q applets

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The q applets are a collection of small, fast Portage query utilities written in C.

These are meant to offer a faster but more limited alternative to their gentoolkit counterparts.

q applets were not created to replace gentoolkit. q applets do not consider eclasses and do not provide tools like revdep-rebuild or glsa-check.

Installation

USE flags

USE flags for app-portage/portage-utils Small and fast Portage helper tools written in C

`+qmanifest`	Build qmanifest applet, this adds additional dependencies for GPG, OpenSSL and BLAKE2B hashing
`+qtegrity`	Build qtegrity applet, this adds additional dependencies for OpenSSL
`openmp`	Build support for the OpenMP (support parallel computing), requires >=sys-devel/gcc-4.2 built with USE="openmp"
`static`	!!do not set this during bootstrap!! Causes binaries to be statically linked instead of dynamically

Data provided by the Gentoo Package Database · Last update: 2024-09-24 15:02 More information about USE flags

Emerge

Install the q applets:

root #emerge --ask app-portage/portage-utils

Usage

Invocation

The complete list of applications that are provided by app-portage/portage-utils can be listed by typing man q or q --help. Please read the man page for each utility described, as this guide is only meant to be a short reference for the most useful functions and does not include all the information about each application.

To see the available applets with a short description of their function, use q --help:

user $q --help

usage: q <applet> <args>  : invoke a portage utility applet

currently defined applets:
         q <applet> <args> : virtual applet
     qatom <pkg>           : split atom strings
    qcheck <pkgname>       : verify integrity of installed packages
  qdepends <pkgname>       : show dependency info
     qfile <filename>      : list all pkgs owning files
     qgrep <expr> [pkg ...]: grep in ebuilds
  qkeyword <action> <args> : list packages based on keywords
     qlist <pkgname>       : list files owned by pkgname
      qlop <pkgname>       : emerge log analyzer
 qmanifest <misc args>     : verify or generate thick Manifest files
    qmerge <pkgnames>      : fetch and merge binary package
      qpkg <misc args>     : create or manipulate Gentoo binpkgs
   qsearch <regex>         : search pkgname/desc
     qsize <pkgname>       : calculate size usage
     qtbz2 <misc args>     : manipulate tbz2 packages
  qtegrity <misc args>     : verify files with IMA
      quse <useflag>       : find pkgs using useflags
    qwhich <pkg ...>       : find path to pkg
     qxpak <misc args>     : manipulate xpak archives

options: -[ioemvqChV]
  -i, --install    * Install symlinks for applets
  -o, --overlays   * Print available overlays (read from repos.conf)
  -e, --envvar     * Print used variables and their found values
  -m, --masks      * Print (package.)masks for the current profile
      --root <arg> * Set the ROOT env var
  -v, --verbose    * Report full package versions, emit more elaborate output
  -q, --quiet      * Tighter output; suppress warnings
  -C, --nocolor    * Don't output color
      --color      * Force color in output
  -h, --help       * Print this help and exit
  -V, --version    * Print version and exit

How to find a package to which a file belongs (qfile)

The qfile command finds the package to which a file belongs:

Example one:

user $qfile /etc/fonts/fonts.conf

media-libs/fontconfig (/etc/fonts/fonts.conf)

Example two:

user $qfile /usr/share/keymaps/atari/atari-uk-falcon.map.gz

sys-apps/kbd (/usr/share/keymaps/atari/atari-uk-falcon.map.gz)

Verifying package integrity (qcheck)

To check the MD5 checksums or modification times of the files installed by some package, use the qcheck application:

user $qcheck portage-utils

Checking app-portage/portage-utils-0.1.13 ...
  * 36 out of 36 files are good

All the files which were changed after installation will be reported here. Configuration files which have been manually edited after installation are reported too (such as the /etc/conf.d/ directory for OpenRC systems). Most packages do not require root permissions. However, if a package has files that are only accessible to root qcheck should be run as root.

