path: root/doc/pacman.8.txt

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pacman(8)
=========

Name
----
pacman - package manager utility


Synopsis
--------
'pacman' <operation> [options] [packages]


Description
-----------
Pacman is a package management utility that tracks installed packages on a Linux
system. It features dependency support, package groups, install and uninstall
hooks, and the ability to sync your local machine with a remote ftp server to
automatically upgrade packages. Pacman packages are a zipped tar format.

Since version 3.0.0, pacman has been the frontend to linkman:libalpm[3], the
"Arch Linux Package Management" library. This library allows alternative front
ends to be written (for instance, a GUI front end).


Operations
----------
*-Q, \--query*::
	Query the package database. This operation allows you to view installed
	packages and their files, as well as meta-information about individual
	packages (dependencies, conflicts, install date, build date, size). This
	can be run against the local package database or can be used on
	individual '.tar.gz' packages. See <<QO,Query Options>> below.

*-R, \--remove*::
	Remove a package from the system. Groups can also be specified to be
	removed, in which case every package in that group will be removed.
	Files belonging to the specified package will be deleted, and the
	database will be updated. Most configuration files will be saved
	with a `.pacsave` extension unless the '\--nosave' option is used.
	See <<RO,Remove Options>> below.

*-S, \--sync*::
	Synchronize packages. Packages are installed directly from the ftp
	servers, including all dependencies required to run the packages. For
	example, `pacman -S qt` will download and install qt and all the
	packages it depends on. If a package name exists in more than one repo, the
	repo can be explicitly specified to clarify the package to install:
	`pacman -S testing/qt`.
+
In addition to packages, groups can be specified as well. For example, if
gnome is a defined package group, then `pacman -S gnome` will install every
package in the gnome group, as well as the dependencies of those packages.
+
Packages which provide other packages are also handled. For example, `pacman -S
foo` will first look for a foo package. If foo is not found, packages which
provide the same functionality as foo will be searched for. If any package is
found, it will be installed.
+
You can also use `pacman -Su` to upgrade all packages that are out of date. See
<<SO,Sync Options>> below.

*-U, \--upgrade*::
	Upgrade or add a package to the system. Either a URL or file path can be
	specified. This is a "remove-then-add" process. See <<HCF,Handling Config
	Files>> for an explanation on how pacman takes care of config files.

*-V, \--version*::
	Display version and exit.

*-h, \--help*::
	Display syntax for the given operation. If no operation was supplied
	then the general syntax is shown.


Options
-------
*\--asdeps*::
	Install packages non-explicitly; in other words, fake their install reason
	to be installed as a dependency. This is useful for makepkg and other
	build from source tools that need to install dependencies before building
	the package.

*\--asexplicit*::
	Install packages explicitly; in other words, fake their install reason to
	be explicitly installed. This is useful if you want mark a dependency as
	explictly installed.

*-b, \--dbpath* <'path'>::
	Specify an alternative database location (a typical default is
	``/var/lib/pacman'').  This should not be used unless you know what you are
	doing. *NOTE*: if specified, this is an absolute path and the root path is
	not automatically prepended. This behavior changed in pacman 3.1.0.

*-d, \--nodeps*::
	Skips all dependency checks. Normally, pacman will always check a
	package's dependency fields to ensure that all dependencies are
	installed and there are no package conflicts in the system.

*-f, \--force*::
	Bypass file conflict checks and overwrite conflicting files. If the
	package that is about to be installed contains files that are already
	installed, this option will cause all those files to be overwritten.
	This option should be used with care, ideally not at all.

*-r, \--root* <'path'>::
	Specify an alternative installation root (default is ``/''). This should
	not be used as a way to install software into ``/usr/local'' instead of
	``/usr''. This option is used if you want to install a package on a
	temporary mounted partition which is "owned" by another system.
	*NOTE*: If database path or logfile are not specified on either the
	command line or in linkman:pacman.conf[5], their default location will
	be inside this root path.

