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Finding the package which provides a given command

How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to?How to implement package install suggestion on Debian?How to install Debian package with file extension .debWhy is the Provides field in the local Debian package ignored (DepCompareOp)?How to get all the dependencies for a packageHow can I find the package that contains a program in Debian?Get name of package containing a given binaryFind which files in a folder are not known to the apt package managerlibcodec and libcodec2-dev do not exist in Debian 8Given a debian package name, how do I get a URL to the latest .deb URL?Find out which repository package provides a command

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5

If the package command-not-found is installed and a user tries to run a command which is not present on the system, a suggestion is printed with the name of the package which provides the executable. Is there a command with the same functionality but which takes the name of an executable as an argument?

Edit: I have read How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to? but none of the suggestions present a command which gives an unambiguous result like command-not-found.

debian apt

share|improve this question

edited Jul 16 at 9:51

August Karlstrom

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Possible duplicate of How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to?
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru See edit.
  
  – August Karlstrom
  Jul 16 at 9:52
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  I don't see anything ambiguous about the output of package: filename, but whatever you say.
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 9:57
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru apt-file search requires and provides details which I don't care for, for instance you need to provide the path /usr/bin to the command in question.
  
  – August Karlstrom
  Jul 16 at 12:18
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

5

If the package command-not-found is installed and a user tries to run a command which is not present on the system, a suggestion is printed with the name of the package which provides the executable. Is there a command with the same functionality but which takes the name of an executable as an argument?

Edit: I have read How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to? but none of the suggestions present a command which gives an unambiguous result like command-not-found.

debian apt

share|improve this question

edited Jul 16 at 9:51

August Karlstrom

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Possible duplicate of How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to?
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru See edit.
  
  – August Karlstrom
  Jul 16 at 9:52
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  I don't see anything ambiguous about the output of package: filename, but whatever you say.
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 9:57
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru apt-file search requires and provides details which I don't care for, for instance you need to provide the path /usr/bin to the command in question.
  
  – August Karlstrom
  Jul 16 at 12:18
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

If the package command-not-found is installed and a user tries to run a command which is not present on the system, a suggestion is printed with the name of the package which provides the executable. Is there a command with the same functionality but which takes the name of an executable as an argument?

Edit: I have read How to find out which (not installed) Debian package a file belongs to? but none of the suggestions present a command which gives an unambiguous result like command-not-found.

debian apt

share|improve this question

edited Jul 16 at 9:51

August Karlstrom

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

share|improve this question

edited Jul 16 at 9:51

August Karlstrom

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

share|improve this question

edited Jul 16 at 9:51

August Karlstrom

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

asked Jul 16 at 9:08

August KarlstromAugust Karlstrom

40611 gold badge1212 silver badges3232 bronze badges

2 Answers
2

active

oldest

votes

10

You can use command-not-found itself:

command-not-found --ignore-installed ls

will tell you which package contains the ls command. (--ignore-installed avoids taking into account installed packages, and in particular ensures that the command isn’t run immediately if it’s already installed.)

Alternatively, you can use apt-file:

apt-file search bin/ls

will list all packages containing a file whose path contains “bin/ls”. You can filter this to match only ls:

apt-file search bin/ls | grep bin/ls$

share|improve this answer

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian I don’t know. The question is tagged debian so I answered for Debian.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:23
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  apt-file has options -x (--regexp) and -F (--fixed-string), so you probably don't need to pipe to grep. For e.g., apt-file search -lF bin/ls => coreutils
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 10:03
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru -F requires knowing the full path; bin/ in a substring match will find binaries in /bin, /sbin, /usr/bin and /usr/sbin. apt-file with -x is very slow.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 11:10
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

3

Yes, the command is command-not-found:

$ command-not-found firefox
The program 'firefox' is currently not installed. To run 'firefox' please ask your administrator to
install the package 'firefox-esr'
firefox: command not found

This has exactly the same functionality, because it is what the shell traps run to produce that output automatically already.

You can also use apt-file search firefox to find any matching files in a package.

share|improve this answer

edited Jul 16 at 9:18

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Which packages provides this? On Centos 7 I have command_not_found_handle whose definition is just a shell function
  
  – Inian
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  On Debian, it’s in command-not-found.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  One potentially annoying side-effect of this is that, if the command is available, it will be run immediately.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:19
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian Fedora has PackageKit-command-not-found, the name is likely the same in CentOS if it uses PackageKit. (Presumably CentOS 8 will — it's still not out yet, right? — but I'm not sure if 7 did.) ETA: And command_not_found_handle, which is in /etc/profile.d/PackageKit.sh, is definitely provided by PackageKit-command-not-found.
  
  – FeRD
  Jul 16 at 20:15
  
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

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10

You can use command-not-found itself:

command-not-found --ignore-installed ls

will tell you which package contains the ls command. (--ignore-installed avoids taking into account installed packages, and in particular ensures that the command isn’t run immediately if it’s already installed.)

