EM Library: how it works

EM Library comprises:

• a console, used to administer the product
• a library, to which you download software and deploy it to other servers and to particular clients.

Once you have set up a library, it:

1. connects at set times to a databank, a website where the latest versions of Sophos software are available
2. downloads the latest versions of software packages to which the administrator has subscribed
3. places the updated software in installation directories in a form suitable for installation on workstations and other client computers.

The update mechanism varies according to the target platform:

• Windows NT and Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista
  Windows workstations update automatically from the installation directories, known as Central Installation Directories (CIDs).
• NetWare
  For NetWare computers, EM Library can push the latest files directly to the SWEEP\NLMINST volume on each server. The server recognises when new files are available, and updates its software automatically.
• UNIX/Linux
  Sophos Anti-Virus for Linux and Sophos Anti-Virus for UNIX are maintained as files on a Samba share, in a location specified by the user. Like other packages, the files are distributed unpacked to minimise the size of updates. A script on the Linux/UNIX client can check for the presence of new files periodically, and install the new update accordingly.

For full details of what EM Library does, how it works, and which platforms it supports, refer to the EM Library user manual.

The Windows system requirements for EM Library are listed in the Release notes.