pacstall

AUR-inspired package manager for Ubuntu and Debian-based distributions

TLDR

Search for a package

$ pacstall -S [query]

Install a package

$ pacstall -I [package]

Remove a package

$ pacstall -R [package]

Add a repository

$ pacstall -A [repository_url]

Update pacstall's scripts

$ pacstall -U

Upgrade all installed packages

$ pacstall -Up

Display information about an installed package

$ pacstall -Ci [package]

List all installed packages

$ pacstall -L

Install a package without prompts, keeping build files

$ pacstall -P -K -I [package]

SYNOPSIS

pacstall [command] [options] [package...]

pacstall is a package manager for Ubuntu and Debian-based distributions that brings AUR-like functionality by allowing users to install packages from community-maintained build scripts called pacscripts (similar to Arch's PKGBUILDs).The tool maintains its own repositories of build scripts, separate from the system's apt repositories. Users can add custom repositories hosted on GitHub or GitLab, enabling community-driven package distribution outside official channels.

PARAMETERS

-I, --install package

Install a package from a repository or a pacscript.

-R, --remove package

Remove a package from the system.

-S, --search query

Search for packages from all available repositories.

-Sd, --search-description query

Search package names and descriptions.

-Si, --search-info package

Display metadata (SRCINFO) of a remote package.

-Ci, --cache-info package

Display metadata of an installed package.

-A, --add-repo url

Add a repository to pacstall.

-Rr, --remove-repo repo

Remove a repository from pacstall.

-U, --update

Update pacstall and needed scripts.

-Up, --upgrade

Upgrade packages that have a newer version.

-L, --list

List installed packages.

-T, --tree package

Display a tree graph of a package's dependencies.

-D, --download package

Download pacscript to the current directory.

-Qa, --quality-assurance package#number

Test a package from a pull request prior to merging.

-V, --version

Display version information.

-P, --disable-prompts

Disable prompts and accept all defaults.

-K, --keep

Keep the build files after installation.

-B, --build-only

Build the deb but do not install it.

-Q, --quiet

Download package entries quietly.

-Nc, --nocheck

Skip the check() function if present in the pacscript.

-Ns, --nosandbox

Build the package without bwrap sandboxing.

CAVEATS

Packages are built from source, which can be time-consuming. Requires build dependencies to be installed. Not officially supported by Ubuntu/Debian; packages may conflict with system packages. Always review pacscripts before installation.

HISTORY

Created to bring the AUR (Arch User Repository) experience to Ubuntu users. Developed as an alternative to PPAs and Snaps for users who prefer building packages from source with community-maintained scripts. The project aims to provide a simple way to install software not available in official repositories.