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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><title>Accessing package information</title><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="aptitude.css" /><meta name="generator" content="DocBook XSL Stylesheets Vsnapshot" /><link rel="home" href="index.html" title="aptitude user's manual" /><link rel="up" href="ch02s02.html" title="Managing packages" /><link rel="prev" href="ch02s02s01.html" title="Managing the package list" /><link rel="next" href="ch02s02s03.html" title="Modifying package states" /><link rel="preface" href="pr01.html" title="Introduction" /><link rel="chapter" href="ch01.html" title="Chapter 1. Getting started" /><link rel="chapter" href="ch02.html" title="Chapter 2. aptitude reference guide" /><link rel="chapter" href="ch03.html" title="Chapter 3. aptitude frequently asked questions" /><link rel="chapter" href="ch04.html" title="Chapter 4. Credits" /><link rel="reference" href="rn01.html" title="Command-line reference" /><link rel="refentry" href="rn01re01.html" title="aptitude" /><link rel="refentry" href="rn01re02.html" title="aptitude-create-state-bundle" /><link rel="refentry" href="rn01re03.html" title="aptitude-run-state-bundle" /><link rel="subsection" href="ch02s02s02.html#idm1467" title="The package list" /><link rel="subsection" href="ch02s02s02.html#secPackageInfo" title="Detailed package information" /></head><body><div class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">Accessing package information</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="ch02s02s01.html"><img src="images/prev.gif" alt="Prev" /></a> </td><th width="60%" align="center">Managing packages</th><td width="20%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="ch02s02s03.html"><img src="images/next.gif" alt="Next" /></a></td></tr></table><hr /></div><div class="section"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><a id="secAccessingPackageInformation"></a>Accessing package information</h3></div></div></div><div class="toc"><dl class="toc"><dt><span class="section"><a href="ch02s02s02.html#idm1467">The package list</a></span></dt><dt><span class="section"><a href="ch02s02s02.html#secPackageInfo">Detailed package information</a></span></dt></dl></div><p>
Information about packages is presented in several
locations in <span class="command"><strong>aptitude</strong></span>: the package list gives a quick
overview of the state of each package, and additional
views providing detailed information about a package are
also available.
</p><div class="section"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h4 class="title"><a id="idm1467"></a>The package list</h4></div></div></div><p>
The package list displays an <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">at-a-glance</span>”</span> synopsis of a
package's state. For instance, the package
<code class="systemitem">webmin</code> might have the
following synopsis:
</p><pre class="screen">piAU webmin +5837kB <none> 1.160-2</pre><p>
The four characters on the left-hand side of the
synopsis show that the package is not installed
(<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">p</span>”</span>), that it is going to be installed
(<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">i</span>”</span>), that it was automatically chosen to
be installed (<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">A</span>”</span>), and that it is
untrusted (<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">U</span>”</span>). On the right-hand side of
the synopsis, the current version and the most recent
available version are displayed, along with an
indication of how much space will be used by the
upgrade.
</p><div class="tip" style="margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0.5in;"><table border="0" summary="Tip"><tr><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="top" width="25"><img alt="[Tip]" src="images/tip.png" /></td><th align="left">Tip</th></tr><tr><td align="left" valign="top"><p>
You can customize how package synopses are displayed;
see <a class="xref" href="ch02s05s01.html#secDisplayFormat" title="Customizing how packages are displayed">the section called “Customizing how packages are displayed”</a> for details.
</p></td></tr></table></div><p>
The four status flags on the left-hand side of the
screen give the basic information about a package's
state. The first character is the package's
<span class="emphasis"><em>current state</em></span>. The second
character is the <span class="emphasis"><em>action</em></span> which will
be taken on the package. The third character indicates
whether the package was <span class="emphasis"><em>automatically
installed</em></span> (see <a class="xref" href="ch02s02s06.html" title="Managing automatically installed packages">the section called “Managing automatically installed packages”</a>), and the fourth character
indicates whether the package is trusted (see <a class="xref" href="ch02s02s05.html" title="Understanding and managing package trust">the section called “Understanding and managing package trust”</a>).
</p><p>
The possible values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">current state</span>”</span> flag are
given in <a class="xref" href="ch02s02s02.html#figureCurrentFlag" title="Figure 2.9. Values of the “current state” flag">Figure 2.9, “Values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">current state</span>”</span> flag”</a> and the
possible values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">action</span>”</span> flag are given in <a class="xref" href="ch02s02s02.html#figureActionFlag" title="Figure 2.10. Values of the “action” flag">Figure 2.10, “Values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">action</span>”</span> flag”</a>.
</p><div class="figure"><a id="figureCurrentFlag"></a><p class="title"><strong>Figure 2.9. Values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">current state</span>”</span> flag</strong></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="informaltable"><table class="informaltable" border="0"><colgroup><col /><col /><col /></colgroup><tbody><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">i</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package is installed and all its
dependencies are satisfied.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">c</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package was removed, but its configuration
files are still present.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">p</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package and all its configuration files
were removed, or the package was never
installed.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">v</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package is virtual.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">B</code></td><td>-</td><td>the package has broken dependencies.</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">u</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package has been unpacked but not
configured.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">C</code></td><td>-</td><td>
half-configured: the package's configuration
was interrupted.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">H</code></td><td>-</td><td>
half-installed: the package's installation was
interrupted.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">W</code></td><td>-</td><td>
triggers-awaited: the package awaits trigger
processing by another package.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">T</code></td><td>-</td><td>
triggers-pending: The package has had an update
triggered due to changes in another package.
