update-apt-xapian-index

update-apt-xapian-index [options]

--help
    Display a help message.

--quiet
    Suppress non-error output.

--verbose
    Increase verbosity.

--index-directory
    Specify the directory where the index should be stored (defaults to /var/lib/apt-xapian-index).

--package-indices
    Specify the file containing index information.

--max-waste
    Specify the maximum waste percentage for the Xapian database.

--rebuild
    Force a rebuild of the entire index.

--no-term-frequency
    Do not index term frequencies.

--optimize
    Optimize the Xapian database.

The update-apt-xapian-index command updates the Xapian index used by programs like apt-cache and aptitude to search package information quickly.
This command parses the APT package lists (typically located in /var/lib/apt/lists/) and creates a Xapian database. This allows for fast, full-text searches across package names, descriptions, and other metadata.
It's usually run automatically as part of the APT update process (e.g., via apt update) to keep the index synchronized with the available packages.
Users rarely need to invoke it directly, but may do so if they suspect the index is corrupted or out of date.

Running update-apt-xapian-index can be resource-intensive, especially on systems with a large number of installed packages or repositories. The index directory must be writable by the user running the command.

The default location for the Xapian index is /var/lib/apt-xapian-index. The files inside the directory contain the indexed data.

If you encounter problems with package searching, try running update-apt-xapian-index --rebuild to rebuild the index from scratch. Ensure sufficient disk space is available.

update-apt-xapian-index was developed to provide a fast and efficient way to search package information within the APT ecosystem. Before its introduction, searching package information was slower and less comprehensive. The command leverages the Xapian search engine to achieve significantly better search performance, improving the usability of package management tools like apt-cache and aptitude. It's typically integrated into the system's package management update processes.

apt-cache(8), aptitude(8), apt(8)