dpkg-query(1)                     dpkg suite                     dpkg-query(1)



NAME
       dpkg-query - a tool to query the dpkg database

SYNOPSIS
       dpkg-query [option...] command

DESCRIPTION
       dpkg-query  is  a tool to show information about packages listed in the
       dpkg database.

COMMANDS
       -l, --list [package-name-pattern...]
              List packages matching given pattern. If no package-name-pattern
              is  given,  list all packages in /var/lib/dpkg/status, excluding
              the ones marked as not-installed (i.e.  those  which  have  been
              previously  purged). Normal shell wildchars are allowed in pack-
              age-name-pattern. Please note you will probably  have  to  quote
              package-name-pattern  to prevent the shell from performing file-
              name expansion. For example this will  list  all  package  names
              starting with "libc6":

                dpkg-query -l 'libc6*'

              The  first  three columns of the output show the desired action,
              the package status, and errors, in that order.

              Desired action:
                u = Unknown
                i = Install
                h = Hold
                r = Remove
                p = Purge

              Package status:
                n = Not-installed
                c = Config-files
                H = Half-installed
                U = Unpacked
                F = Half-configured
                W = Triggers-awaiting
                t = Triggers-pending
                i = Installed

              Error flags:
                <empty> = (none)
                R = Reinst-required

              An uppercase status or error letter  indicates  the  package  is
              likely  to  cause  severe  problems. Please refer to dpkg(1) for
              information about the above states and flags.

              The output format of this option is not configurable, but varies
              automatically  to  fit  the  terminal  width. It is intended for
              human readers,  and  is  not  easily  machine-readable.  See  -W
              (--show) and --showformat for a way to configure the output for-
              mat.

       -W, --show [package-name-pattern...]
              Just like the --list option this will list all packages matching
              the  given  pattern.  However the output can be customized using
              the --showformat option.  The default output  format  gives  one
              line  per  matching package, each line having the name (extended
              with the architecture qualifier for  Multi-Arch  same  packages)
              and installed version of the package, separated by a tab.

       -s, --status package-name...
              Report status of specified package. This just displays the entry
              in the installed package status database. When multiple package-
              name  are  listed, the requested status entries are separated by
              an empty line, with the same order as specified on the  argument
              list.

       -L, --listfiles package-name...
              List files installed to your system from package-name. When mul-
              tiple package-name are listed, the requested lists of files  are
              separated  by an empty line, with the same order as specified on
              the argument list.  However, note that files created by package-
              specific installation-scripts are not listed.

       --control-list package-name
              List  control  files installed to your system from package-name.
              These can be used as input arguments to --control-show.

       --control-show package-name control-file
              Print the control-file installed to your  system  from  package-
              name to the standard output.

       -c, --control-path package-name [control-file]
              List paths for control files installed to your system from pack-
              age-name.  If control-file is specified then only list the  path
              for that control file if it is present.

              Warning: this command is deprecated as it gives direct access to
              the internal dpkg database, please switch to use  --control-list
              and  --control-show  instead  for all cases where those commands
              might give the same end result. Although, as long  as  there  is
              still  at least one case where this command is needed (i.e. when
              having to remove a damaging postrm maintainer script), and while
              there  is  no  good solution for that, this command will not get
              removed.

       -S, --search filename-search-pattern...
              Search for packages that own files corresponding  to  the  given
              pattern.   Standard  shell wildchars can be used in the pattern.
              This command will not list extra  files  created  by  maintainer
              scripts, nor will it list alternatives.

       -p, --print-avail package-name...
              Display    details    about    package-name,    as    found   in
              /var/lib/dpkg/available. When multiple package-name are  listed,
              the  requested available entries are separated by an empty line,
              with the same order as specified on the argument list.

              Users of APT-based frontends should use apt-cache show  package-
              name  instead as the available file is only kept up-to-date when
              using dselect.

