---
name: "pkglab"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "pkglab"
version: "1.4.2-13+b1"
release: "Debian 7 (Wheezy)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/pkglab"
---

# pkglab(1)

explore package repositories

## NAME

pkglab - explore package repositories

## SYNOPSIS

**pkglab \[OPTION\]...**

## DESCRIPTION

Pkglab is an interactive, console-based environment to explore package repositories of package-based software distributions.

A pkglab session typically starts by loading a package repository in one of the different formats understood pkglab. Then, pkglab can check given package combinations for co-installability according to inter-package relationships.

## OPTIONS

- **-architecture** *architecture*

  Default architecture to use when accessing packages from a package repository. By default the current host architecture is used.

- **-history** *filename*

  Use the file *filename* to load and save command-line history. Defaults to *$HOME/.pkglab-history*.

- **-script** *filename*

  Execute commands from the file *filename*.

- **-merge** *waterway*

  Start by merging the archive found in *waterway*.

- **-help**, **--help**

  Display basic help information.

## SEE ALSO

Pkglab can read package repositories in the dose format produced by [**ceve**(1)](/ceve/1.md).

The non-interactive tools [**edos-debcheck**(1)](/edos-debcheck/1.md) and **rpm-debcheck**(1) use the same algorithm as pkglab for checking installability of packages.

## AUTHORS

Pkglab was written by Berke Durak and Jaap Boender for the EDOS and Mancoosi projects.