How to Install Packages on Arch Linux?
Arch Linux contains several repositories to download packages. The official repositories include the core, extra, community, and most importantly multilib. These repositories have thousands of packages you can install on the Arch system. Along with all these, you also have the freedom of installing thousands of user-created packages directly from AUR (Arch User Repository).
But if you are new to Arch or coming from any Debian-based distros, then you might find it difficult to install packages on your newly installed Arch Linux system. But thanks to Pacman the official Arch Linux package manager, that lets you manage and install any package with just one command.
And for the AUR packages, you can get any AUR helper like yay or paru. These AUR helpers will make the work a lot easier with access to AUR packages just a few commands away. Let’s find out some ways to install and manage different packages on an Arch system.
Contents:
How to Install Packages on Arch Linux?
Using Pacman for Package Installation
Install AUR Packages on Arch Linux Using AUR Helpers
How to Install Deb Packages on Arch Linux?
Install Packages on Arch Linux Using Pacseek
How to Install Packages on Arch Linux?
To install packages, you have two options: using the default package manager or downloading them with an AUR helper. If the package you want is available in Pacman’s official repository, then it’s best to download it using Pacman. While using Pacman, you do not have to rely on any other package manager.
However, for packages that Pacman does not offer, you can use AUR packages instead. But first, you have to download an AUR helper.
Let’s check all these ways of downloading and installing packages on Arch Linux.
Using Pacman for Package Installation
Pacman is the default and official package manager that you can use with Arch Linux and its sub-distributions. It can install, update, and remove packages. Pacman can download packages both from official repositories and user’s builds.
To use Pacman, you need to open a terminal and enter commands with the following syntax:
pacman -<operation>[options] [package(s)]
The <operation> can be one of the following:
- -S for synchronization: installs or updates packages from the repositories
- -R for removal: removes packages from the system
- -Q for query: displays information about installed or available packages
- -T for test: checks dependencies among the specified packages
- -U for upgrade: installs packages from local files
The [options] are optional flags that modify the behavior of the operation. For example, the -y flag refreshes the package database, and the -u option upgrades all packages that are out of date. Similarly, the -s option searches for packages by name or description.
The [package(s)] are the names of the packages to operate on. You can specify one or more packages, separated by spaces. To match multiple packages, you can specify wildcards, like * or ?.
For example, to install a package using Pacman, you would enter:
sudo pacman -S firefox
The Firefox browser will be installed on your system.
To remove a package using Pacman, you would enter:
sudo pacman -R firefox
To search for packages that contain the word editor, you would enter:
sudo pacman -Ss editor
To update your system, run:
sudo pacman -Syu
For more details of the Pacman package manager, you can use the –help option to get a summary of the available operations and options.
For example, to see the help for the synchronization operation, you would enter:
pacman -S --help
Note
In case you are downloading any package using Pacman or any other AUR helper, but are unable to do that. So you must enable the multilib repository first.
Multilib repository is a collection of 32-bit software and libraries that can run on 64-bit Arch Linux systems. It is not required for downloading AUR packages using AUR helpers like Yay, but it may be needed for some packages that depend on 32-bit libraries.
To enable the multilib repository, edit the /etc/pacman.conf file and uncomment the following lines:
[multilib] Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
Then, you need to update your system with the sudo pacman -Syyu command. After updating the system, now you can install packages from the multilib repository with pacman -S command.
Install AUR Packages on Arch Linux Using AUR Helpers
For now, you have seen how one can install the packages in Arch Linux using the official package manager Pacman. Pacman is only capable of updating the packages that are already built in its repositories. However, it cannot automatically rebuild packages from the AUR when their shared library dependencies are updated. Therefore, you may need an AUR helper to automate the rebuild process for AUR packages.
Some popular and active AUR helpers are yay, paru, trizen and pacaur. All these helpers have distinct features and advantages. Some main highlights of AUR helpers are reliable dependency resolution, file review, diff view, git clone, and shell completion.
Now we will start with one of the best AUR helpers available on Arch Linux.
Yay
Yay is a Go-based AUR helper that has a Pacman-like interface and yaourt-like search with minimal dependencies. Yay can download PKGBUILDs from AUR and help you install them on your system. Like Pacman, yay can also narrow down searches, solve dependencies, and remove dependencies.
Yay is by default not available on Arch Linux. To use Yay, first you have to install it. Unfortunately, as Pacman doesn’t directly support AUR packages, we have to install Yay using its Git repository.
Installing Yay on Arch Linux
Before proceeding with the Yay installation, make sure your Arch system is up-to-date:
sudo pacman -Syu
Next, install the necessary tools for building a package. These two tools include the base-devel and Git packages:
sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel git
Here, the Git package will clone the repositories from sources such as AUR. The base-devel package contains all required tools like makepkg for compiling a package from source code.
