pkgutil(1) BSD General Commands Manual pkgutil(1)
NAME
pkgutil -- Query and manipulate the installer package receipt database.
SYNOPSIS
pkgutil [options] [commands]
DESCRIPTION
pkgutil reads and manipulates the Installer's receipt database and flat
packages. pkgutil can be used to learn about flat packages, including
installation date, location, and which files were or will be installed.
Options are processed first, and affect the operation of all commands.
Multiple commands are performed sequentially in the given order.
OPTIONS
--help, -h A brief summary of commands and usage.
--force, -f
Don't ask for confirmation before performing a potentially
destructive or ambiguous operation.
--verbose, -v
Output in a "human-readable" format with extra headers, foot-
ers, indentation, and other contextual information.
--debug Print implementation details and other useless information
while running.
--volume path
Perform all operations on the specified volume or home direc-
tory. The root volume '/' will be used if unspecified.
--edit-pkg package-id
Specifies an existing receipt to be modified in-place by
--learn.
--only-files
List only files (not directories) in --files listing.
--only-dirs
List only directories (not files) in --files listing.
--regexp Try to match package-id arguments as a regular expression if
an exact match isn't found. See egrep(1) and re_format(7) for
syntax.
DATABASE COMMANDS
--packages, --pkgs
List all installed package IDs on the specified --volume.
--pkgs-plist
List all installed package IDs on the specified --volume in
Mac OS X plist(5) format.
--pkgs=REGEXP
List all installed package IDs matching REGEXP on the speci-
fied --volume. The equal sign (=) is required or the search
string will be ignored and all package IDs will be returned.
Be mindful of escaping characters in both your shell and the
regular expression. (Eg, 'pkgutil --pkgs=\\.D' searches for
package IDs matching the literal '.D' after escaping the
backslash from your shell and then the dot from the regex to
make it literal.) Regular expressions are more complex than
simple shell globbing. A dot (.) matches any character, while
'*' matches zero or more of the previous character. See
re_format(7) for a complete description of the syntax.
--files package-id
List all of the files managed under the package-id. This
list will include files installed by other packages if those
other packages have tainted the specified package-id. See the
explanation of tainting in the NOTES section.
--export-plist package-id
Print all receipt information about the specified package-id
in the standard Mac OS X plist(5) format.
--import-plist
Load receipt data formatted as a plist(5) from standard
input. Use --export-plist for an example of the data and for-
matting expected.
--verify package-id
Run repair_packages(8) to verify the specified package-id.
--repair package-id
Run repair_packages(8) to repair the specified package-id.
--pkg-info package-id
Print extended information about the specified package-id.
--pkg-info-plist package-id
Print extended information about the specified package-id in
Mac OS X plist(5) format.
--forget package-id
Discard all receipt data about package-id, but do not touch
the installed files. DO NOT use this command from an
installer package script to fix broken package design.
--unlink package-id
Unlinks (removes) each file referenced by package-id. WARN-
ING: This command makes no attempt to perform reference
counting or dependency analysis. It can easily remove files
required by your system. It may include unexpected files due
to package tainting. Use the --files command first to double
check.
--learn path
Used within a package's postinstall script to record ACLs or
filesystem permissions applied to path that were not con-
tained within the file archive itself. The installer passes a
reference to the receipt being constructed via the
INSTALL_PKG_SESSION_ID environment variable.
--pkg-groups package-id
List all of the package groups this package-id is a member
of.
--groups List all of the package groups on the specified --volume.
--groups-plist
List all of the package groups on the specified --volume in
Mac OS X plist(5) format.
--group-pkgs group-id
List all of the packages that are members of this group-id.
--file-info path
Show the metadata known about path.
--file-info-plist path
Show the metadata known about path in Mac OS X plist(5) for-
mat.
FILE COMMANDS
--expand pkg-path dir-path
Expand the flat package at pkg-path into a new directory
specified by dir-path.
--flatten dir-path pkg-path
Flatten the dir-path into a new flat package created at
pkg-path. The directory to be flattened must have the proper
contents and layout for a flat package. This is not intended
as a substitute for packagemaker(1).
--bom path Extract any BOM files from the flat pkg at path into /tmp and
return the filename(s). Suggested use is as an argument to
lsbom(8). Eg, "lsbom `pkgutil --bom path`". Note that flat
package archives may contain no BOM, one BOM, or several
BOMs.
--payload-files path
List the files archived within the payload of the uninstalled
flat package(s) contained at path. This should be equivilant
to "lsbom -s `pkgutil --bom path`". Note that flat package
archives may contain more than one package, and the destina-
tion location for the uninstalled package(s) is unknown to
this command.
DEBUG COMMANDS
--pkgutil-version
Output the version of the pkgutil command.
--test Verify a connection to the receipt database and check that
the client and server agree on the protocol version.
ENVIRONMENT
The following environment variables affect the execution of pkgutil.
INSTALL_PKG_SESSION_ID
Supplied by the Installer when pkgutil is used within a
package script. Overridden by the --edit-pkg option, so
be sure to leave the package unspecified within package
scripts if you want to modify the package being
installed.
INSTALL_TARGET_VOLUME
Supplied by the Installer when pkgutil is used within a
package script. Overridden by the --volume option, so be
sure to leave the volume unspecified within package
scripts if you want to modify the package being
installed.
NOTES
1. Package tainting is when one package declares its contents should
become part of another package. Future upgrades to the other package
will behave as if the other package installed the additional files
found in the tainting package. This will usually result in the
tainting package's files being removed when the tainted package is
upgraded.
2. The --forget command is a debugging tool and should not be used rou-
tinely. There are better ways to permanently disable upgrade logic
within a package.
3. The files and directories where receipts are stored are subject to
change. Always use pkgutil to query or modify them.
FILES
/usr/libexec/repair_packages
/var/db/receipts/
/Library/Receipts/db/
~/Library/Receipts/db/
SEE ALSO
installer(8)
repair_packages(8)
packagemaker(1)
http://lists.apple.com/mailman/listinfo/installer-dev
BUGS
Package dependency analysis and reference counting are not yet available,
hence there is no --uninstall command yet.
Mac OS September 17, 2009 Mac OS
Mac OS X 10.6 - Generated Thu Sep 17 20:08:49 CDT 2009