Have you ever took a look at your Ubuntu system and wondered what programs are installed? Perhaps you installed something a while ago and can't remember the name, or you're clearing away unused software.  Fear not, Ubuntu user!  This blog post will share the secrets behind Linux Ubuntu List Installed Packages command line on your system.  We'll look at simple ways to view exactly what software is taking up space on your laptop, allowing you to fully control your Ubuntu environment. 

 

Ubuntu list installed packages by date and time 

To Ubuntu list installed packages by date and time, you can use the `dpkg` command along with some additional utilities. Here's a step-by-step guide:

  1. Open a terminal window.

  2. Run the following command to list all installed packages along with their installation dates:

   grep " install " /var/log/dpkg.log /var/log/dpkg.log.* | sort -k1,1 -k2,2n | awk '{print $1, $2, $4}'

This option will retrieve and sort the lines providing installation information from the 'dpkg.log' files based on date and time. The output will show the package names, installation dates, and times.

If you want to display the package names only, you can modify the command slightly:

grep " install " /var/log/dpkg.log /var/log/dpkg.log.* | sort -k1,1 -k2,2n | awk '{print $4}'

This will list only the package names sorted by date and time.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages by size

To Ubuntu list installed packages by size you need to do the following steps:

  1. Open a terminal window.

  2. Run the following command to list installed packages along with their sizes:

   dpkg-query -Wf '${Installed-Size}\t${Package}\n' | sort -n

This command will show a list of ubuntu list installed packages sorted by size in ascending order. Each line indicates the size of the package, followed by its name.

If you want to display the list in descending order (largest packages first), you can add the `r` flag to the `sort` command like this:

dpkg-query -Wf '${Installed-Size}\t${Package}\n' | sort -nr

This will list the largest packages first.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages apt

To Ubuntu list installed packages apt package management system, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Terminal on your local system or connect to your VPS using SSH via PuTTY or Terminal.

  2. Once connected, you need to Ubuntu list all available packages command line. Execute the following command to list all available Ubuntu 22.04 packages:

   sudo apt list

Now, ubuntu list all available package versions is possible using this command. 

  1. To list only installed packages, use the `--installed` option:

   sudo apt list --installed

  1. To display a more manageable output, add the `less` argument to compress the output:

   sudo apt list --installed | less

  1.  If you want to check if a specific package is installed, use the `grep` command with the package name:

   sudo apt list --installed | grep packagename

Replace `packagename` with the name of the package you're interested in. For example, to list Vim-related packages:

   sudo apt list --installed | grep vim

  1. To view detailed information about a particular installed package, use the `apt show` command:

   sudo apt show packagename

Replace `packagename` with the name of the package you want to inspect. For example, to view details about the Vim package:

   sudo apt show vim

Remember to replace placeholders like `packagename` with the actual names of the packages you're interested in. These commands will help you manage and inspect installed packages on your Ubuntu system.

People also read How to Fix Ubuntu Broken Packages. 

 

Ubuntu list installed packages with version

You can utilize Ubuntu's `apt` commands to ubuntu list installed packages and versions. To begin, run the following command:

sudo apt list --all-versions

This command displays a comprehensive list of all package versions directly in your Terminal window.

To specifically query the installed version of a particular package, append its name to the command. For instance, to check the version of PHP installed, use a command similar to the one depicted below:

sudo apt list --installed php

Additionally, users can review log files stored within the `/var/log/apt` directory to track package operations such as removals, updates, or deletions. To access these logs, employ the `less` command:

sudo less /var/log/apt/history.log

This version offers a clearer sequence of steps and explanations, ensuring a smoother understanding of the commands provided.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages from repository

Ubuntu list installed packages by repository is also possible. To do that, use the 'apt' command with a few arguments to filter the results. Here's how you can accomplish it:

Open a terminal window and run the following command to list all installed packages from the repository:

   apt list --installed

This command will display a list of all installed packages on your system, regardless of their repository origin.

If you want to filter the list to only show packages from a specific repository, you can use the `apt-cache` command in combination with `grep`. Here's how to do it:

First, find the repository of the package you're interested in. You can do this by inspecting the `apt-cache policy` output for a specific package. For example, to find the repository for the `nginx` package:

   apt-cache policy nginx

Once you've identified the repository, you can use `apt list --installed` with `grep` to filter the list based on the repository. For example, if `nginx` is from the `main` repository, you can use:

   apt list --installed | grep "/main"

Replace `"/main"` with the repository you're interested in. This command will display a list of installed packages that belong to the specified repository.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages by user manually 

To display a comprehensive list of packages on Ubuntu that a user personally installed, you can run the following command:

apt-mark showmanual

Ubuntu list all packages installed by user will be shown. 

