LPI Linux Certification in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition
by Steven Pritchard, Bruno Gomes Pessanha, Nicolai Langfeldt, James Stanger, Jeff Dean
Objective 5: Use Debian Package Management
The Debian package management system is a versatile and automated suite of tools used to acquire and manage software packages for Debian Linux. The system automatically handles many of the management details associated with interdependent software running on your system.
Debian Package Management Overview
Each Debian package contains program and configuration files, documentation, and noted dependencies on other packages. The names of Debian packages have three common elements, including:
- Package name
A Debian package name is short and descriptive. When multiple words are used in the name, they are separated by hyphens. Typical names include binutils, kernel-source, and telnet.
- Version number
Each package has a version. Most package versions are the same as that of the software they contain. The format of package versions varies from package to package, but most are numeric (
major.minor.patchlevel).- A file extension
By default, all Debian packages end with .deb file extension.
Figure 4-1 illustrates a Debian package name.

Figure 4-1. The structure of a Debian GNU/Linux package name
Managing Debian Packages
The original Debian package management tool is dpkg, which operates directly on .deb package files and can be used to automate the installation and maintenance of software packages. The alternative apt-get tool operates using package names, ...
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