RPM Packages installation and usage

RPM Packages installation and usage

RPM Packages installation and usage

Note:

• Normal querying doesnot require a root loogin but for installation and uninstalling a package you need to be logged in as root.
• We can also use regular expressions or wiild-characters with the rpm command.

RPM PACKAGE INSTALLATION/ UNINSTALLATION:

# installing a rpm package with hash printing and in verbose mode

rpm -ivh foobar-1.0-i386.rpm

# to install a package ignoring any dependencies

rpm -ivh –nodeps

# upgrading a package with hash printing and in verbose mode

rpm -Uvh foobar-1.1-i386.rpm

# Upgrade only those which are already installed from an RPM repository

rpm -Fvh *.rpm

# uninstall a package

rpm -e foobar

# uninstall ignoring the dependencies

rpm -e –nodeps foobar

# to force install /uninstall

rpm -ivh –force foobar-1.0-i386.rpm

RPM PACKAGE QUERY

# find all those packages which are installed on your system

rpm -qa | sort | less

rpm -qa | sort > rpmlist

# findout all the files which are installed by a rpm package

rpm -ql foobar

rpm -qpl foobar-1.0-i386.rpm

# search for an installed package

rpm -qa | grep foobar

# search for a specific file in a rpm repository

for i in *.rpm ; do rpm -qpl $i | grep filename && echo $i ; done

# findout to what package does the a directory/file (say) /etc/skel belong to

rpm -qf /etc/skel

rpm -q –whatprovides

# to see what config files are installed by a package

rpm -qc foobar

MISC

# To test walk-through a installtion of a package use

rpm -ivh –test foobar-1.1-i386.rpm

10. Similarly uninstalling a package without considering dependencies, use

# rpm -e –nodeps

11. To force install a package ( same as using “–replacefiles” and “–replacepkgs” together.

It like installing a package with no questions asked 🙂 use it with caution, this option can make some of your existing software unusable or unstable

# rpm -i –force

12. To exclude the documentation for a package while installing, useful incase of minimal stripped-down installation

# rpm -i –excludedocs

13. To include documentation while installing (by default this option is enabled), this option is useful only one has set to exclude documentation in “/etc/rpmrc” or in “~/.rpmrc” or in /usr/lib/rpm/rpmrc”

# rpm -ivh –includedocs

14. To display the debug info while installing, use

When using this option it not neccessary to specify the “-v” verbose option as the debug information provided by the rpm command is verbose by default.

# rpm -ih –test -vv

As already discussed “-ih” combined option tell rpm to do installation with hash printing, and using the “–test” tells the rpm command to only do walkthrough of installation and not to do the actual installation, “-vv” option asks the rpm package to also print the debug information.

15. To upgrade a package (i.e uninstall the previous version and install a newer version), use

# rpm -U -v -h

16. To permit upgrade to an old package version (i.e downgrade), use

# rpm -U -v -h –oldpackage

17. To list all the rpm(s) installed on your system, use

$ rpm -qa

One can pipe the output of the above command to another shell command, e.g.

$ rpm -qa | less

$ rpm -qa | grep “foobar”

$ rpm -qa > installed_rpm.lst

• Use you imagination for more combinations, you may even use wild characters.