Moreover, if you're curious about the total number of packages you've manually installed, you can use the following command: 

apt-mark showmanual | wc -l

Executing this in your terminal will promptly present the total count of such packages, providing you with a quick overview of your system's customization.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages without dependencies

To Linux Ubuntu list installed packages without including their dependencies, you can use the `deborphan` tool. apt-get list available packages versions is used to do that. Here's how to do it:

Install `deborphan` if you haven't already:

   sudo apt-get install deborphan

Once installed, you can use `deborphan` to list installed packages without their dependencies:

   deborphan --no-show-section

This command will list only the packages that were explicitly installed and not their dependencies.

Alternatively, you can use `apt-mark` to achieve a similar result. Here's how:

  1. List all installed packages:

   apt list --installed

  1.  Pipe the output to `grep` to filter out the dependencies:

   apt list --installed | grep -v -E 'automatically|automatic'

This command filters out packages that were installed automatically as dependencies, showing only explicitly installed packages.

Choose the method that suits your preference and requirements best!

 

Ubuntu list installed packages by name

To list installed packages on Ubuntu by their names, you can use the `dpkg` command. Here's how:

dpkg-query -l | awk '{print $2}'

If you want to sort the list alphabetically, you can use `sort`:

dpkg-query -l | awk '{print $2}' | sort

This will list the installed package names sorted alphabetically.

If you want to filter the list by a specific package name or pattern, you can use `grep`. For example, to list packages containing "apache" in their names:

dpkg-query -l | awk '{print $2}' | grep apache

Replace "apache" with the desired package name or pattern you want to filter by.

 

Ubuntu list installed packages by specific name

To find a specific package, like "python," within your Ubuntu 22.04 system, use the following command:

dpkg -l | grep python

This command sifts through your installed packages and isolates those related to "python," presenting them in a filtered list.

 

How to list or find out if a specific package installed or not

To determine whether a specific package is installed on your system, you can use the following command:

apt list -a <package_name>

For instance, to check if the `sudo` package is installed, you would execute:

apt list -a sudo

If the package is installed, its version and other relevant information will be displayed. If it's not installed, the output will indicate that it's not found.

 

How to count the installed packages on Ubuntu

You can easily count the number of installed Linux packages using a simple command. It's quite similar to listing the packages, but instead of viewing them, you'll employ a word count command.

Here's how you can do it:

sudo dpkg-query -f '${binary:Package}\n' -W | wc -l

This command utilizes `dpkg-query` to list installed packages and then pipes the output to `wc -l`, which counts the number of lines. The result is the total count of installed packages.

When you execute this command, you'll see the total number of installed packages displayed in your terminal.

Alternatively, you can achieve the same result using `apt`:

sudo apt list --installed | wc -l

This command provides a similar outcome by listing installed packages via `apt` and then counting the lines to determine the total number of installed packages on your system.

You may want to know How to install packages in Linux. 

 

How to list upgradeable packages

To ensure you're checking for available updates in the repository, include the `--upgradeable` option in your `apt` command. Before doing so, synchronize the repository to fetch the latest information using the following command:

sudo apt update

Once the repository is synced, you can proceed to detect upgradable packages by executing:

sudo apt list --upgradeable

The output in your terminal will resemble something like this, providing details on available updates for your installed packages.

 

List installed snap packages

Snap serves as an alternative package manager system. It's worth noting that the previously mentioned commands do not include packages installed through Snap.

To view a list of installed Snap packages, simply execute:

snap list

This command provides an overview of all Snap packages currently installed on your system.

 

Conclusion 

 Being able to list installed packages on your Ubuntu system provides useful information about the software and dependencies that are currently in use. The list installed packages and commands provide full support for exploring packages and their versions, as well as removing or updating them as appropriate. Using this knowledge, you may keep a structured and up-to-date Ubuntu system that matches your particular needs. For those managing an Ubuntu VPS or an Ubuntu RDP server, this capability becomes even more critical as it helps in maintaining system efficiency and security. Regularly checking and managing installed packages ensures that your Ubuntu VPS or RDP server operates smoothly and securely, allowing you to focus on your tasks without worrying about outdated or conflicting software. So, now you know how to check installed packages in Linux command.

 

FAQs

How do I list all packages on Ubuntu?

To list all packages available in the Ubuntu repositories, you can use the command `apt list`.

How do I list all installed packages?

You can list all installed packages on Ubuntu by running the command `dpkg-query -l`.

How do I see what packages are installed on Linux?

You can see what packages are installed on Linux by using the command `dpkg --list`.

How do I list installed programs in Ubuntu terminal?

To list installed programs in the Ubuntu terminal, you can use the command `dpkg-query -l`.