---
name: "yada"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "yada"
version: "0.55"
release: "Debian 6.0 (Squeeze)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/yada"
---

# yada(1)

Yet Another Debianisation Aid

## NAME

yada - Yet Another Debianisation Aid

## SYNOPSIS

**yada** **yada**

**yada** **rebuild** \[*file*\]

## DESCRIPTION

**yada** is a Debian packaging helper. It is intended to keep all the information relating to building and cleaning the source and binary  packages into a single place, and to allow you to specify as much as possible of this declaratively. The \`\`single place'' is an augmented Debian control file named *debian/packages*, whose format is described in [**packages**(7)](/packages/7.md).

The basic idea is very simple: everything that used to be scattered amongst many little files in your *debian/* directory is now concentrated into a single file, *debian/packages*. There are only a couple of exceptions: *debian/changelog* is unchanged, and optional *debian/yada* is the yada script. *debian/rules*, *debian/control* and optional *debian/templates* are now generated from *debian/packages* by **yada**. Most of the other files in *debian/* will then likely be redundant.

So the only thing you now need to know to switch to **yada** is how to write *debian/packages*! See [**packages**(7)](/packages/7.md) for the gory details.

When you've written *debian/packages*, you'll want to run **yada** **yada** in order to install the **changelog** file into your *debian/* directory, and then run **yada** **generate** in order to generate your new *debian/rules* and *debian/control*.  After that, your **rules** file should automatically regenerate both itself and *debian/control* as necessary. Failing that, run **yada** **generate** **rules** or **yada** **generate** **control** as required.

## OPTIONS

- **yada**

  This command creates an skeleton *debian/packages* file for you to fill in, if you don't already have one and creates *debian/changelog* for initial release.

- **rebuild** **rules**

  **yada** reads *debian/packages* and generates a new **rules** file, *debian/rules*. Note that any existing rules file will be overwritten, and no backup will be kept.

- **rebuild** **control**

  **yada** reads *debian/packages* and generates a new **control** file, *debian/control*. Note that any existing control file will be overwritten, and no backup will be kept.

- **rebuild** **templates**

  **yada** reads *debian/packages* and generates a new optional **templates** file, *debian/templates*. Note that any existing templates file will be overwritten, and no backup will be kept. This file is created only if *debian/packages* contains any **Templates:** field. The file might be used with [**debconf-updatepo**(1)](/debconf-updatepo/1.md) command of [**po-debconf**(7)](/po-debconf/7.md) system to regenerate DebConf translations located in *debian/po/* directory.

- **rebuild**

  Regenerates all above required files if they don't exists already.

## FILES

- *debian/packages*

  contains package-specific information used in building both binary and source packages

- *debian/changelog*

  contains version-specific information about the package

- *debian/control*, *debian/rules*, *debian/templates*

  generated automatically

- *debian/yada*

  the script which controls building of the rules and control files, and which is used by the rules file

## SEE ALSO

[**packages**(7)](/packages/7.md)

## DIAGNOSTICS

yada prints an error message and bails out with a non-zero exit code if it detects an error.

## BUGS

This is the kind of software which cannot be bug-free; different people will want it to do different things. If you find a real bug, or you think a feature should work differently, report it via the Debian bug tracking system, and I'll do my best.

## AUTHORS

(c) 1999 Charles Briscoe-Smith \<cpbs@debian.org\>.

(c) 1999-2003 Piotr Roszatycki \<dexter@debian.org\>.