PKGBUILD
Arch Linux package build script format
TLDR
Build package
$ makepkg
Build and install$ makepkg -si
Update checksums$ updpkgsums
Check PKGBUILD$ namcap PKGBUILD
SYNOPSIS
PKGBUILD specification file for Arch Linux packaging
DESCRIPTION
PKGBUILD is a shell script containing build instructions for Arch Linux packages. It defines metadata, sources, and functions for compiling and packaging software.
Used by makepkg to create .pkg.tar.zst packages.
BASIC STRUCTURE
$ # Maintainer: Name <email>
pkgname=mypackage
pkgver=1.0.0
pkgrel=1
pkgdesc="Description of package"
arch=('x86_64')
url="https://example.com"
license=('GPL')
depends=('dep1' 'dep2')
makedepends=('cmake')
source=("$url/releases/$pkgname-$pkgver.tar.gz")
sha256sums=('SKIP')
build() {
cd "$pkgname-$pkgver"
./configure --prefix=/usr
make
}
package() {
cd "$pkgname-$pkgver"
make DESTDIR="$pkgdir" install
}
pkgname=mypackage
pkgver=1.0.0
pkgrel=1
pkgdesc="Description of package"
arch=('x86_64')
url="https://example.com"
license=('GPL')
depends=('dep1' 'dep2')
makedepends=('cmake')
source=("$url/releases/$pkgname-$pkgver.tar.gz")
sha256sums=('SKIP')
build() {
cd "$pkgname-$pkgver"
./configure --prefix=/usr
make
}
package() {
cd "$pkgname-$pkgver"
make DESTDIR="$pkgdir" install
}
VARIABLES
$ pkgname - Package name
pkgver - Version
pkgrel - Release number
pkgdesc - Description
arch - Architectures
depends - Runtime dependencies
makedepends - Build dependencies
source - Source URLs
sha256sums - Checksums
pkgver - Version
pkgrel - Release number
pkgdesc - Description
arch - Architectures
depends - Runtime dependencies
makedepends - Build dependencies
source - Source URLs
sha256sums - Checksums
FUNCTIONS
$ prepare() - Prepare sources
build() - Compile
check() - Run tests
package() - Install to $pkgdir
build() - Compile
check() - Run tests
package() - Install to $pkgdir
CAVEATS
Must be named PKGBUILD. Arch-specific format. Always verify checksums. Test with namcap.
HISTORY
PKGBUILD format was designed for Arch Linux by Judd Vinet, enabling simple, transparent package building.