To check the integrity of all installed packages, enter:

root #qcheck

Listing package dependencies (qdepends)

Note
This shows what might be used and not necessarily is being used on a particular system. It does not always account for the USE variables of packages that are installed or in a list of alternates.

qdepends can list the dependencies of a package in either direction. Without options to list the DEPEND (-d), RDEPEND (-r), PDEPEND (-p) or BDEPEND (-b) installed dependencies, all dependencies needed by a package are displayed merged into one list. Use -v to get a shell-compatible and formatted dependency output list, like found in ebuilds.

user $qdepends mutt

mail-client/mutt-1.13.1: >=app-portage/elt-patches-20170815 >=sys-devel/automake-1.15.1:1.15 dev-libs/libressl:0/47= dev-db/lmdb:0/0.9.24= virtual/libintl www-client/w3m !<sys-devel/gettext-0.18.1.1-r3 dev-libs/libxslt dev-libs/libxml2 >=sys-devel/automake-1.16.1:1.16 >=sys-devel/libtool-2.4 >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.69 net-dns/libidn2 virtual/libiconv >=app-crypt/gpgme-0.9.0:1/11= www-client/elinks app-misc/mime-types app-text/docbook-xsl-stylesheets >=dev-libs/cyrus-sasl-2 www-client/lynx net-mail/mailbase >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=

Use -v to get a shell-compatible and formatted dependency output list, like found in ebuilds.

user $qdepends -rv mutt

mail-client/mutt-1.13.1:
RDEPEND="
    app-misc/mime-types
    virtual/libiconv
    dev-db/lmdb:0/0.9.24=
    dev-libs/libressl:0/47=
    virtual/libintl
    >=dev-libs/cyrus-sasl-2
    net-dns/libidn2
    >=app-crypt/gpgme-0.9.0:1/11=
    >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=
"

To list all of the installed packages that depend on a package use the -Q option.

user $qdepends -Q mime-types

mail-client/mutt-1.13.1: >=app-portage/elt-patches-20170815 >=sys-devel/automake-1.15.1:1.15 dev-libs/libressl:0/47= dev-db/lmdb:0/0.9.24= virtual/libintl www-client/w3m !<sys-devel/gettext-0.18.1.1-r3 dev-libs/libxslt dev-libs/libxml2 >=sys-devel/automake-1.16.1:1.16 >=sys-devel/libtool-2.4 >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.69 net-dns/libidn2 virtual/libiconv >=app-crypt/gpgme-0.9.0:1/11= app-misc/mime-types www-client/elinks app-text/docbook-xsl-stylesheets >=dev-libs/cyrus-sasl-2 www-client/lynx net-mail/mailbase >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=
dev-lang/python-2.7.16: >=app-portage/elt-patches-20170815 >=sys-libs/readline-4.1:0/8= >=sys-devel/automake-1.15.1:1.15 dev-libs/libressl:0/47= virtual/libintl >=dev-db/sqlite-3.3.8:3/3= virtual/pkgconfig !<sys-devel/gettext-0.18.1.1-r3 virtual/libffi >=sys-devel/automake-1.16.1:1.16 >=dev-libs/expat-2.1 >=sys-libs/zlib-1.1.3:0/1= >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.69 >=app-eselect/eselect-python-20140125-r1 app-misc/mime-types >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.65 !!<sys-apps/portage-2.1.9 app-arch/bzip2:0/1= !sys-devel/gcc[libffi(+)] >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=
dev-lang/python-3.7.2: >=app-portage/elt-patches-20170815 >=sys-libs/readline-4.1:0/8= >=sys-devel/automake-1.15.1:1.15 virtual/libffi:0/7= dev-libs/libressl:0/47= virtual/libintl >=dev-db/sqlite-3.3.8:3/3= app-arch/xz-utils:0/0= virtual/pkgconfig !<sys-devel/gettext-0.18.1.1-r3 >=sys-devel/automake-1.16.1:1.16 !!<sys-apps/sandbox-2.6-r1 >=dev-libs/expat-2.1:0/0= >=sys-libs/zlib-1.1.3:0/1= >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.69 >=app-eselect/eselect-python-20140125-r1 app-misc/mime-types app-arch/bzip2:0/1= !sys-devel/gcc[libffi(+)] >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=
dev-lang/python-3.6.8: >=app-portage/elt-patches-20170815 >=sys-libs/readline-4.1:0/8= >=sys-devel/automake-1.15.1:1.15 virtual/libffi:0/7= dev-libs/libressl:0/47= virtual/libintl >=dev-db/sqlite-3.3.8:3/3= app-arch/xz-utils:0/0= virtual/pkgconfig !<sys-devel/gettext-0.18.1.1-r3 >=sys-devel/automake-1.16.1:1.16 !!<sys-apps/sandbox-2.6-r1 >=dev-libs/expat-2.1:0/0= >=sys-libs/zlib-1.1.3:0/1= >=sys-devel/autoconf-2.69 >=app-eselect/eselect-python-20140125-r1 app-misc/mime-types app-arch/bzip2:0/1= !sys-devel/gcc[libffi(+)] >=sys-libs/ncurses-5.2:0/6=

