Linux Package Management Reference: apt, dnf, pacman¶

Every major Linux distro has a package manager. The commands are different but the concepts are the same: install, remove, update, search. Here's the equivalent commands across the three you're most likely to encounter.

Common Tasks by Package Manager¶

Task	apt (Debian/Ubuntu)	dnf (Fedora/RHEL)	pacman (Arch)
Update package index	`apt update`	`dnf check-update`	`pacman -Sy`
Upgrade all packages	`apt upgrade`	`dnf upgrade`	`pacman -Su`
Update index + upgrade	`apt update && apt upgrade`	`dnf upgrade`	`pacman -Syu`
Install a package	`apt install pkg`	`dnf install pkg`	`pacman -S pkg`
Remove a package	`apt remove pkg`	`dnf remove pkg`	`pacman -R pkg`
Remove + config files	`apt purge pkg`	`dnf remove pkg`	`pacman -Rn pkg`
Search for a package	`apt search term`	`dnf search term`	`pacman -Ss term`
Show package info	`apt show pkg`	`dnf info pkg`	`pacman -Si pkg`
List installed	`apt list --installed`	`dnf list installed`	`pacman -Q`
Which pkg owns file	`dpkg -S /path/to/file`	`rpm -qf /path/to/file`	`pacman -Qo /path/to/file`
List files in pkg	`dpkg -L pkg`	`rpm -ql pkg`	`pacman -Ql pkg`
Clean cache	`apt clean`	`dnf clean all`	`pacman -Sc`

apt (Debian, Ubuntu, and derivatives)¶

# Always update before installing
sudo apt update

# Install
sudo apt install nginx

# Install multiple
sudo apt install nginx curl git

# Remove
sudo apt remove nginx

# Remove with config files
sudo apt purge nginx

# Autoremove orphaned dependencies
sudo apt autoremove

# Search
apt search nginx

# Show package details
apt show nginx

# Upgrade a specific package
sudo apt install --only-upgrade nginx

APT sources live in /etc/apt/sources.list and /etc/apt/sources.list.d/. Third-party PPAs go here. After adding a source, run apt update before installing from it.

dnf (Fedora, RHEL, AlmaLinux, Rocky)¶

# Update everything
sudo dnf upgrade

# Install
sudo dnf install nginx

# Remove
sudo dnf remove nginx

# Search
dnf search nginx

# Info
dnf info nginx

# List groups (collections of packages)
dnf group list

# Install a group
sudo dnf group install "Development Tools"

# History — see what was installed and when
dnf history
dnf history info <id>

# Undo a transaction
sudo dnf history undo <id>

dnf's history and undo features are underused and genuinely useful when you've installed something that broke things.

pacman (Arch, Manjaro)¶

# Full system update (do this before anything else, Arch is rolling)
sudo pacman -Syu

# Install
sudo pacman -S nginx

# Remove
sudo pacman -R nginx

# Remove with dependencies not needed by anything else
sudo pacman -Rs nginx

# Search
pacman -Ss nginx

# Info
pacman -Si nginx

# Query installed packages
pacman -Q          # all installed
pacman -Qs nginx   # search installed
pacman -Qi nginx   # info on installed package

# Find orphaned packages
pacman -Qdt

# Clean package cache
sudo pacman -Sc    # keep installed versions
sudo pacman -Scc   # remove all cached packages

AUR (Arch User Repository) — packages not in the official repos. Use an AUR helper like yay or paru:

# Install yay
git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/yay.git
cd yay && makepkg -si

# Then use like pacman
yay -S package-name

Flatpak and Snap (Distro-Agnostic)¶

For software that isn't in your distro's repos or when you want a sandboxed installation:

# Flatpak
flatpak install flathub com.spotify.Client
flatpak run com.spotify.Client
flatpak update

# Snap
sudo snap install spotify
sudo snap refresh

Flatpak is what I prefer — better sandboxing story, Flathub has most things you'd want. Snap works fine but the infrastructure is more centralized.

Gotchas & Notes¶

Always apt update before apt install. Installing from a stale index can grab outdated versions or fail entirely.
apt upgrade vs apt full-upgrade: full-upgrade (or dist-upgrade) allows package removal to resolve conflicts. Use it for major upgrades. upgrade won't remove anything.
Arch is rolling — update frequently. Partial upgrades on Arch cause breakage. Always do pacman -Syu (full update) before installing anything.
dnf is noticeably slower than apt on first run due to metadata downloads. Gets faster after the cache is warm.
Don't mix package sources carelessly. Adding random PPAs (apt) or COPR repos (dnf) can conflict with each other. Keep third-party sources to a minimum.