After adding all the prerequisites to the Arch system, clone the Yay git repository:
sudo git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/yay.git
Now, change your current directory to the yay folder:
cd yay
Finally, build the Yay package using makepkg:
makepkg -si
You may get a permission error while installing the Yay package for the first time. This occurs because you do not have write permission for a directory, where you are trying to build a package.
To fix this, give directory permission to your main user account:
sudo chown -R user:user /home/user/yay
Replace the user with your system username. Now you have all permission to modify the Yay directory.
Yay is installed, check its version:
yay --version
Using Yay to Install and Update Packages from the AUR
Now, using Yay, you can upgrade, install, and remove AUR packages from your Arch system. Let’s cover different commands to run with Yay on Arch Linux:
Update System and Packages
To update the system with the Yay command, run:
yay
This command will work like the pacman -Syu command.
Installing an AUR Package Using Yay
To install a package using Yay, execute the Yay command with the package name:
yay -S firefox
Besides looking for a package in the official Arch repository, this command will also search the AUR repository.
Remove an AUR Package
Removing packages using Yay is similar to the Pacman command, simply add the -R option with the Yay command and define the package name. For example, to remove the firefox package using Yay, run:
yay -R firefox
Here are some more commands that you can try with Yay:
- yay -Syu: To sync and update all your packages from both the repos and AUR.
- yay -Sua: To sync and update only your AUR packages.
- yay -Qua: To see if there are any updates for your Yay packages without installing them.
- yay -Qu: To see if there are any updates for all your packages, including the ones from the official repositories.
- yay -Ss: To search for a package by a keyword from both the repos and AUR.
- yay -S: To install a new package from default repos or AUR.
- yay -Rns: To remove a package. This will also remove respective package dependencies and configuration files.
- yay -Yc: To remove orphaned (not needed by any other package) packages.
- yay -Ps: To see some stats and health info about your installed packages.
To explore further, read the help:
yay --help
Paru
Paru is a new AUR helper and Pacman wrapper based on Yay. It is written in Rust and has some additional features, such as printing AUR comments, news, and PKGBUILDs. To install and use Paru on Arch Linux, you need to:
Installing Paru on Arch Linux Through Git Repository
To install Paru, start by installing the base-devel package, and clone the Paru repository from GitHub. After that, build and install Paru.
sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/paru.git cd paru makepkg -si
Paru is successfully installed on your Arch Linux system. Now you can use it for installing AUR packages. You can also configure Paru to enable color, flip search order, edit PKGBUILDs, and more by editing the /etc/paru.conf file.
Installing Paru on Arch Linux Using AUR Helper (Yay)
An alternative way of installing Paru is using any other AUR helper. You can directly download Paru from AUR using the Yay:
yay -S paru
To manage packages using Paru, you can use the same commands as Yay. For example:
- paru [packages]: Search for packages in both the official Arch and AUR repositories.
- paru —: This is a shortcut for paru -Syu.
- paru -Sua: Only upgrade the packages from AUR and ignore the official repository packages.
- paru -Qua: It will print a list of the AUR packages that have updates available.
- paru -G [package]: Download the PKGBUILD and other files related to a package from the AUR.
- paru -Gp [target]: It will print the PKGBUILD of a package or a target on the screen, without downloading it.
To get more information related to options, run the help command:
paru --help
Installing AUR Packages Using Paru
The syntax of using Paru is almost similar to Yay or Pacman. Consider following some commands:
To install a package using Paru you can use the following command.
paru -S firefox
This command will install Firefox on your system and if there are multiple versions of Firefox, paru will prompt you to choose one. Paru will also resolve any dependencies and conflicts for the package.
To remove the Firefox package from your system, run:
paru -R firefox
This command will also remove any unused dependencies. Paru will ask you to confirm the removal before proceeding.
Trizen
Another AUR helper on the list is Trizen. It is a lightweight AUR package manager that is written in Perl. It allows you to search, install, and update AUR packages.
Installing Trizen on Arch Linux Through Git Repository
To install packages in Arch Linux using Trizen, you need to have Trizen installed first. There are two ways to install Trizen:
Using git and makepkg, you can clone the Trizen repository from AUR and build it manually. For example, run the following commands one by one to install Trizen:
sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel git git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/trizen.git cd trizen makepkg -si
These commands start with the installation of git if not already installed. After that, it will clone the Trizen repository. Next, change your current working directory to Trizen. Finally, it will build and install Trizen on your system.
Installing Trizen on Arch Linux Using AUR Helper (Yay)
The second method for Trizen installation is using another AUR helper, such as Yay, Packer, or Yaourt. For example, to install Trizen using Yay, you can run:
yay -S trizen
To check if Trizen is successfully installed, you can check its version:
trizen --version
Installing AUR Packages Using Trizen
Once you have Trizen installed, you can use it to install packages from the AUR. The syntax of Trizen is similar to Pacman with a few tweaks.
