---
name: "install_packages"
section: "8"
platform: "linux"
package: "fai-client"
version: "6.4.3"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/install_packages"
---

# install\_packages(8)

install FAI configured packages

## NAME

install\_packages - install FAI configured packages

## SYNOPSIS

**install\_packages**

## DESCRIPTION

This command is only called internally by FAI and not directly by the user.

install\_packages is a Perl script written for FAI to selectively install, hold, remove, or purge packages or tasks. Its function is to parse the package\_config files based on the class definitions of the client.  For example, if the client belonged to the SMTPSERVER class, install\_packages would parse ../package\_config/SMTPSERVER for instructions on what packages to install, hold, remove, or purge.

## OPTIONS

- **-d**

  Only download packages instead of installing them. Variable $aptoptions must be set.

- **-h**

  Show help, version and summary of options.

- **-H**

  Show list of all available commands for the file in package\_config.

- **-l**

  Print only the list of all packages that would be installed, then exit.

- **-L**

  Print the list of all packages with version number that would be installed, then exit.

- **-m MAX**

  Install only MAX packages at a time. Same as setting the shell environment variable MAXPACKAGES.

- **-n**

  Dry run. Do not execute installation commands, just print them.

- **-N**

  Do not check package names whether they are valid and remove unknown packages from the list. You can also set the variable FAI\_DISABLE\_PACKAGE\_NAME\_CHECK to 1.

- **-p** *DIRECTORY*

  Read the configuration files from DIRECTORY instead of $FAI/packages\_config.

- **-s**

  Download source of binary packages that are installed. Currently supported only for apt-get/aptitude based installations.

- **-v**

  Be verbose.

## NOTES

install\_packages expects to find the FAI\_ROOT directory, the location of class definitions, package configurations, and custom install scripts, somewhere in the filesystem.

## SEE ALSO

*apt*(1), [*aptitude*(8)](/aptitude/8.md), [*apt-get*(8)](/apt-get/8.md), [*dpkg*(8)](/dpkg/8.md), *tasksel*(1)

This program is part of FAI (Fully Automatic Installation). See the FAI manual for more information on how to use install\_packages. The FAI homepage is https://fai-project.org.

## FILES

- */srv/fai/config/package\_config/*

  The FAI package configuration directory.

## AUTHOR

Thomas Lange \<lange@cs.uni-koeln.de\>