Re: how to check whether a package has been installed

[Rick Macdonald <rickm@timshel.ca>]

Rick Macdonald wrote:

> Martin Paraskevov wrote:
>
> > rpm lets you check whether a packege has been installed.
> > is this possible to do with apt-get or some other tool as well?
> Here are a couple, not to mention the various GUIs:
>
> rickmlinux:~# dpkg --get-selections|grep apt
> apt                                             install
> apt-utils                                       install
> aptitude                                        install
> gnome-apt                                       install
> synaptic                                        install
>
>
> rickmlinux:~# dpkg -s apt Package: apt


Sorry, bad copy/paste job. This should be:

rickmlinux:~# dpkg -s apt
Package: apt
Status: install ok installed

...etc...

Somebody else just offered "dpkg -l". I like that better because it 
shows the versions:

rickmlinux:~# dpkg -l|grep apt
ii  apt            0.5.28.6       Advanced front-end for dpkg
ii  apt-utils      0.5.28.6       APT utility programs
ii  aptitude       0.2.15.9-1     terminal-based apt frontend
ii  gnome-apt      0.4.7-1.2      graphical package manager
ii  libpcap0       0.6.2-2        System interface for user-level packet 
captu
ii  libpcap0.7     0.7.2-7        System interface for user-level packet 
captu
ii  libpcap0.8     0.8.3-5        System interface for user-level packet 
captu
ii  synaptic       0.55+cvs200503 Graphical package manager

If you know the eact pavkage name you get to see the column headings:   ;-)

rickmlinux:~# dpkg -l apt
Desired=Unknown/Install/Remove/Purge/Hold
| Status=Not/Installed/Config-files/Unpacked/Failed-config/Half-installed
|/ Err?=(none)/Hold/Reinst-required/X=both-problems (Status,Err: 
uppercase=bad)
||/ Name           Version        Description
+++-==============-==============-============================================
ii  apt            0.5.28.6       Advanced front-end for dpkg

> Status: install ok installed
> Priority: important
> Section: base
> Installed-Size: 3664
> Maintainer: APT Development Team <deity@lists.debian.org>
> Architecture: i386
> Version: 0.5.28.6
> Replaces: libapt-pkg-doc (<< 0.3.7), libapt-pkg-dev (<< 0.3.7)
> Provides: libapt-pkg-libc6.3-5-3.3
> Depends: libc6 (>= 2.3.2.ds1-4), libgcc1 (>= 1:3.4.1-3), libstdc++5 
> (>= 1:3.3.4-1)
> Suggests: aptitude | synaptic | gnome-apt | wajig, dpkg-dev, apt-doc
> Description: Advanced front-end for dpkg
> This is Debian's next generation front-end for the dpkg package manager.
> It provides the apt-get utility and APT dselect method that provides a
> simpler, safer way to install and upgrade packages.
> .
> APT features complete installation ordering, multiple source capability
> and several other unique features, see the Users Guide in apt-doc.
>
> ...RickM...