The features that most package management systems provide are:
Package downloading
Dependency resolution
A standard binary package format
Common installation and configuration locations
Additional system-related configuration and functionality
Quality control
There are different package management systems that cover different types of files like “.deb”, “.rpm”, and others.
The package management software retrieves the necessary changes for system installation from the package itself and then implements these changes to install the package successfully.
If the package management software recognizes that additional packages are required for the proper functioning of the package that has not yet been installed, a dependency is included and either warns the administrator or tries to reload the missing software from a repository, for example, and install it in advance
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
dpkg |
The dpkg is a tool to install, build, remove, and manage Debian packages. The primary and more user-friendly front-end for dpkg is aptitude. |
apt |
Apt provides a high-level command-line interface for the package management system. |
aptitude |
Aptitude is an alternative to apt and is a high-level interface to the package manager. |
snap |
Install, configure, refresh, and remove snap packages. Snaps enable the secure distribution of the latest apps and utilities for the cloud, servers, desktops, and the internet of things. |
gem |
Gem is the front-end to RubyGems, the standard package manager for Ruby. |
pip |
Pip is a Python package installer recommended for installing Python packages that are not available in the Debian archive. It can work with version control repositories (currently only Git, Mercurial, and Bazaar repositories), logs output extensively, and prevents partial installs by downloading all requirements before starting installation. |
git |
Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations and full access to internals. |
dpkg which may require manual dependency resolution.