from small one page howto to huge articles all in one place

search text in:




Other .linuxhowtos.org sites: www.linuxhowtos.org
toolsntoys.linuxhowtos.org



Last additions:
How to make X listen on port 6000

How to make X listen on port 6000

words:

34

views:

83961

userrating:

average rating: 1.2 (52 votes) (1=very good 6=terrible)


May, 25th 2007:
April, 26th 2007:
Apr, 10th. 2007:
Druckversion . pdf icon
You are here: Tips&Tricks

Querying Portage with etcat

This tip shows you how to use the etcat command to retrieve information on Portage, USE flags, package versions, and much more.

While there are other package query utilities such as qpkg or epm, etcat has some unique features. Some of these features include the ability to display the amount of disk space a particular package is using, the USE flags the package was compiled with, and the versions available for a package.

The first step is installing the app-admin/gentoolkit package from Portage. This installs etcat (among other utilities) to /usr/bin/.

Code Listing 1: Getting etcat>

# emerge app-admin/gentoolkit

To view the size of the package, use etcat size [package].

Code Listing 2: Displaying the size of a package

# etcat size mozilla
[ Results for search key : mozilla ]
[ Applications found : 4 ]  
  
 Only printing found installed programs.  
  
* mozilla-firebird-bin-0.5  
           Total Files : 338  
            Total Size : 20925.18 KB  
* mozilla-1.3-r1  
           Total Files : 3155  
            Total Size : 52073.05 KB  
  
# etcat size evolution  
[ Results for search key : evolution ]  
[ Applications found : 1 ]  
  
 Only printing found installed programs.  
  
* evolution-1.2.4  
           Total Files : 1421  
            Total Size : 33456.65 KB  
  
# etcat size fluxbox  
[ Results for search key : fluxbox ]  
[ Applications found : 1 ]  
  
 Only printing found installed programs.  
  
* fluxbox-0.1.14-r1  
           Total Files : 26  
            Total Size : 806.92 KB

To look at the USE flags a package was compiled with, use etcat uses [package]. For example, the following command shows which USE flags Postfix was compiled with.

Code Listing 3: Displaying USE flags

# etcat uses net-mail/postfix  
[ Colour Code : set unset ]  
[ Legend      : (U) Col 1 - Current USE flags        ]  
[             : (I) Col 2 - Installed With USE flags ]  
  
 U I [ Found these USE variables in : net-mail/postfix-2.0.9 ]  
 + + ssl     : Adds support for Secure Socket Layer connections  
 + + mysql   : Adds mySQL support  
 + + sasl    : Adds support for the Simple Authentication and Security Layer  
 + + ldap    : Adds LDAP support (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol)  
 - - ipv6    : Adds support for IP version 6  
 - - maildir : Adds support for maildir (~/.maildir) style mail spools  
 - - mbox    : Adds support for mbox (/var/spool/mail) style mail spools  
  
# etcat uses fluxbox  
[ Colour Code : set unset ]  
[ Legend      : (U) Col 1 - Current USE flags        ]  
[             : (I) Col 2 - Installed With USE flags ]  
  
 U I [ Found these USE variables in : x11-wm/fluxbox-0.1.14-r1 ]  
 - - kde      : Adds support for kde-base/kde (K Desktop Enviroment)  
 + + gnome    : Adds GNOME support  
 + + nls      : unknown  
 + - xinerama : Add support for XFree86's xinerama extension,
                which allows you to stretch  your display across
                multiple monitors  
 + + truetype : Adds support for FreeType and/or FreeType2 fonts

To see which versions of a specific package are available, use etcat versions [package]

Code Listing 4: Displaying available package versions

# etcat versions kde-base/kde  
[ Results for search key : kde-base/kde ]  
[ Applications found : 1 ]  
  
*  kde-base/kde :  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-2.2.2-r1 (2)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.0.4 (3.0)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.0.5a (3.0)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.0.5b (3.0)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.1.1a (3.1)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.1.1 (3.1)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.1.2 (3.1)  
        [   ] kde-base/kde-3.1 (3.1)  
  
# etcat versions net-mail/evolution  
[ Results for search key : net-mail/evolution ]  
[ Applications found : 1 ]  
  
*  net-mail/evolution :  
        [   ] net-mail/evolution-1.2.3 (0)  
        [  I] net-mail/evolution-1.2.4 (0)  
        [M~ ] net-mail/evolution-1.3.92 (2)  
        [M~ ] net-mail/evolution-1.4.0 (0)  
  
# etcat versions net-www/apache  
[ Results for search key : net-www/apache ]  
[ Applications found : 1 ]  
  
*  net-www/apache :  
        [   ] net-www/apache-1.3.27 (1)  
        [   ] net-www/apache-1.3.27-r1 (1)  
        [M~ ] net-www/apache-1.3.27-r2 (1)  
        [   ] net-www/apache-1.3.27-r3 (1)  
        [M~ ] net-www/apache-1.3.27-r4 (1)  
        [M~ ] net-www/apache-2.0.43-r1 (2)  
        [M~ ] net-www/apache-2.0.44 (2)  
        [M~ ] net-www/apache-2.0.45 (2)  
        [M~I] net-www/apache-2.0.46 (2)

Note: If you don't specify the category, etcat will try to find all possible matches in Portage. If the package name is common or occurs in many other package names, you may get a lot more output that you wanted.

