Big enterprise software (Salesforce, Oracle, SAP) is often too complex and expensive for mid-sized companies. Small business software (basic project management tools) is often too simplistic. Silver distributors bridge this gap by offering powerful tools that are intuitive and don't require a dedicated IT team to manage.
For back-office Silver software, do not run it on bare metal servers.
Use this workflow when rolling out a Silver application package to your fleet: silver software distribution
Because Silver software is often unpatched, distribution must come with enforced security boundaries.
| Component | Purpose | |-----------|---------| | Artifact Repository | JFrog Artifactory, Nexus, or GitHub Packages | | CI/CD Pipeline | Jenkins, GitLab CI, GitHub Actions | | Signing Server | Hardware Security Module (HSM) or cloud KMS | | Metadata DB | Stores versions, checksums, release notes | | CDN | For scalable downloads (CloudFront, Fastly) | | Client Updater | Built-in update checker + rollback support | Big enterprise software (Salesforce, Oracle, SAP) is often
Implement in your application:
# Pseudocode
def check_for_silver_update():
current_version = get_current_version()
metadata = fetch("https://dist.example.com/silver/stable/release.json")
if metadata["version"] > current_version:
download_and_verify(metadata["artifacts"][platform])
apply_update()
else:
log("Already on latest silver")
Important rules for client:
Operational Technology (PLC controllers, SCADA systems) has a life cycle of 15-20 years. The software that runs a CNC machine cannot change its API. Silver distribution provides the driver updates and security filters without touching the core logic.