*-v, --verbose*::
	Output paths such as as the Root, Conf File, DB Path, Cache Dirs, etc.

*\--cachedir* <'dir'>::
	Specify an alternative package cache location (a typical default is
	``/var/cache/pacman/pkg''). Multiple cache directories can be specified,
	and they are tried in the order they are passed to pacman. *NOTE*: this
	is an absolute path, the root path is not automatically prepended. This
	behavior changed in pacman 3.1.0.

*\--config* <'file'>::
	Specify an alternate configuration file.

*\--logfile* <'file'>::
	Specify an alternate log file. This is an absolute path, regardless of
	the installation root setting.

*\--noconfirm*::
	Bypass any and all "Are you sure?" messages. It's not a good idea to do
	this unless you want to run pacman from a script.

*\--noprogressbar*::
	Do not show a progress bar when downloading files. This can be useful
	for scripts that call pacman and capture the output.

*\--noscriptlet*::
	If an install scriptlet exists, do not execute it. Do not use this
	unless you know what you are doing.


Query Options[[QO]]
-------------------
*-c, \--changelog*::
	View the ChangeLog of a package. Not every package will provide one but
	it will be shown if available.

*-d, \--deps*::
	List all packages installed as dependencies. This option can be combined
	with '-t' for listing real orphans- packages that were installed as
	dependencies but are no longer required by any installed package. ('-Qdt'
	is equivalent to the pacman 3.0.X '-Qe' option.)

*-e, \--explicit*::
	List all packages explicitly installed. This option can be combined with
	'-t' to list top-level packages- those packages that were explicitly
	installed but are not required by any other package. ('-Qet' is equivalent
	to the pacman 2.9.X '-Qe' option.)

*-g, \--groups*::
	Display all packages that are members of a named group. If a name is not
	specified, list all grouped packages.

*-i, \--info*::
	Display information on a given package. The '-p' option can be used if
	querying a package file instead of the local database. Passing two
	'\--info' or '-i' flags will also display the list of backup files and
	their modification states.

*-l, \--list*::
	List all files owned by a given package. Multiple packages can be
	specified on the command line.

*-m, \--foreign*::
	Restrict or filter output to packages that were not found in the sync
	database(s).  Typically these are packages that were downloaded manually
	and installed with '\--upgrade'.

*-o, \--owns* <'file'>::
	Search for the package that owns file. The path can be relative or
	absolute.

*-p, \--file*::
	Signifies that the package supplied on the command line is a file and
	not an entry in the database. The file will be decompressed and queried.
	This is useful in combination with '\--info' and '\--list'.

*-s, \--search* <'regexp'>::
	This will search each locally-installed package for names or
	descriptions that match `regexp`.

*-t, \--unrequired*::
	Restrict or filter output to packages not required by any currently
	installed package.

*-u, \--upgrades*::
	Lists all packages that are out of date on the local system. This option
	works best if the sync database is refreshed using '-Sy'.


Remove Options[[RO]]
--------------------
*-c, \--cascade*::
	Remove all target packages, as well as all packages that depend on one
	or more target packages. This operation is recursive, and must be used
	with care since it can remove many potentially needed packages.

*-k, \--keep*::
	Removes the database entry only. Leaves all files in place.

*-n, \--nosave*::
	Instructs pacman to ignore file backup designations. Normally, when a
	file is removed from the system the database is checked to see if the
	file should be renamed with a ``.pacsave'' extension.

*-s, \--recursive*::
	Remove each target specified including all of their dependencies, provided
	that (A) they are not required by other packages; and (B) they were not
	explicitly installed by the user. This operation is recursive and analogous
	to a backwards '\--sync' operation, and helps keep a clean system without
	orphans. If you want to omit condition (B), pass this option twice.

