Introduction
FreeBSD's pkg(8) is a powerful, modern tool for managing packages. This page hopes to provide a resource through which you can translate your existing package management knowledge directly to FreeBSD.
This page is presently a work in progress.
Traditional ports (FreeBSD, DragonFly)
| Task | ports | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
|
| Package database (local) | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite | |
| Package database (remote) | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite | |
| Locally cached packages | /usr/ports/Packages/All/ /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
|
| Update database (remote) | portsnap fetch update | pkg update |
| Manual pages | man 8 ports | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | make -C /usr/ports quicksearch name=pattern make -C /usr/ports quicksearch key=pattern (description) | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | make -C /usr/ports/category/port install clean | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | make -C /usr/ports/category/port deinstall | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | pkg delete packagename | |
| List installed packages | pkg info | |
| List files installed by a package | pkg info -l packagename | |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | make -C /usr/ports/category/port build deinstall reinstall | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | portmaster -a (ports/ports-mgmt/portmaster) | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | pkg autoremove | |
| Delete outdated cached packages | portmaster –clean-distfiles (deletes distfiles) | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | pkg stats | |
| Find installed package by filename | pkg which filepath | |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | pkg audit -F | |
| Show special updating instructions | less /usr/ports/UPDATING | pkg updating |
OpenBSD tools
| Task | … | pkg |
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
pkgsrc (NetBSD and others)
| Task | pkgsrc | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
apt-get / dpkg (Debian, Ubuntu, Mint)
| Task | apt-get / dpkg | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | /etc/apt | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | /var/lib/dpkg/status | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | /var/lib/apt/lists/* | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | /var/cache/apt/archives/*.deb | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | apt-get update | pkg update |
| Manual pages | apt-get(8), apt-cache(8), dpkg(1) | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | apt-cache search pattern | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | apt-get install packagename | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | apt-get remove packagename | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | dpkg -l | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | dpkg -L packagename | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | apt-get install packagename | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | apt-get dist-upgrade | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | apt-get autoremove | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | apt-get autoclean | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | pkg stats | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | dpkg -S filepath | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | — | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | — | pkg updating |
apt (Debian bases, Ubuntu, Mint, ...)
| Task | apt | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
yum / rpm (RHEL 7, CentOS 7)
| Task | yum / rpm | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | /etc/yum.conf /etc/yum.repos.d/ | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | /var/lib/rpm/ | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | /var/cache/yum/arch/release/* | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | /var/cache/yum/arch/release/repo/packages/ | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | yum makecache | pkg update |
| Manual pages | man 8 yum man 8 rpm | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | yum search pattern | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | yum install packagename | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | yum remove packagename | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | yum autoremove packagename | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | rpm -qa yum info | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | rpm -ql packagename | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | yum upgrade packagename yum upgrade-to versionedpackagename | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | yum update (also see yum(8) for 'yum upgrade') | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | yum autoremove | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | yum clean packages (removes all cached packages) | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | yum history stats yum repoinfo | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | rpm -qf filepath | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | yum list-security yum –security check-update (both are RHEL-only) | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | (no equivalent) | pkg updating |
zypper / rpm (SuSE, OpenSuSE)
| Task | zypper / rpm | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
dnf / rpm (Fedora)
| Task | dnf / rpm | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
emerge (Gentoo)
| Task | emerge | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
pacman (Arch)
| Task | pacman | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | /etc/pacman.d/ /etc/pacman.conf | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | /var/lib/pacman/local/ | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | /var/lib/pacman/sync/ | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | /var/cache/pacman/pkg/ | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | pacman -Sy (Use caution) | pkg update |
| Manual pages | pacman operation –help man 8 pacman | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | pacman -Ss pattern (remote) pacman -Qs pattern (installed) | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | pacman -S packagename | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | pacman -R packagename | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | pacman -Rs packagename | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | pacman -Q | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | pacman -Ql packagename | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | (Not supported) | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | pacman -Syu | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | pacman -Sc | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | pacman -Qo filepath | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
slackpkg / sbotools (Slackware)
| Task | slackpkg / sbotools | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | /etc/slackpkg/* /etc/sbotools/sbotools.conf man 5 sbotools.conf man 1 sboconf | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | /var/log/packages | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | /var/lib/slackpkg/ | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | /var/cache/packages/ /usr/sbo/repo | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | slackpkg update | pkg update |
| Manual pages | man 8 slackpkg man 1 sbosubcommand | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | sbofind pattern | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | sboinstall packagename | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | removepkg packagename | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | sboremove packagename (slackbuilds.org packages only) | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | ls /var/log/packages | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | cat /var/log/packages/packagename | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | sboupgrade packagename (slackbuilds.org only) | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | slackpkg upgrade ; slackpkg install-new ; slackpkg upgrade-all sboupgrade –all | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | no equivalent | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | no equivalent | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | no equivalent | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | grep filepath /var/log/packages/* | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | no equivalent | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | no equvialent | pkg updating |
Solaris package tools
| Task | pkgadd etc. | pkg |
|---|---|---|
| Configuration files/dirs | … | /etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg/ /usr/local/etc/pkg.conf |
| Package database (local) | … | /var/db/pkg/local.sqlite |
| Package database (remote) | … | /var/db/pkg/repo-*.sqlite |
| Locally cached packages | … | /var/cache/pkg/*.pkg |
| Update database (remote) | … | pkg update |
| Manual pages | … | pkg help subcommand man 8 pkg-subcommand |
| Search package | … | pkg search pattern (only by name) |
| Install package | … | pkg install packagename |
| Delete single package | … | pkg delete -f packagename |
| Delete package and dependencies | … | pkg delete packagename |
| List installed packages | … | pkg info |
| List files installed by a package | … | pkg info -l packagename |
| Upgrade single package with dependencies | … | pkg upgrade packagename |
| Upgrade all packages | … | pkg upgrade |
| Delete automatically installed packages | … | pkg autoremove |
| Delete outdated cached packages | … | pkg clean |
| Show repository stats | … | pkg stats |
| Find installed package by filename | … | pkg which filepath |
| Show vulnerable installed packages | … | pkg audit -F |
| Show special updating instructions | … | pkg updating |
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Notes
Unlike some other package managers, FreeBSD's pkg does not handle starting and stopping of services when packages are installed or deleted. You have to use “service rcscript <start|stop|restart>” manually. To restart all enabled services installed from ports use “service -R”
To Do for this page:
- Note rc.conf, and more generally, service start syntax and requirements per system.
- Note FreeBSD distinctions: pkg, ports, base
- Note how to mix ports and packages, and note port tree branching. Discuss Poudriere.
- Note svn for updates, not just portsnap
- Note freebsd-update, since this is a package operation elsewhere