&apt-email;
&apt-product;
<!-- The last update date -->
- <date>2012-06-09T00:00:00Z</date>
+ <date>2015-09-25T00:00:00Z</date>
</refentryinfo>
<refmeta>
<!-- Man page title -->
<refnamediv>
<refname>apt-mark</refname>
- <refpurpose>mark/unmark a package as being automatically-installed</refpurpose>
+ <refpurpose>show, set and unset various settings for a package</refpurpose>
</refnamediv>
&synopsis-command-apt-mark;
<refsect1><title>Description</title>
- <para><command>apt-mark</command> will change whether a package has
- been marked as being automatically installed.
+ <para><command>apt-mark</command> can be used as a unified front-end to set
+ various settings for a package, such as marking a package as being
+ automatically/manually installed or changing <command>dpkg</command>
+ selections such as hold, install, deinstall and purge which are respected
+ e.g. by <command>apt-get dselect-upgrade</command> or <command>aptitude</command>.
</para>
+ </refsect1><refsect1><title>Automatically and Manually Installed Packages</title>
<para>
When you request that a package is installed, and as a result
other packages are installed to satisfy its dependencies, the
- dependencies are marked as being automatically installed. Once
- these automatically installed packages are no longer depended on
- by any manually installed packages, they will be removed by e.g.
- <command>apt-get</command> or <command>aptitude</command>.
+ dependencies are marked as being automatically installed, while the
+ package you installed explicitly is marked as manually installed.
+ Once an automatically installed package is no longer depended on
+ by any manually installed package it is considered no longer needed
+ and e.g. <command>apt-get</command> or <command>aptitude</command>
+ will at least suggest removing them.
</para>
- <variablelist>
+ <variablelist>
<varlistentry><term><option>auto</option></term>
<listitem><para><literal>auto</literal> is used to mark a
package as being automatically installed, which will cause the
package to be removed when no more manually installed packages
depend on this package.
</para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
+ </varlistentry>
<varlistentry><term><option>manual</option></term>
<listitem><para><literal>manual</literal> is used to mark a
package from being automatically removed if no other packages
depend on it.
</para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry><term><option>hold</option></term>
- <listitem><para><literal>hold</literal> is used to mark a
- package as held back, which will prevent the package from being
- automatically installed, upgraded or removed.
- The command is only a wrapper around <command>dpkg --set-selections</command>
- and the state is therefore maintained by &dpkg; and not affected
- by the <option>--file</option> option.
- </para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
-
- <varlistentry><term><option>unhold</option></term>
- <listitem><para><literal>unhold</literal> is used to cancel a
- previously set hold on a package to allow all actions again.
- </para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
+ </varlistentry>
<varlistentry><term><option>showauto</option></term>
<listitem><para><literal>showauto</literal> is used to print a
All automatically installed packages will be listed if no package is given.
If packages are given only those which are automatically installed will be shown.
</para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
+ </varlistentry>
<varlistentry><term><option>showmanual</option></term>
<listitem><para><literal>showmanual</literal> can be used in
the same way as <literal>showauto</literal> except that it will print
a list of manually installed packages instead.
</para></listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
+ </variablelist>
+
+ <refsect2><title>Options</title>
+ <variablelist>
+ <varlistentry>
+ <term><option>-f=&synopsis-param-filename;</option></term>
+ <term><option>--file=&synopsis-param-filename;</option></term>
+ <listitem><para>
+ Read/Write package stats from the filename given with the parameter
+ &synopsis-param-filename; instead of from the default location, which
+ is <filename>extended_status</filename> in the directory defined
+ by the Configuration Item: <literal>Dir::State</literal>.
+ </para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
+ </variablelist>
+ </refsect2>
- <varlistentry><term><option>showhold</option></term>
- <listitem><para><literal>showhold</literal> is used to print a list
- of packages on hold in the same way as for the other show commands.
+ </refsect1><refsect1><title>Prevent Changes for a Package</title>
+ <variablelist>
+ <varlistentry><term><option>hold</option></term>
+ <listitem><para><literal>hold</literal> is used to mark a
+ package as held back, which will prevent the package from being
+ automatically installed, upgraded or removed.
</para></listitem>
- </varlistentry>
+ </varlistentry>
+ <varlistentry><term><option>unhold</option></term>
+ <listitem><para><literal>unhold</literal> is used to cancel a
+ previously set hold on a package to allow all actions again.
+ </para></listitem>
+ </varlistentry>
- </variablelist>
- </refsect1>
-
- <refsect1><title>options</title>
-
- <variablelist>
- <varlistentry>
- <term><option>-f=&synopsis-param-filename;</option></term>
- <term><option>--file=&synopsis-param-filename;</option></term>
- <listitem><para>
- Read/Write package stats from the filename given with the parameter
- &synopsis-param-filename; instead of from the default location, which
- is <filename>extended_status</filename> in the directory defined
- by the Configuration Item: <literal>Dir::State</literal>.</para></listitem>
+ <varlistentry><term><option>showhold</option></term>
+ <listitem><para><literal>showhold</literal> is used to print a list
+ of packages on hold in the same way as for the other show commands.
+ </para></listitem>
</varlistentry>
+ </variablelist>
+ </refsect1><refsect1><title>Schedule Packages for Install, Remove and Purge</title>
+ <para>
+ Some front-ends like <command>apt-get dselect-upgrade</command> can be used to
+ apply previously scheduled changes to the install state of packages. Such changes
+ can be scheduled with the <option>install</option>, <option>remove</option>
+ (also known as <option>deinstall</option>) and <option>purge</option> commands.
+ Packages with a specific selection can be displayed with <option>showinstall</option>,
+ <option>showremove</option> and <option>showpurge</option> respectively.
+ More information about these so called dpkg selections can be found in &dpkg;.
+ </para>
+ </refsect1>
+ <refsect1><title>Options</title>
+ <variablelist>
&apt-commonoptions;
</variablelist>
</refsect1>
projects / apt.git / blobdiff