For more detailed information, type man etcat. For a quick overview of available options, just type etcat.

From http://www.gentoo.org/news/en/gwn/20030623-newsletter.xml

back



Support us on Content Nation

New Packages

- as rdf newsfeed
- as rss newsfeed
- as Atom newsfeed
2026-03-24
cdf - 3.9.1
Ebuild name:

sci-libs/cdf-3.9.1

Description

Common Data Format I/O library for multi-dimensional data sets

Added to portage

2026-03-24

freerdp - 3.24.0-r1
Ebuild name:

net-misc/freerdp-3.24.0-r1

Description

Free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol

Added to portage

2026-03-24

freerdp - 3.24.1-r1
Ebuild name:

net-misc/freerdp-3.24.1-r1

Description

Free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol

Added to portage

2026-03-24

jdupes - 1.31.1
Ebuild name:

app-misc/jdupes-1.31.1

Description

Identify duplicate files on the filesystem

Added to portage

2026-03-24

libjodycode - 4.1.2
Ebuild name:

dev-libs/libjodycode-4.1.2

Description

Shared code used by several utilities written by Jody Bruchon

Added to portage

2026-03-24

picard - 3.0.0_alpha4-r1
Ebuild name:

media-sound/picard-3.0.0_alpha4-r1

Description

Cross-platform music tagger

Added to portage

2026-03-24

2026-03-23
arprec - 2.2.20
Ebuild name:

sci-libs/arprec-2.2.20

Description

Arbitrary precision float arithmetics and functions

Added to portage

2026-03-23

astroid - 4.1.2
Ebuild name:

dev-python/astroid-4.1.2

Description

Abstract Syntax Tree for logilab packages

Added to portage

2026-03-23

atuin - 18.13.3
Ebuild name:

app-shells/atuin-18.13.3

Description

Shell history manager supporting encrypted synchronisation

Added to portage

2026-03-23

bpftool - 7.7.0
Ebuild name:

dev-util/bpftool-7.7.0

Description

Tool for inspection and simple manipulation of eBPF programs and maps

Added to portage

2026-03-23

cbor2 - 5.9.0
Ebuild name:

dev-python/cbor2-5.9.0

Description

Pure Python CBOR (de)serializer with extensive tag support

Added to portage

2026-03-23

cinnamon - 6.6.7-r1
Ebuild name:

gnome-extra/cinnamon-6.6.7-r1

Description

A fork of GNOME Shell with layout similar to GNOME 2

Added to portage

2026-03-23

containerd - 2.0.7
Ebuild name:

app-containers/containerd-2.0.7

Description

A daemon to control runC

Added to portage

2026-03-23

containerd - 2.1.5
Ebuild name:

app-containers/containerd-2.1.5

Description

A daemon to control runC

Added to portage

2026-03-23

cpptrace - 1.0.4-r1
Ebuild name:

dev-cpp/cpptrace-1.0.4-r1

Description

Simple, portable, and self-contained stacktrace library for C++11 and new

Added to portage

2026-03-23

dkms - 3.4.0
Ebuild name:

sys-kernel/dkms-3.4.0

Description

Dynamic Kernel Module Support

Added to portage

2026-03-23

dtrace - 2.0.6
Ebuild name:

dev-debug/dtrace-2.0.6

Description

Dynamic BPF-based system-wide tracing tool

Added to portage

2026-03-23

firefox-bin - 149.0
Ebuild name:

www-client/firefox-bin-149.0

Description

Firefox Web Browser

Added to portage

2026-03-23

freetype - 2.14.3
Ebuild name:

media-libs/freetype-2.14.3

Description

High-quality and portable font engine

Added to portage

2026-03-23

frp - 0.68.0
Ebuild name:

net-vpn/frp-0.68.0

Description

A reverse proxy that exposes a server behind a NAT or firewall to the internet

Added to portage

2026-03-23

gcc - 16.0.1_p20260322
Ebuild name:

sys-devel/gcc-16.0.1_p20260322

Description

The GNU Compiler Collection

Added to portage

2026-03-23

git-sources - 7.0_rc5
Ebuild name:

sys-kernel/git-sources-7.0_rc5

Description

The very latest -git version of the Linux kernel

Added to portage

2026-03-23

intune-portal - 1.2603.21
Ebuild name:

sys-apps/intune-portal-1.2603.21

Description

Microsoft Intune Company Portal to access a corporate environment

Added to portage

2026-03-23

kubo - 0.40.1
Ebuild name:

net-p2p/kubo-0.40.1

Description

Main implementation of IPFS

Added to portage

2026-03-23

libbpf - 1.7.0-r1
Ebuild name:

