Linux Pocket Guide, 2nd Edition

Name

rpm — stdin  stdout  - file  -- opt  --help  --version

Synopsis

rpm [options] [files]

If you prefer to download and install RPM packages by hand, use rpm, the same package-management program that yum runs behind the scenes. Unlike yum, rpm works locally on your computer: it does not search software archives on the Internet for new packages.

rpm not only installs the software, but also makes sure your system has all prerequisites. For example, if package superstuff requires package otherstuff that you haven’t installed, rpm will not install superstuff. If your system passes the test, however, rpm completely installs the software.

RPM filenames typically have the form name-version.architecture.rpm. For example, emacs-23.1-17.i386.rpm indicates the emacs package, version 23.1-17, for i386 (Intel 80386 and higher) machines. Be aware that rpm sometimes requires a filename argument (like emacs-23.1-17.i386.rpm) and other times just the package name (like emacs).

Action	rpm command
Check if a package is installed	rpm -q package_name
Install a package file	rpm -ivh package_file.rpm
Learn about a package	rpm -qi package_name
List the contents of a package	rpm -ql package_name
Discover which package an installed file belongs to	rpm -qf /path/to/file
Update an installed package	rpm -Uvh package_file.rpm
Remove an installed package	rpm -e package_name
List all packages installed on the system	rpm -qa | less