---
name: "dhelp_parse"
section: "8"
platform: "linux"
package: "dhelp"
version: "0.6.31"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/dhelp_parse"
---

# dhelp\_parse(8)

Debian online help parser

## NAME

dhelp\_parse - Debian online help parser

## SYNOPSIS

**dhelp\_parse** *\[ -r \| -i \| -a doc-base\_file \| -d doc-base\_file \]*

## DESCRIPTION

This program is used by package developers to register the documents included in a package.

In most cases it is called by **install-docs** (see **doc-base** package), which in turn is called from the postinst and prerm scripts of a Debian package.

An index of the registered documents is written in the directory */usr/share/doc/HTML*

## OPTIONS

- **-h,--help**

  Displays the help page.

- **-a**

  Adds the documentation found in the given *doc-base* files to the dhelp database.

- **-d**

  Deletes the documentation found in the given *doc-base* files from the dhelp database.

- **-i**

  Does an incremental update of the documents index for all documentation added with the -a switch after the last index update.

- **-r**

  Ignored, kept for compatibility.

## PACKAGE DEVELOPERS

You should usually rely on **install-docs** to do the work for you, but if for some reason you want to use **dhelp\_parse** directly (not recommended!), you have to call it like this:

### postinst

if \[ -x /usr/sbin/dhelp\_parse \]; then\
\
   dhelp\_parse -a /var/lib/doc-base/documents/foo\
 fi

### prerm

if \[ -x /usr/sbin/dhelp\_parse \]; then\
\
   dhelp\_parse -d /var/lib/doc-base/documents/foo\
 fi

Note that */var/lib/doc-base/documents/foo* has to be a valid **doc-base** file (see **doc-base** documentation).

## SEE ALSO

[dhelp(1)](/dhelp/1.md), [install-docs(8)](/install-docs/8.md)

## AUTHOR

This package was written by Esteban Manchado Velázquez (zoso@debian.org).