</td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break" /><div class="figure"><a id="figureActionFlag"></a><p class="title"><strong>Figure 2.10. Values of the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">action</span>”</span> flag</strong></p><div class="figure-contents"><div class="informaltable"><table class="informaltable" border="0"><colgroup><col /><col /><col /></colgroup><tbody><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">i</code></td><td>-</td><td>the package will be installed.</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">u</code></td><td>-</td><td>the package will be upgraded.</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">w</code></td><td>-</td><td>the package will be downgraded.</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">d</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package will be deleted: it will be
removed, but its configuration files will
remain on the system.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">p</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package will be purged: it and its
configuration files will be removed.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">h</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package will be held back: it will be kept
at its current version, even if a newer
version becomes available, until the hold is
cancelled.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">F</code></td><td>-</td><td>
An upgrade of the package has been forbidden.
</td></tr><tr class="oddrow"><td><code class="computeroutput">r</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package will be reinstalled.
</td></tr><tr><td><code class="computeroutput">B</code></td><td>-</td><td>
the package is <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">broken</span>”</span>: some of its
dependencies will not be satisfied.
<span class="command"><strong>aptitude</strong></span> will not allow you to install,
remove, or upgrade anything while you have
broken packages.
</td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><br class="figure-break" /><p>
In addition, <span class="command"><strong>aptitude</strong></span> will use colors to indicate
package state if your terminal supports it. State
distinctions are mainly displayed using the background
color:
</p><div class="variablelist"><dl class="variablelist"><dt><span class="term">Black</span></dt><dd><p>
The package cannot be upgraded (or is not going to
be installed), and it has no dependency problems.
If the package is installed, its name will be
highlighted.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Green</span></dt><dd><p>
The package is going to be installed.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Blue</span></dt><dd><p>
The package is currently installed, and it will be
upgraded.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Brown</span></dt><dd><p>
The package is currently installed, and it will be
downgraded.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Magenta</span></dt><dd><p>
The package is currently installed, but it will be
removed.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">White</span></dt><dd><p>
The package is currently installed, and it is
<span class="quote">“<span class="quote">held</span>”</span> at its current version: automatic upgrades
will ignore it.
</p></dd><dt><span class="term">Red</span></dt><dd><p>
This package is broken: some of its dependencies
will not be satisfied.
</p></dd></dl></div><p>
Finally, the lower half of the screen displays the long
description. <span class="command"><strong>aptitude</strong></span> will attempt to detect whether
the package is involved in a dependency problem; if so,
information regarding the dependency problem will be
displayed here. To cycle between dependency information
and the package description, press <span class="keycap"><strong>i</strong></span>.
</p></div><div class="section"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h4 class="title"><a id="secPackageInfo"></a>Detailed package information</h4></div></div></div><p>
Pressing <span class="keycap"><strong>Enter</strong></span> while a package is
highlighted will display the package information screen:
</p><div class="screenshot"><div class="mediaobject"><table border="0" summary="manufactured viewport for HTML img" style="cellpadding: 0; cellspacing: 0;" width="100%"><tr><td><img src="images/info-snapshot.png" width="100%" alt="[package information screen]" /></td></tr></table><div class="longdesc-link" align="right"><br clear="all" /><span class="longdesc-link">[<a href="ld-idm1641.html" target="longdesc">D</a>]</span></div></div></div><p>
This display can be navigated in a manner similar to the
package list: for instance, in the screenshot above, I
expanded the dependency on
<code class="systemitem">apt-doc</code>, revealing the available
versions of <code class="systemitem">apt-doc</code> which will
fulfill the dependency. These versions can be manipulated
in the same way that packages can: for instance, to
install version <code class="systemitem">0.5.25</code> of
<code class="systemitem">apt-doc</code>, you would highlight it
and press <span class="keycap"><strong>+</strong></span>.
</p><div class="tip" style="margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0.5in;"><table border="0" summary="Tip"><tr><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="top" width="25"><img alt="[Tip]" src="images/tip.png" /></td><th align="left">Tip</th></tr><tr><td align="left" valign="top"><p>
To quickly satisfy a dependency, select the dependency
and press <span class="keycap"><strong>+</strong></span>; <span class="command"><strong>aptitude</strong></span> will
attempt to automatically satisfy it.
</p></td></tr></table></div><p>
In addition to the dependencies of a package, you can view
the package names that it Provides, the packages which
depend upon it, and the available versions of the package
(including any other packages that Provide it).
</p><p>
As usual, you can dismiss this screen and return to the
main view by pressing <span class="keycap"><strong>q</strong></span>. For
convenience, a few other information screens (which only
display some commonly-used information, hiding the rest)
are available: press <span class="keycap"><strong>v</strong></span> to view the
versions of a package, <span class="keycap"><strong>d</strong></span> to view the
dependencies of a package, and <span class="keycap"><strong>r</strong></span> to view
the <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">reverse dependencies</span>”</span> of a package (packages which
depend upon it).
</p></div></div><div class="navfooter"><hr /><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="ch02s02s01.html"><img src="images/prev.gif" alt="Prev" /></a> </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="u" href="ch02s02.html"><img src="images/up.gif" alt="Up" /></a></td><td width="40%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="ch02s02s03.html"><img src="images/next.gif" alt="Next" /></a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">Managing the package list </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="index.html"><img src="images/home.gif" alt="Home" /></a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top"> Modifying package states</td></tr></table></div></body></html>