Search ebuilds or eclasses for a pattern (qgrep)

qgrep can be used to find ebuilds that mention an ebuild's name ("libechonest" is used in the example below) which will list all packages (installed or not) which depend on some package:

user $qgrep -l libechonest

media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-2.0.2.ebuild
media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-2.2.0-r1.ebuild
media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-2.3.0.ebuild
media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-2.3.1.ebuild
media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-2.3.1-r1.ebuild
media-libs/libechonest/libechonest-9999.ebuild
media-sound/clementine/clementine-1.2.3.ebuild
media-sound/clementine/clementine-1.2.3-r1.ebuild
media-sound/clementine/clementine-1.3.1-r1.ebuild
media-sound/tomahawk/tomahawk-0.8.4-r3.ebuild
media-sound/tomahawk/tomahawk-9999.ebuild

The -J option will limit the search to installed packages. -N will print the atom instead of the filename.

user $qgrep -NJ net-print/cups

app-office/libreoffice-6.1.5.2: cups? ( net-print/cups )
dev-qt/qtprintsupport-5.11.3:   cups? ( >=net-print/cups-1.4 )
net-print/hplip-3.18.6: net-print/cups
net-print/hplip-3.18.6: hpijs? ( net-print/cups-filters[foomatic] )
net-print/cups-2.2.7:PDEPEND=">=net-print/cups-filters-1.0.43"
net-print/cups-filters-1.21.6:  >=net-print/cups-1.7.3
net-print/cups-filters-1.21.6:  !<=net-print/cups-1.5.9999
net-wireless/bluez-5.50-r2:     cups? ( net-print/cups:= )
app-text/ghostscript-gpl-9.26:  cups? ( >=net-print/cups-1.3.8 )
x11-libs/gtk+-2.24.32-r1:       cups? ( >=net-print/cups-1.7.1-r2:=[${MULTILIB_USEDEP}] )
x11-libs/gtk+-3.24.4-r1:        cups? ( >=net-print/cups-1.2[${MULTILIB_USEDEP}] )

Listing files that belong to an ebuild (qlist)

The qlist command gives a list of all files that belong to an ebuild.

user $qlist vim

/usr/bin/gvim
/usr/bin/gvimdiff
/usr/bin/evim
/usr/bin/eview
/usr/bin/gview
/usr/bin/rgvim
[...]

Looking for packages that use some USE flag (quse)

Listing used USE flags is done with quse. In its simplest form, it lists which ebuilds use a given USE-flag.

user $quse firefox

app-misc/tracker/tracker-0.12.10-r1.ebuild applet doc eds elibc_glibc exif firefox-bookmarks flac flickr gif
[...]

To display the description of a USE-flag, the -D option can be used. This can be combined with the -p option, which takes an atom name as argument, to list all USE-flags for the given atom.

user $quse -Dvp autogen

sys-devel/autogen-5.18.16-r1
  libopts       install the libopts tarball (a few packages want this for developing)
  static-libs   Build static versions of dynamic libraries as well

Finding package sizes (qsize)

To show the size of a package, use the qsize application:

user $qsize vim-core

app-editors/vim-core: 1846 files, 175 non-files, 28.5M 
[...]

