CentOS - Dec 2012 - Filesystem Hierarchy Standard respecting CentOS

I am investigating using rpm to package one of our in house
applications.  This software started life as a sub-system within a
Ruby-on-Rails application but has now been extracted into its own
standalone package, none of which has any httpd access.

The local package under consideration will run as a set of cron jobs
under a designated userid.  There will be no user interaction.  A
remote database server will be updated but no data files will remain
on the installation host once they are processed.

I have read the subject document a couple of times and I am wondering
what people here with experience in these matters actually do.  The
FHS suggests to me that projects of the sort I am dealing with belong
entirely within the /opt/package_name/ tree with variable data stowed
in /var/opt/package_name or possibly /var/spool/package_name.

However, I have not yet found any application packages for CentOS-6
that actually do this.  I find some that go into /usr/package_name,
some into /usr/lib/package_name, many that install into /usr/libexec
and none that install into /usr/local, which I gather is reserved for
packaged built on the system rather than installed via rpm.

So, what is the actual practice with respect to packaging via rpm? 
Where do things go?


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James B. Byrne                mailto:ByrneJB at Harte-Lyne.ca
Harte & Lyne Limited          http://www.harte-lyne.ca
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Hamilton, Ontario             fax: +1 905 561 0757
Canada  L8E 3C3

On Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 04:14:18PM -0500, James B. Byrne
wrote:
> However, I have not yet found any application packages for CentOS-6
> that actually do this.  I find some that go into /usr/package_name,
> some into /usr/lib/package_name, many that install into /usr/libexec
I've seen a few.  Not many, but a few. (some IBM products, a couple
of other commercial products).
> and none that install into /usr/local, which I gather is reserved for
> packaged built on the system rather than installed via rpm.
It's reserved for the local admins to use; they _could_ do their own
rpms that install into /usr/local, but no third party rpm should touch it.
> So, what is the actual practice with respect to packaging via rpm? 
> Where do things go?
I'd recommend following the FHS standard locations.  If you ever decide
to support more than just CentOS then all Linux distro's should
"support"
that structure, as do other non-Linux based Unix systems.

-- 

rgds
Stephen