---
name: "pkg-unused-libs"
section: "1p"
platform: "linux"
package: "pkg-order"
version: "1.12"
release: "Debian 2.2 (Potato)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/pkg-unused-libs"
---

# pkg-unused-libs(1p)

List library packages that noone depends on

## NAME

pkg-unused-libs - List library packages that noone depends on

## SYNOPSIS

```
 usage: pkg-unused-libs [options]
 where the options are:
```

- \--nocheck-recommends

  - \--check-recommends Check Recommends as well \[OFF\]

  - \--nocheck-suggests

  - \--check-suggests Check Suggests as well \[OFF\]

  - \--installed-packages \<Package-file-for-installed-packages\>

  - \-v, --verbose Also print unsure cases

  ## DESCRIPTION

This utility prints a list of installed library packages that have no other packages that depend on them (optionally also checks Recommends and Suggestions).

A package is considered to be a library if it provides a I\<PKG}.shlibs file in */var/lib/dpkg/info*. Sometimes packages with an shlibs file provide the libraries only as a side effect and do somthing really different otherwise (e.g., apt and e2fsprogs). Therefore, packages that contain files in directories for executables (*/bin*, */usr/bin*, ...) are usually not listed. You can print those, too, with the --verbose option. But please note that the verbose output can't be used in backticks anymore, because it contains additional comments.

The default is to assume that the list of installed packages may be derived from the file */var/lib/dpkg/status*, but the user may override this by providing a *Packages* file listing all the packages that are assumed to be installed.

## CAVEATS

This is very inchoate, at the moment, and needs testing.

## BUGS

None Known so far.

## AUTHOR

Roman Hodek \<Roman.Hodek@informatik.uni-erlangen.de\>