlet (it's imported and available in the Chocolatey execution context). Admittedly, getting a silent install to work is going to be easier for some programs than others. – codewario Feb 12 '20 at 20:40
  • I [created a chat room](https://chat.stackoverflow.com/rooms/info/207704/chocolatey-package-maintenance) for the topic of creating and maintaining Chocolatey packages. If you have specific questions about creating a package or maintaining the `chocolateyInstall.ps1` or `chocolateyUninstall.ps1` scripts, I can try to answer any questions I can. – codewario Feb 12 '20 at 21:03
  • I have asked a better and more specific question that I believe will help me kick-start the rest of the packages. It can be found here https://stackoverflow.com/q/60302932/12512570?sem=2 . – DeZLearnsPCs Feb 19 '20 at 14:56