aptitude

Synchronize list of packages and versions

$ sudo aptitude update

$ sudo aptitude install [package]

$ aptitude search [package]

$ aptitude search '?installed([package])'

$ sudo aptitude remove [package]

$ sudo aptitude upgrade

$ sudo aptitude full-upgrade

$ sudo aptitude hold '?installed([package])'

aptitude [options] command [arguments]

aptitude is a powerful package management utility for Debian and Ubuntu systems. It provides both a command-line interface and an interactive ncurses-based interface with advanced dependency resolution and search capabilities.

update

Synchronize package index files from sources

Install or upgrade specified packages

Remove packages and dependent packages

Remove packages, configurations, and dependent packages

Upgrade installed packages to newest versions

Upgrade packages, removing obsolete ones as needed

Search for packages matching pattern

Display detailed package information

Prevent package from being upgraded

Allow package to be upgraded

Upgrade packages conservatively

Remove downloaded package files

Remove old downloaded package files

Aptitude uses its own search syntax with special terms like ?installed, ?automatic, etc. Different from apt-cache search syntax.

Created as an alternative to apt-get with more advanced features. First released for Debian in 2001 by Daniel Burrows.

apt(8), apt-get(8), dpkg(1)