The RPM Package Manager is a powerful command line driven package
management system capable of installing, uninstalling, verifying,
querying, and updating computer software packages. Each software
package consists of an archive of files along with information about
the package like its version, a description, and the like.  There
is also a related API ("Application Program Interface"), permitting
advanced developers to bypass 'shelling out' to a command line, and
to manage such transactions from within a native coding language.

WWW: http://www.rpm5.org/