Alternatively, you can use apt-file:

apt-file search bin/ls

will list all packages containing a file whose path contains “bin/ls”. You can filter this to match only ls:

apt-file search bin/ls | grep bin/ls$

share|improve this answer

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian I don’t know. The question is tagged debian so I answered for Debian.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:23
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  apt-file has options -x (--regexp) and -F (--fixed-string), so you probably don't need to pipe to grep. For e.g., apt-file search -lF bin/ls => coreutils
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 10:03
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru -F requires knowing the full path; bin/ in a substring match will find binaries in /bin, /sbin, /usr/bin and /usr/sbin. apt-file with -x is very slow.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 11:10
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

10

You can use command-not-found itself:

command-not-found --ignore-installed ls

will tell you which package contains the ls command. (--ignore-installed avoids taking into account installed packages, and in particular ensures that the command isn’t run immediately if it’s already installed.)

Alternatively, you can use apt-file:

apt-file search bin/ls

will list all packages containing a file whose path contains “bin/ls”. You can filter this to match only ls:

apt-file search bin/ls | grep bin/ls$

share|improve this answer

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian I don’t know. The question is tagged debian so I answered for Debian.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:23
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  apt-file has options -x (--regexp) and -F (--fixed-string), so you probably don't need to pipe to grep. For e.g., apt-file search -lF bin/ls => coreutils
  
  – muru
  Jul 16 at 10:03
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @muru -F requires knowing the full path; bin/ in a substring match will find binaries in /bin, /sbin, /usr/bin and /usr/sbin. apt-file with -x is very slow.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 11:10
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

You can use command-not-found itself:

command-not-found --ignore-installed ls

will tell you which package contains the ls command. (--ignore-installed avoids taking into account installed packages, and in particular ensures that the command isn’t run immediately if it’s already installed.)

Alternatively, you can use apt-file:

apt-file search bin/ls

will list all packages containing a file whose path contains “bin/ls”. You can filter this to match only ls:

apt-file search bin/ls | grep bin/ls$

share|improve this answer

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

command-not-found --ignore-installed ls

apt-file search bin/ls

apt-file search bin/ls | grep bin/ls$

share|improve this answer

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

answered Jul 16 at 9:17

Stephen KittStephen Kitt

197k2626 gold badges464464 silver badges537537 bronze badges

3

Yes, the command is command-not-found:

$ command-not-found firefox
The program 'firefox' is currently not installed. To run 'firefox' please ask your administrator to
install the package 'firefox-esr'
firefox: command not found

This has exactly the same functionality, because it is what the shell traps run to produce that output automatically already.

You can also use apt-file search firefox to find any matching files in a package.

share|improve this answer

edited Jul 16 at 9:18

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Which packages provides this? On Centos 7 I have command_not_found_handle whose definition is just a shell function
  
  – Inian
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  On Debian, it’s in command-not-found.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  One potentially annoying side-effect of this is that, if the command is available, it will be run immediately.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:19
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian Fedora has PackageKit-command-not-found, the name is likely the same in CentOS if it uses PackageKit. (Presumably CentOS 8 will — it's still not out yet, right? — but I'm not sure if 7 did.) ETA: And command_not_found_handle, which is in /etc/profile.d/PackageKit.sh, is definitely provided by PackageKit-command-not-found.
  
  – FeRD
  Jul 16 at 20:15
  
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

3

Yes, the command is command-not-found:

$ command-not-found firefox
The program 'firefox' is currently not installed. To run 'firefox' please ask your administrator to
install the package 'firefox-esr'
firefox: command not found

This has exactly the same functionality, because it is what the shell traps run to produce that output automatically already.

You can also use apt-file search firefox to find any matching files in a package.

share|improve this answer

edited Jul 16 at 9:18

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Which packages provides this? On Centos 7 I have command_not_found_handle whose definition is just a shell function
  
  – Inian
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  On Debian, it’s in command-not-found.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:18
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  One potentially annoying side-effect of this is that, if the command is available, it will be run immediately.
  
  – Stephen Kitt
  Jul 16 at 9:19
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Inian Fedora has PackageKit-command-not-found, the name is likely the same in CentOS if it uses PackageKit. (Presumably CentOS 8 will — it's still not out yet, right? — but I'm not sure if 7 did.) ETA: And command_not_found_handle, which is in /etc/profile.d/PackageKit.sh, is definitely provided by PackageKit-command-not-found.
  
  – FeRD
  Jul 16 at 20:15
  
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

Yes, the command is command-not-found:

$ command-not-found firefox
The program 'firefox' is currently not installed. To run 'firefox' please ask your administrator to
install the package 'firefox-esr'
firefox: command not found

This has exactly the same functionality, because it is what the shell traps run to produce that output automatically already.

You can also use apt-file search firefox to find any matching files in a package.

share|improve this answer

edited Jul 16 at 9:18

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

$ command-not-found firefox
The program 'firefox' is currently not installed. To run 'firefox' please ask your administrator to
install the package 'firefox-esr'
firefox: command not found

share|improve this answer

edited Jul 16 at 9:18

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges

answered Jul 16 at 9:15

Michael HomerMichael Homer

54.2k99 gold badges152152 silver badges185185 bronze badges