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ZDNET's key takeaways
- Linux has numerous package managers.
- There are command-line and GUI tools for the task.
- Not all package managers are created equal.
When I first started using Linux, the package manager was called “source code,” as in you had to install everything from source. Eventually, package managers started showing up to make things exponentially easier.
The first package manager I ever used was RPM on Red Hat Linux 5.2 (prior to Fedora becoming a thing). Once APT hit the market, it was all over. I'd found my preferred package manager, and that would remain true for decades.
That doesn't mean my package manager respect starts and ends with APT. There are some package managers available that are just as good as APT.
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Let me tell you about those package managers that have become my favorite over the years.
What is a package manager?
Before I get into listing my favorites, I suppose I should tell you what a package manager is. Essentially, a package manager is a tool for managing the installation, upgrading, and removal of software.
One of the best features of a good package manager is the ability to resolve all dependencies for a package, which means you won't have to take care of that manually. Another thing a package manager does is ensure the software is integrated into the system, so all of those apps you've installed are dealt with via a centralized location (usually an app store).
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Package managers are mostly command-line tools but do have GUI front ends, so you don't have to use the command line to manage your software.
In this piece, I'm going to talk about both package managers and package manager front ends.
1. APT
Yes, this is my No. 1. Why? APT (Advanced Package Tool) isn't just an easy package manager; it's also very powerful and offers tons of features. One of my favorite features of APT is the ability to fix a broken installation.
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If I attempt to install a piece of software from the command line and it fails, I can run the command sudo apt install -f. That command will fix whatever is causing issues with the installation of that software. Also, APT's syntax is very easy to remember:
- Update the APT package list – sudo apt update
- Install a package – sudo apt install PACKAGENAME
- Upgrade a single package – sudo apt upgrade — only-upgrade PACKAGENAME
- Remove a package – sudo apt remove PACKAGENAME
- Reinstall a package – sudo apt reinstall PACKAGENAME
- Remove a package as well as all of its files – sudo apt purge PACKAGENAME
- Search for a package – sudo apt search PACKAGENAME
I realize that a big part of the reason why APT is my favorite is that I've been using it for so long. But the reason I've been opting for distributions that use APT is that APT is so good.
Two last points:
- There are tons of repositories available for APT, so there's a lot of software that can be installed.
- APT is one of the fastest package managers available.
APT is the default package manager for nearly all Debian/Ubuntu-based distributions.
2. DNF
DNF is to Fedora what APT is to Ubuntu (or Debian). DNF is easy to use, offers a simplistic syntax, excels at transaction history, rollback, and installing from direct URLs. Another very nice aspect of DNF is that it automatically purges files when removing an app. With the release of DNF5, the package manager has nearly caught up to APT's speed.
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The DNF syntax is very similar to that of APT:
- Update the APT package list – sudo dnf check-update
- Install a package – sudo dnf install PACKAGENAME
- Upgrade a single package – sudo dnf upgrade PACKAGENAME
- Remove a package (and all of its files) – sudo dnf remove PACKAGENAME
- Reinstall a package – sudo dnf reinstall PACKAGENAME
- Search for a package – sudo dnf search PACKAGENAME
As you can see, DNF and APT are similar.
DNF is the default package manager for Fedora and Fedora-based distributions.
3. Flatpak
We're now veering into the realm of universal package managers, which are named as such because they work on nearly any Linux distribution, and the software that is installed via a universal package manager can be installed on any supported distribution. Installing a Flatpak app on Ubuntu is the same as it is on Fedora.
Flatpak also makes it easy to install certain proprietary apps, such as Spotify and Slack. This also illustrates the reason why universal package managers are so important. Because of the likes of Flatpak and Snap, developers don't have to worry about creating an app for KDE Plasma, one for GNOME, one for Xfce, etc.; Flatpak doesn't care what desktop you are using.
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Installing apps with Flatpak is very simple. You can visit Flathub, locate the app you want to install, click the Install drop-down, copy the command, paste the command into your terminal, and hit Enter. Of course, if you know the name of the package you want to install, the command could be as simple as:
flatpak install PACKAGENAME
Where PACKAGENAME is the name of the app you want to install.
You can also remove a package with:
flatpak remove PACKAGENAME
But why Flatpak over Snap? I've always found Snap packages are better suited for servers, and Flatpak apps are better suited for the desktop. On top of that, I've always found Flatpak apps open faster than Snap apps.
Flatpak can be used on most Linux distributions.
4. COSMIC Store
GUI time.
A year ago, I would not have included Pop!_OS's app store on this list. It was buggy, slow, and often refused to start.
Since then, the COSMIC Store has been totally rewritten (for the COSMIC desktop) in Rust, which means it's fast… really fast. Pop Store also has Flatpak support baked in, so I can install apps either from the APT repositories or a Flatpak repository.
COSMIC Store resembles GNOME Software (which is a good thing), but it's significantly faster.
I can't begin to tell you how much Pop Store has improved from its previous iteration. Let's just say previous releases were almost unusable. Now, I'd rather use COSMIC Store than any Linux package manager front end.
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COSMIC Store is only available on Pop!_OS.
5. KDE Discover
KDE Plasma has its own app store, called KDE Discover, and it's pretty special. Although KDE Discover might not be as pretty as Pop Store, it's one of the most configurable and flexible package manager GUIs available. KDE Discover is one of the few front ends that simplifies the enabling and disabling of Flatpak support.
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Another reason why I include KDE Discover is that it allows you not only to install apps, but also Plasma Addons and Application Addons, and gives you quick access to updates, and even allows you to enable and disable repositories without having to open another app.
All of this comes in a user-friendly GUI package that makes installing apps just a click away.
