List of files installed from apt package

Question

How do I get a list of files that were or will-be installed when I apt-get a package? Conversely, can I find what package(s) caused a particular file to be installed?

Solution 1

Note: in the following commands, a command beginning with 'root#' means it needs to be run as root.

To find which files were installed by a package, use dpkg -L:

$ dpkg -L $package

apt-file can tell you which files will be installed by a package before installing it:

root# apt-get install apt-file
root# apt-file update
$ apt-file list $package

Or if you have the package as a .deb file locally already, you can run dpkg on it:

$ dpkg --contents $package.deb

To find which package provides a file that is already on your system, use:

$ dpkg -S /path/to/file

To find which package provides a file that is not currently on your system, use apt-file again:

$ apt-file search /path/to/file

Solution 2

dpkg -S /path/to/file/in/question

As far as I'm concerned, dpkg is the low-level tool that apt-get depends on.

Solution 3

Here is a function that should do it for you without the need to downloading the package to disk.

apt_list () 
{ 
    local packages=("$@");
    for pkg in $(seq 0 1 $((${#packages[@]}-1)));
    do
        echo -e "\n#### ${packages[$pkg]} ####\n";
        apt-get download -o Dir::Cache::archives="./" --print-uris ${packages[$pkg]} | awk -F\' '{print $2}' | xargs -I '{}' curl -skL '{}' | dpkg-deb -c /dev/stdin | perl -ne 's,(:\d\d )[.]/,$1/,g;print';
        echo;
    done
}

Then use apt_list <package name1> [package name 2]

e.g. apt_list curl wget

As for reverse checking files from packages apt-file would be the best bet.

Solution 4

If you have installed dlocate, you can use dlocate -L the same way as dpkg -L. It works exactly the same in this case, but has a number of other options.

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Comments

[Ciro Santilli Путлер Капут 六四事]

Similar on SU superuser.com/questions/82923/… on Ubuntu: askubuntu.com/questions/32507/…

[Admin]

Both ubuntu and debian have web for this, for example packages.ubuntu.com/focal/amd64/tldr/filelist

[Zoredache]

Keep in mind that while this will get you most of what you need it will not give you everything. Several packages create configuration files as part of their setup scripts. These files will not be reported by dpkg.

[Araejay]

Yes, dpkg is the command that adds and removes software and files from you mcomputer. apt (incl. Apt-get, aptitude, synaptic, etc.) is the programme that calls dpkg

[Alecz]

$ dpkg -L package not $ dpkg -L $package putting the $ in front of the package names returns an error

[BJladu4]

The dollar is meant to be understood as a variable, meaning you need to replace $package with the actual name of the package.

[Uwe Geuder]

conffiles of a package (if any) are listed by command dpkg --status $package. For the reverse operation use grep $filename /var/lib/dpkg/info/*.conffiles.

[samshers]

bit late Q - - what does sudo apt-file update do ??

[Victor Yarema]

@samshers, apt-file update command populates the db which apt-file uses for searches.

[confiq]

what if you don't have apt-file?

[Speeddymon]

@confiq if you don't have apt-file, run sudo apt-get -y install apt-file then run sudo apt-file update. After that you can use the tool as described above.

[linuxgeek]

It can be done with some creative piping from apt-get though, see my answer below :)

[Admin]

I find apt-file list $package the most useful. dpkg -L $package lists directories. Thanks!