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pkgin Package Manager

repository·master·Indexed 41 days ago

https://github.com/netbsdfr/pkgin

A package management tool for NetBSD designed to provide an experience similar to apt or yum for managing pkgsrc binary packages. It includes utilities for installing, upgrading, and removing packages, as well as tools for dependency inspection, repository configuration, and managing package 'keep' status.

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What's inside pkgin

  1. Control package 'keep' status

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    In pkgsrc terminology, you can mark packages as either 'automatic' or 'non-automatic'. This affects whether pkgin autoremove will delete them.

    • keep [package] ...: Marks a package as "non auto-removable".
    • unkeep [package] ...: Marks a package as "auto-removable". If no other package depends on it, it will be removed during an autoremove operation.
    • show-keep: Displays all "non auto-removable" packages.
    • show-no-keep: Displays all "auto-removable" packages.

  2. Set up pkgin and initialize the database

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    To use pkgin, you must first configure your repository URIs and then initialize the local database.

    1. Configure repositories by writing the URI to /usr/pkg/etc/pkgin/repositories.conf.
    2. Run pkgin update to create and populate the initial database of locally installed and available packages from the remote pkg_summary(5) list.
    # Configure the repository (example for NetBSD i386 5.0)
echo ftp://ftp.fr.netbsd.org/pub/pkgsrc/packages/NetBSD/i386/5.0/All > /usr/pkg/etc/pkgin/repositories.conf

# Initialize the database
pkgin update

  3. Manage packages with pkgin commands

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    The pkgin utility provides a suite of commands for package lifecycle management, similar to apt or yum.

    Installation and Upgrades

    • install [package|glob] ...: Installs or upgrades specified packages. You can use globs to target specific versions (e.g., pkgin install 'mysql-server>5.1<5.6').
    • upgrade: Upgrades all installed packages to the newest versions available in the repository.
    • import [file]: Installs a list of packages from a file (one per line).

    Removal

    • remove [package] ...: Removes the specified package and all packages that depend on it.
    • autoremove: Removes orphan dependencies. Use the -n flag to preview which packages would be removed without actually performing the action.
    • clean: Deletes downloaded packages from the cache directory (/var/db/pkgin/cache/).

    Information and Inspection

    • avail: Lists all packages available in the repository.
    • list: Lists all locally installed packages. Use the -l [STATUS_FLAG] modifier to filter by status.
    • search [pattern]: Performs a regular expression search in the repository.
    • show-deps: Displays direct dependencies.
    • show-full-deps [package]: Displays all direct dependencies recursively.
    • show-rev-deps [package]: Displays all reverse direct dependencies (recursively if multiple packages are provided).
    • pkg-content [package]: Shows remote package content.
    • pkg-descr [package]: Shows remote package long-description.
    • pkg-build-defs [package]: Shows remote package build definitions.
    • provides [package]: Shows what a package provides to others.
    • requires [package]: Shows what a package requires from other packages.
    • show-category [category]: Shows packages in a specific category.
    • show-pkg-category [package]: Shows the category of a specific package.

  4. Configure pkgin via environment variables and files

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    Environment Variables

    • PKG_REPOS: A space-separated list of repository URIs. This overrides the default configuration in /usr/pkg/etc/pkgin/repositories.conf.

    Configuration Files

    • /usr/pkg/etc/pkgin/repositories.conf: Contains repository URIs. Supports $arch (machine platform) and $osrelease (OS release) macros.
    • /usr/pkg/etc/pkgin/preferred.conf: Defines package preferences (e.g., specific versions to prefer) using glob patterns.

    Data Directories

    • /var/db/pkgin/: Contains runtime components. If the database is corrupted, this directory can be emptied to trigger a rebuild from pkg_install's PKG_DB on the next call.
    • /var/db/pkgin/pkgin.db: The main SQLite database used for querying and matching packages.
    • /var/db/pkgin/cache/: Stores downloaded packages. Can be cleared via pkgin clean or rm -rf /var/db/pkgin/cache.

  5. Inspect package dependencies and metadata

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    pkgin allows you to inspect the dependency tree and package metadata without installing them. This is useful for understanding what a package requires or what it provides to the system.

    pkgin show-full-deps <package>    # Show full dependency tree
pkgin show-provides <package>    # Show what a package provides
pkgin show-requires <package>   # Show what a package requires
pkgin search <query>             # Search for packages

  6. Manage package installation and removal

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    Use pkgin install to add packages and their dependencies to your system. Use pkgin remove to uninstall packages and their unused reverse dependencies. You can use the -d flag with install to download packages without installing them.

    pkgin install <package>
pkgin install -d <package>
pkgin remove <package>

  7. Use pkgin command line options

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    Common flags to modify pkgin behavior:

    • -y: Assumes "yes" as the default answer for prompts (except for autoremove).
    • -n: Assumes "no" as the default answer and prints actions line by line (useful for dry-runs).
    • -V: Enables verbose output during (un)installation.
    • -p: Displays results in a parsable format.
    • -F: Forces a package reinstallation.
    • -f: Forces a database update.
    • -d: Download only (does not install).
    • -l [limit_chars]: Filters list output by specific [STATUS FLAGS].
    pkgin [-dfFhpPvVyn] [-l limit_chars] [-c chroot_path] [-t log_file] command [package ...]

  8. Filter installed packages by status flags

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    When using the list command with the -l modifier, you can filter installed packages using these status flags:

    • =: The installed version is current.
    • <: The installed version is older than the current version.
    • >: The installed version is newer than the current version.
    # Example: List only packages that have an update available
pkgin list -l <

  9. Reference: pkgin global flags

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    The following flags can be used with the pkgin command to modify its execution behavior:

    -4          Force IPv4
-6          Force IPv6
-c <path>   Specify a chroot path
-d          Download only (do not install)
-f          Force update
-h          Show usage
-l <limit>  Set list output limit
-n          No (automatic 'no' to prompts)
-y          Yes (automatic 'yes' to prompts)
-P          Show package version
-t <file>   Trace output to file
-v          Verbose
-V          Show pkgin and pdb version
-p          Parsable output

  10. Reference: pkgin subcommands

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    The following commands are available in pkgin (note: exact shortcuts depend on the internal cmd table defined in cmd.h):

    update              Update packages database
install              Install a package and its dependencies
upgrade               Upgrade packages
full-upgrade         Full upgrade of all packages
remove               Remove packages and reverse dependencies
autoremove           Remove orphan packages
keep                 Mark a package as "keep" (not automatic)
unkeep               Mark a package as "unkeep" (automatic)
show-keep            Show keep packages
show-nokeep          Show non-keep packages
search               Search for a package
clean                Clean pkgin's packages cache
export               Export PKGPATH for keep packages
import               Import keep packages and install them
show-provides        Show what a package provides
show-requires        Show what a package requires
show-info            Show remote package info (content, DESCR, build defs)
show-category       Show package's category
show-all-categories  Show all categories
show-direct-deps     Show direct dependencies
show-full-deps       Show full dependency tree
show-rev-deps        Show full reverse dependency tree
list-local           List local packages
list-remote           List available packages
stats                Show package statistics

  11. List available pkgin commands

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    The pkgin utility provides a wide range of commands for managing pkgsrc binary packages, including installation, removal, searching, and dependency inspection. Commands can often be invoked via their full name or a short alias.

  12. Use pkgin CLI options

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    The pkgin command supports several global flags that modify its behavior across different subcommands. These include network protocol selection, automation flags, and verbosity settings.

    pkgin [-46cdfhlnPtvVy] command [package ...]