Searching ebuild repositories (qsearch)

One of the most powerful tools of app-portage/portage-utils is qsearch. This tool allows to search ebuild repositories much faster than using the emerge -s command.

Here are some examples of its usage:

user $qsearch terminus

media-fonts/terminus-font: A clean fixed font for the console and X11

The homepage of packages can be queried using the -H option:

user $qsearch -H terminus

media-fonts/terminus-font: http://terminus-font.sourceforge.net/

In another example, let's look for a jabber client:

user $qsearch -S "jabber client"

app-emacs/emacs-jabber: A Jabber client for Emacs
net-im/coccinella: Jabber Client With a Built-in Whiteboard and VoIP (jingle)
net-im/gajim: Jabber client written in PyGTK
net-im/tkabber: A jabber client written in Tcl/Tk
net-im/vacuum: Qt Crossplatform Jabber client

Extracting information from emerge logs (qlop)

qlop allows to extract useful information from the emerge.log file. It can be useful when package compilation times need to be estimated or to compare build times with other systems. It also allows to check what is compiling at the moment and how long it will probably take - which is handy when working in the console and don't have any other means to check it.

Estimate how long a dev-lang/perl build takes:

user $qlop -a perl

dev-lang/perl: 7′12″ average for 3 merges

See what is emerging at the moment and how long the process has been running already:

user $qlop -rt

2019-12-31T03:07:16 >>> net-fs/samba: 6′19″... (82 of 85) ETA: 23s

Install binary package (qmerge)

qmerge can quickly install binary packages (binpkgs):

user $qmerge sys-apps/sed

[R] sys-apps/sed-4.8

Create or manipulate binary package (qpkg)

qpkg is used to create or clean up Gentoo binary packages.

Warning
qpkg used to be a gentoolkit command for querying packages, there is still much outdated documentation on that command to be found on the Internet. See equery.

Note
Not to be confused with quickpkg.

qsearch

List the descriptions of every package in the cache: user $qsearch --all .

Regex search package basenames: user $qsearch --search <regex>

Regex search package descriptions (or homepage when using -H): user $qsearch --desc <arg>

Only show package name: user $qsearch --name-only <package>

Show homepage info instead of description: user $qsearch --homepage gentoo.org

Show repository the ebuild originates from: user $qsearch --repo gentoo

Print matched atom using given format string: user $qsearch --format <arg>

Set the ROOT env va: user $qsearch --root <arg>

Report full package versions, emit more elaborate output: user $qsearch --verbose syslog-ng

Tighter output; suppress warnings: user $qsearch --quiet <package>

Don't output color: user $qsearch --nocolor package>

Force color in output: Note
Colors is default enabled; user $qsearch --color <package>

Print current qsearch version: user $qsearch --version

quse

Print version and exit: user $quse --version

Print this help and exit: user $quse --help

Force color in output: user $quse --color

Don't output color: user $quse --nocolor

Tighter output; suppress warnings: user $quse --quiet <package>

Report full package versions, emit more elaborate output: user $quse --verbose <package>

Set the ROOT env var: user $quse --root <arg>

Print matched atom using given format string: user $quse --format <arg>

Show repository the ebuild originates from: user $quse --repo

Restrict matching to package or category: user $quse --package <arg>

Only search installed packages: user $quse --installed

Describe all USE flags: user $quse --describe .

Use the LICENSE vs IUSE: Note
Including a dot (.) will list all licenses available; user $quse --license .

List all ebuilds, don't match anything: user $quse --all

Show exact non regexp matching using strcmp: user $quse --exact useflag

Troubleshooting

Defining atom fields for applet commands

Certain q applet commands / argument combinations (such as qsearch --format) mention the use of atom formatting. The defintion of this formatting can be found on the qatom man page under the --format (-F) argument:

user $man 1 qatom