For example, to install a firefox package, run:
trizen -S firefox
To remove a package, you can run:
trizen -R firefox
Similarly, you can run Trizen with the following options:
- trizen -S: To install a package.
- trizen -Ss: To search for a package.
- trizen -Si: To get package details.
- trizen -C: To display AUR comments for a package.
- trizen -Sm: To find the maintainer of a package.
- trizen -R: To remove a package.
- trizen -y: To refresh the package database.
- trizen -u: To update an installed package.
- trizen -G: To clone a package in the current working directory.
Explore Trizen options further from help:
trizen --help
Pamac (GUI Based)
Pamac is a GUI package manager that can install packages from the official Arch Linux repositories, the AUR, and other sources. Like Trizen, Pamac can also be installed using two ways, either through the Git repository or using any AUR helper, like Yay.
Installing Pamac on Arch Linux Through Git Repository
To install Pamac on Arch Linux through the Pamac Git repository, you can follow these steps:
Install the base-devel package and clone the Pamac AUR repository. After that, open the Pamac directory and build the Pamac package:
sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel git git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/pamac-aur.git cd pamac-aur makepkg -si
This will install Pamac on your system.
Installing Pamac on Arch Linux Using AUR Helper (Yay)
Alternatively, you can use any AUR helper, such as Yay to install pamac-aur on your Arch system.
yay -S pamac-aur
Installing AUR Packages Using Pamac (Terminal Method)
As Pamac is a GUI-based package manager tool, it can be used both through the terminal and using its GUI application from the software menu.
From the terminal, you can run various options with the Pamac command. You can search for a package and directly install or remove it using terminal commands.
For example, to install a new package using Pamac, run:
pamac install package_name
To remove a package installed using Pamac, run:
pamac remove package_name
If you want to remove a package along with its no longer required dependencies (orphans), run:
pamac remove --orphans package_name
Check out more options to run with Pamac AUR helper using its help option:
pamac help
Installing AUR Packages Using Pamac (GUI Method)
To use Pamac GUI, you can launch it from your application’s menu by searching Add/Remove Software or Software Update. Alternatively, search for the pamac in the search menu.
Here, you can manage installed packages (Both Arch and AUR). You can also download and install new packages using the Browse section.
The AUR package support inside the Pamac is disabled by default. To install AUR packages with Pamac, you need to turn on this feature first. Launch Pamac select the hamburger icon and open Preferences.
Next, enter the system root password.
Now inside the Third-Party tab, turn on the AUR package support.
With the Pamac interface, you can now find and install any package from the AUR. You have activated the AUR support on your system successfully.
How to Install Deb Packages on Arch Linux?
All distributions that are based on Debian use deb as the format for their installation packages. The official Debian distribution contains free packages that you can install. Although Deb packages are exclusive to Debian systems, still there is a way to obtain and install them on Arch. Unfortunately, deb packages are not directly supported on Arch Linux, you have to first convert them into Arch-supported packages.
However, Deb packages can be directly downloaded from an AUR repository using any AUR helper mentioned above. Alternatively, you can use Debtap. The debtap is a script used to convert .deb packages into Arch-supported packages.
We have already covered ways of installing AUR packages using Yay and other AUR helpers. Now we will see how one can download and install deb packages in Arch Linux, using debtap.
Installing Debtap on Arch Linux Using AUR Helper (Yay)
To install debtap on Arch, you can use any AUR helper. We will continue with the Yay.
yay -S debtap
This is the simplest way to install debtap on your system. The only requirement is that Yay must be installed on your system.
You can confirm debtap installation by checking its version:
debtap --version
Converting .deb Package to Arch Package Using Debtap
As debtap installation is finished, now we will convert a deb package to an Arch package using it. Before moving forward, first update the debtap database:
sudo debtap -u
This is necessary to run at least once before converting any .deb package to Arch-supported package format.
Now download any deb package file.
After that, navigate to the download .deb file directory:
cd ~/Downloads ls
To convert the .deb package to Arch, run the debtap command followed by the deb package name:
debtap yourfile.deb
For example, to convert the Firefox deb package to Arch, run:
debtap firefox_120.0.1-1_amd64.deb
A new file with a .zst extension will be created. This .zst file is the supported format for Arch Linux. Using this file, you can now install the deb package on Arch.
Installing Deb Package
Now install the converted package using Pacman:
sudo pacman -U yourfile.zst
The -U option tells Pacman to install a package that is stored in a local file.
For example, to install the Firefox .deb converted file, run:
sudo pacman -U firefox-120.0.1-1-x86_64.pkg.tar.zst
The Firefox browser is successfully installed on your system.
