apt-mark - show, set and unset various settings for a package
apt-mark {-f=filename | {auto | manual} pkg... | {showauto | showmanual} [pkg...] } | {-v | --version} | {-h | --help} apt-mark {hold | unhold | install | remove | purge} pkg... | {showhold | showinstall | showremove | showpurge} [pkg...]
apt-mark 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 dpkg selections such as hold, install, deinstall and purge which are respected e.g. by apt-get dselect-upgrade or aptitude.
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, 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. apt-get or aptitude will at least suggest removing them. auto auto 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. manual manual is used to mark a package as being manually installed, which will prevent the package from being automatically removed if no other packages depend on it. showauto showauto is used to print a list of automatically installed packages with each package on a new line. 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. showmanual showmanual can be used in the same way as showauto except that it will print a list of manually installed packages instead. Options -f=filename, --file=filename Read/Write package stats from the filename given with the parameter filename instead of from the default location, which is extended_status in the directory defined by the Configuration Item: Dir::State.
hold hold is used to mark a package as held back, which will prevent the package from being automatically installed, upgraded or removed. unhold unhold is used to cancel a previously set hold on a package to allow all actions again. showhold showhold is used to print a list of packages on hold in the same way as for the other show commands.
Some front-ends like apt-get dselect-upgrade can be used to apply previously scheduled changes to the install state of packages. Such changes can be scheduled with the install, remove (also known as deinstall) and purge commands. Packages with a specific selection can be displayed with showinstall, showremove and showpurge respectively. More information about these so called dpkg selections can be found in dpkg(1).
-h, --help Show a short usage summary. -v, --version Show the program version. -c, --config-file Configuration File; Specify a configuration file to use. The program will read the default configuration file and then this configuration file. If configuration settings need to be set before the default configuration files are parsed specify a file with the APT_CONFIG environment variable. See apt.conf(5) for syntax information. -o, --option Set a Configuration Option; This will set an arbitrary configuration option. The syntax is -o Foo::Bar=bar. -o and --option can be used multiple times to set different options.
/var/lib/apt/extended_states Status list of auto-installed packages. Configuration Item: Dir::State::extended_states.
apt-get(8),aptitude(8),apt.conf(5)
apt-mark returns zero on normal operation, non-zero on error.
APT bug page[1]. If you wish to report a bug in APT, please see /usr/share/doc/debian/bug-reporting.txt or the reportbug(1) command.
Mike O'Connor APT team
1. APT bug page http://bugs.debian.org/src:apt
Personal Opportunity - Free software gives you access to billions of dollars of software at no cost. Use this software for your business, personal use or to develop a profitable skill. Access to source code provides access to a level of capabilities/information that companies protect though copyrights. Open source is a core component of the Internet and it is available to you. Leverage the billions of dollars in resources and capabilities to build a career, establish a business or change the world. The potential is endless for those who understand the opportunity.
Business Opportunity - Goldman Sachs, IBM and countless large corporations are leveraging open source to reduce costs, develop products and increase their bottom lines. Learn what these companies know about open source and how open source can give you the advantage.
Free Software provides computer programs and capabilities at no cost but more importantly, it provides the freedom to run, edit, contribute to, and share the software. The importance of free software is a matter of access, not price. Software at no cost is a benefit but ownership rights to the software and source code is far more significant.
Free Office Software - The Libre Office suite provides top desktop productivity tools for free. This includes, a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation engine, drawing and flowcharting, database and math applications. Libre Office is available for Linux or Windows.
The Free Books Library is a collection of thousands of the most popular public domain books in an online readable format. The collection includes great classical literature and more recent works where the U.S. copyright has expired. These books are yours to read and use without restrictions.
Source Code - Want to change a program or know how it works? Open Source provides the source code for its programs so that anyone can use, modify or learn how to write those programs themselves. Visit the GNU source code repositories to download the source.
Study at Harvard, Stanford or MIT - Open edX provides free online courses from Harvard, MIT, Columbia, UC Berkeley and other top Universities. Hundreds of courses for almost all major subjects and course levels. Open edx also offers some paid courses and selected certifications.
Linux Manual Pages - A man or manual page is a form of software documentation found on Linux/Unix operating systems. Topics covered include computer programs (including library and system calls), formal standards and conventions, and even abstract concepts.