Custom channels allow administrators to use the Red Hat Network infrastructure to deploy packages built and maintained by their organizations. All channel and package management activities will take place in the Channels tab of the RHN website. The instructions here should be used in conjunction with the RHN website chapter of the RHN Reference Guide.
Because of the potential problems that may arise from deploying untested packages throughout your production environment, Red Hat strongly recommends creating beta channels covering select systems that can be used for staging. For instance, if you have a system group of Web servers that will receive a set of custom packages, we suggest using your channel management capabilities to install the packages on a non-critical subset of representative systems first. These temporary channels can then be deleted using the steps described in Section 4.8 Deleting Software Channels.
In order to perform any channel management tasks, users must have obtained the proper permissions. These permissions can be modified through the Red Hat Network website. Permissions are assigned to users by Organization Administrators. Channel Administrator privileges are assigned as follows:
Log into the Red Hat Network website as an Organization Administrator.
On the top navigation bar, click the Users tab and then click the name of the user who will be performing channel management functions.
On the User Details page, scroll down to the Roles section and select the checkbox labeled Channel Administrator. Then click Update at the bottom of the page. Note that Organization Administrators are automatically granted channel administration privileges.
Have the user log into the Red Hat Network website, click the Channels tab on the top navigation bar, and ensure the Manage Software Channels button appears in the corresponding left navigation bar.