To remove the Firefox browser, simply use the Pacman command with the -R option:
sudo pacman -R firefox
Manually Download and Run Debtap Script On Arch Linux
If AUR helper is not installed on your system, you can use the manual way. This method involves the manual download of the debtap script from its GitHub repository. After downloading, you have to extract it and run the debtap script to install deb packages on Arch Linux.
To start with the manual installation of debtap, start by installing pkgfile. This tool lets you locate packages that have a specific file.
sudo pacman -S pkgfile
Next, download the debtap source code from the official Debtap GitHub repository.
wget https://github.com/helixarch/debtap/archive/refs/tags/3.5.1.tar.gz
Before downloading the debtap tar file, check its latest available version and replace its name in the above command.
After downloading the file, extract the debtap source code and navigate to the debtap source code directory.
tar xzf 3.5.1.tar.gz cd debtap-3.5.1
Run the debtap script with the version number as an argument. This will check the integrity of the script and print the version number.
./debtap -v
Debtap is successfully installed, now run the debtap script with the update option as an argument. This will update the debtap database and the pkgfile database. You need to do this before converting any .deb packages.
sudo ./debtap -u
Converting .deb Package to Arch Package Using Debtap Script
Now, to convert any deb package to Arch, navigate to the directory where the debtap script is placed. Next, run the debtap script followed by the deb package name:
./debtap /File_Address/Deb_Package_Name.deb
For example, to convert the Firefox deb package placed in the Downloads directory, run:
./debtap /home/linux/Downloads/firefox_120.0.1-1_amd64.deb
Finally, an Arch package is created along with your .deb file.
Next, install the converted deb package using the Pacman command:
sudo pacman -U firefox-120.0.1-1-x86_64.pkg.tar.zst
To remove, simply use the -R flag with Pacman:
sudo pacman -R firefox
Install Packages on Arch Linux Using Pacseek
Pacseek is an Arch Linux package manager tool with a GUI interface. It lets you control the arch packages and install them. It can perform a colorized search for packages in both the local and the sync databases of Arch Linux.
Pacseek is a part of the pacman-contrib package. Pacseek can help you find installed packages, local-only packages, and packages from the official repositories.
Installing Pacseek on Arch Linux Through Git Repository
To install Pacseek start by cloning the Pacseek repository from GitHub to Arch system. You need to have git installed for this step:
git clone https://github.com/moson-mo/pacseek.git
Now change the current directory to the pacseek folder that was created by the previous step:
cd pacseek
Next, build the pacseek executable from the source code using the Go compiler. For this, your system must have Go installed:
go build .
Now move the pacseek executable to the /usr/bin directory, which is usually in the system path. Run the below command with sudo:
sudo mv ./pacseek /usr/bin/pacseek
Next, open the .bashrc file in the nano editor with sudo privileges. The .bashrc script file runs each time a new bash shell opens.
sudo nano ~/.bashrc
Finally, add the binary file to the path variable – e.g. ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc – and after that update the configuration source ~/.zshrc:
# pacseek export PATH=$PATH:/usr/bin/pacseek
This step adds the Pacseek executable to your path variable, which is a list of directories where the shell looks for commands. After adding Pacseek to your path variable, now you can run Pacseek without typing the full path. The file you need to edit may vary depending on your shell (zsh or bsh).
Installing Packages Using Pacseek
Now that Pacseek is installed, launch it by running the:
pacseek
The below interface of Pacseek will open. Check out the new packages to install.
Simply press Enter and you will see the following window to install Firefox using Pacseek.
A tick symbol will be shown next to the package name after installation.
You can also launch the application to confirm its installation.
You can also explore more options of Pacseek, like you can add, modify, or remove a package.
For example, press Ctrl + L to check all installed packages.
Removing a Package Using Pacseek
To remove any package using Pacseek select the package and press Enter.
The system will prompt for confirmation of package removal.
For confirmation, you can check out the check mark in front of the package name. As you can see from the image, Firefox has been successfully removed.
Conclusion
In Arch Linux, you can install packages in different ways. The most common way of installing packages in Arch Linux is using the default Pacman package manager. However, Pacman doesn’t have all packages available inside the default repository, like AUR or deb packages. To install AUR packages, you can use any AUR helper. Using the AUR helper, you can install AUR packages in Arch Linux. Some AUR helpers are Yay, Trizen, and Paru. You can also use Pamac, a GUI-based tool that integrates both Pacman and AUR, for a more user-friendly experience.
Moreover, you can also install deb packages on Arch with the help of tools like debtap or dpkg. You can also use the Pacseek GUI-based package manager to search for packages across multiple repositories. With these methods, you can easily install packages on Arch Linux.