       -?, --help
              Show the usage message and exit.

       --version
              Show the version and exit.

OPTIONS
       --admindir=dir
              Change the location of the dpkg database. The  default  location
              is /var/lib/dpkg.

       --load-avail
              Also  load  the  available file when using the --show and --list
              commands, which now default to only querying the status file.

       -f, --showformat=format
              This option is used to specify the format of the  output  --show
              will  produce.  The  format  is a string that will be output for
              each package listed.

              In the format string, "\" introduces escapes:

                  \n  newline
                  \r  carriage return
                  \t  tab

              "\" before any other character suppresses any special meaning of
              the following character, which is useful for "\" and "$".

              Package information can be included by inserting variable refer-
              ences to package fields  using  the  syntax  "${field[;width]}".
              Fields are printed right-aligned unless the width is negative in
              which case left alignment will be used. The following fields are
              recognized  but they are not necessarily available in the status
              file (only internal fields or fields stored in the binary  pack-
              age end up in it):

                  Architecture
                  Bugs
                  Conffiles (internal)
                  Config-Version (internal)
                  Conflicts
                  Breaks
                  Depends
                  Description
                  Enhances
                  Essential
                  Filename (internal, front-end related)
                  Homepage
                  Installed-Size
                  MD5sum (internal, front-end related)
                  MSDOS-Filename (internal, front-end related)
                  Maintainer
                  Origin
                  Package
                  Pre-Depends
                  Priority
                  Provides
                  Recommends
                  Replaces
                  Revision (obsolete)
                  Section
                  Size (internal, front-end related)
                  Source
                  Status (internal)
                  Suggests
                  Tag (usually not in .deb but in repository Packages files)
                  Triggers-Awaited (internal)
                  Triggers-Pending (internal)
                  Version

              The  following  are virtual fields, generated by dpkg-query from
              values from other fields (note that these do not use valid names
              for fields in control files):

              binary:Package
                     It  contains  the  binary  package  name  with a possible
                     architecture qualifier  like  "libc6:amd64"  (since  dpkg
                     1.16.2).  The architecture qualifier will only be present
                     if the package has a Multi-Arch field  with  a  value  of
                     same. This makes the package name unambiguous.

              binary:Summary
                     It  contains  the  package  short description (since dpkg
                     1.16.2).

              db:Status-Abbrev
                     It contains the abbreviated package status, such as  "ii"
                     (since dpkg 1.16.2).

              db:Status-Want
                     It contains the package wanted status, part of the Status
                     field (since dpkg 1.17.11).

              db:Status-Status
                     It contains the package status word, part of  the  Status
                     field (since dpkg 1.17.11).

              db:Status-Eflag
                     It  contains  the  package status error flag, part of the
                     Status field (since dpkg 1.17.11).

              source:Package
                     It contains the source package name for this binary pack-
                     age (since dpkg 1.16.2).

              source:Version
                     It  contains  the  source package version for this binary
                     package (since dpkg 1.16.2)

              The default format string is  "${binary:Package}\t${Version}\n".
              Actually,  all  other fields found in the status file (i.e. user
              defined fields) can be requested, too. They will be printed  as-
              is, though, no conversion nor error checking is done on them. To
              get the name of the dpkg maintainer and the  installed  version,
              you could run:

                dpkg-query -W -f='${binary:Package} ${Version}\t${Maintainer}\n' dpkg

EXIT STATUS
       0      The requested query was successfully performed.

       1      Problems were encountered while parsing the command line or per-
              forming the query, including no  file  or  package  being  found
              (except for --control-path).

ENVIRONMENT
       DPKG_ADMINDIR
              If set and the --admindir option has not been specified, it will
              be used as the dpkg data directory.

       COLUMNS
              This setting influences the  output  of  the  --list  option  by
              changing the width of its output.

SEE ALSO
       dpkg(1).




Debian Project                    2012-04-03                     dpkg-query(1)
