Find, install and upgrade Linux software

  • Update packages list: sudo apt update
  • See packages that can be upgraded: apt list --upgradable
  • See all packages that can be upgraded: apt list --upgradable -a
  • Upgrade packages: apt upgrade
  • Upgrade packages without asking me yes/no: apt upgrade -y
  • Search for packages: apt-cache search foo OR apt search foo
  • Get details about a specific package: apt-cache show foo OR apt show foo

apt-cache

The apt-cache command can display much of the information stored in APT’s internal database. This information is a sort of cache since it is gathered from the different sources listed in the sources.list file. This happens during the apt update operation.