*-u, \--unneeded*::
	Removes the targets that are not required by any other packages.
	This is mostly useful when removing a group without using the '-c' option,
	to avoid breaking any dependencies.


Sync Options[[SO]]
------------------
*-c, \--clean*::
	Remove packages that are no longer installed from the cache as well as
	currently unused sync databases to free up disk space. When pacman
	downloads packages, it saves them in a cache directory. In addition,
	databases are saved for every sync DB you download from, and are not
	deleted even if they are removed from the configuration file
	linkman:pacman.conf[5]. Use one '\--clean' switch to only remove
	packages that are no longer installed; use two to remove all packages
	from the cache. In both cases, you will have a yes or no option to
	remove packages and/or unused downloaded databases.

*-e, \--dependsonly*::
	Install all dependencies of a package, but not the specified package
	itself. This is pretty useless and we're not sure why it even exists.

*-g, \--groups*::
	Display all the members for each package group specified. If no group
	names are provided, all groups will be listed; pass the flag twice to
	view all groups and their members.

*-i, \--info*::
	Display dependency and other information for a given package. This will
	search through all repositories for a matching package.

*-l, \--list*::
	List all packages in the specified repositories. Multiple repositories
	can be specified on the command line.

*-p, \--print-uris*::
	Print out URIs for each package that will be installed, including any
	dependencies yet to be installed. These can be piped to a file and
	downloaded at a later time, using a program like wget.

*-s, \--search* <'regexp'>::
	This will search each package in the sync databases for names or
	descriptions that match `regexp`.

*-u, \--sysupgrade*::
	Upgrades all packages that are out of date. Each currently-installed
	package will be examined and upgraded if a newer package exists. A
	report of all packages to upgrade will be presented and  the operation
	will not proceed without user confirmation. Dependencies are
	automatically resolved at this level and will be installed/upgraded if
	necessary.

*-w, \--downloadonly*::
	Retrieve all packages from the server, but do not install/upgrade
	anything.

*-y, \--refresh*::
	Download a fresh copy of the master package list from the server(s)
	defined in linkman:pacman.conf[5]. This should typically be used each time
	you use	'\--sysupgrade' or '-u'. Passing two '\--refresh' or '-y' flags
	will force a refresh of all package lists even if they are thought to be up
	to date.

*\--needed*::
	Only install the targets that are not already installed and up-to-date.

*\--ignore* <'package'>::
	Directs pacman to ignore upgrades of package even if there is one
	available. Multiple packages can be specified by separating them
	with a comma.

*\--ignoregroup* <'group'>::
	Directs pacman to ignore upgrades of all packages in 'group' even if
	there is one available. Multiple groups can be specified by
	separating them with a comma.


Handling Config Files[[HCF]]
----------------------------
Pacman uses the same logic as rpm to determine action against files that are
designated to be backed up. During an upgrade, 3 md5 hashes are used for each
backup file to determine the required action: one for the original file
installed, one for the new file that's about to be installed, and one for the
actual file existing on the filesystem. After comparing these 3 hashes, the
follow scenarios can result:

original=X, current=X, new=X::
	All three files are the same, so overwrites are not an issue Install the
	new file.

original=X, current=X, new=Y::
	The current file is the same as the original but the new one differs.
	Since the user did not ever modify the file, and the new one may contain
	improvements or bugfixes, install the new file.

original=X, current=Y, new=X::
	Both package versions contain the exact same file, but the one on the
	filesystem has  been  modified. Leave the current file in place.

original=X, current=Y, new=Y::
	The new file is identical to the current file. Install the new file.

original=X, current=Y, new=Z::
	All three files are different, so install the new file with a '.pacnew'
	extension and warn the user. The user must then manually merge any
	necessary changes into the original file.


Configuration
-------------
See linkman:pacman.conf[5] for more details on configuring pacman using the
'pacman.conf' file.


See Also
--------
linkman:pacman.conf[5], linkman:makepkg[8], linkman:libalpm[3]

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