dev-libs/libbpf-1.7.0-r1

Description

Stand-alone build of libbpf from the Linux kernel

Added to portage

2026-03-23

libnvidia-container - 1.19.0
Ebuild name:

sys-libs/libnvidia-container-1.19.0

Description

NVIDIA container runtime library

Added to portage

2026-03-23

libtsm - 4.4.3
Ebuild name:

dev-libs/libtsm-4.4.3

Description

Terminal Emulator State Machine

Added to portage

2026-03-23

microsoft-identity-broker - 2.5.2
Ebuild name:

sys-auth/microsoft-identity-broker-2.5.2

Description

Microsoft Authentication Broker to access a corporate envi

Added to portage

2026-03-23

modus-themes - 5.1.0
Ebuild name:

app-emacs/modus-themes-5.1.0

Description

Highly accessible themes for GNU Emacs

Added to portage

2026-03-23

modus-themes - 5.2.0
Ebuild name:

app-emacs/modus-themes-5.2.0

Description

Highly accessible themes for GNU Emacs

Added to portage

2026-03-23

modus-themes - 9999
Ebuild name:

app-emacs/modus-themes-9999

Description

Highly accessible themes for GNU Emacs

Added to portage

2026-03-23

nvidia-container-toolkit - 1.19.0
Ebuild name:

app-containers/nvidia-container-toolkit-1.19.0

Description

NVIDIA container runtime toolkit

Added to portage

2026-03-23

openpgp-keys-libuv - 20260323
Ebuild name:

sec-keys/openpgp-keys-libuv-20260323

Description

OpenPGP keys used by libuv

Added to portage

2026-03-23

pv - 1.10.4
Ebuild name:

sys-apps/pv-1.10.4

Description

Pipe Viewer a tool for monitoring the progress of data through a pipe

Added to portage

2026-03-23

pygithub - 2.9.0
Ebuild name:

dev-python/pygithub-2.9.0

Description

Python library to access the Github API v3

Added to portage

2026-03-23

pyrate-limiter - 4.1.0
Ebuild name:

dev-python/pyrate-limiter-4.1.0

Description

Python Rate-Limiter using Leaky-Bucket Algorimth Family

Added to portage

2026-03-23

pytest-check - 2.8.0
Ebuild name:

dev-python/pytest-check-2.8.0

Description

pytest plugin that allows multiple failures per test

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qt-docs - 6.11.0_p202603180534
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qt-docs-6.11.0_p202603180534

Description

Qt6 documentation and examples for Qt Creator and other tools

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qt3d - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qt3d-6.11.0

Description

3D rendering module for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qt5compat - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qt5compat-6.11.0

Description

Qt module containing the unsupported Qt 5 APIs

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtbase - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtbase-6.11.0

Description

Cross-platform application development framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtcharts - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtcharts-6.11.0

Description

Chart component library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtconnectivity - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtconnectivity-6.11.0

Description

Bluetooth and NFC support library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtdeclarative - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtdeclarative-6.11.0

Description

Qt Declarative (Quick 2)

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtgraphs - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtgraphs-6.11.0

Description

Graphs component library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qthttpserver - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qthttpserver-6.11.0

Description

HTTP server functionality for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtimageformats - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtimageformats-6.11.0

Description

Additional format plugins for the Qt image I/O system

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtlanguageserver - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtlanguageserver-6.11.0

Description

Implementation of the Language Server Protocol for Qt

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtlocation - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtlocation-6.11.0

Description

Location (places, maps, navigation) library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtmultimedia - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtmultimedia-6.11.0

Description

Multimedia (audio, video, radio, camera) library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtnetworkauth - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtnetworkauth-6.11.0

Description

Network authorization library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtpositioning - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtpositioning-6.11.0

Description

Physical position determination library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtquick3d - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtquick3d-6.11.0

Description

Qt module and API for defining 3D content in Qt QuickTools

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtquicktimeline - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtquicktimeline-6.11.0

Description

Qt module for keyframe-based timeline construction

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtremoteobjects - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtremoteobjects-6.11.0

Description

Inter-Process Communication (IPC) library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtscxml - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtscxml-6.11.0

Description

State Chart XML (SCXML) support library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtsensors - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtsensors-6.11.0

Description

Hardware sensor access library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtserialbus - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtserialbus-6.11.0

Description

Qt module to access CAN, ModBus, and other industrial serial buses and pr

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtserialport - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtserialport-6.11.0

Description

Serial port abstraction library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtshadertools - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtshadertools-6.11.0

Description

Qt APIs and Tools for Graphics Pipelines

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtspeech - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtspeech-6.11.0

Description

Text-to-speech library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtsvg - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtsvg-6.11.0

Description

SVG rendering library for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qttools - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qttools-6.11.0

Description

Qt Tools Collection

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qttranslations - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qttranslations-6.11.0

Description

Translation files for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtvirtualkeyboard - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtvirtualkeyboard-6.11.0

Description

Customizable input framework and virtual keyboard for Qt

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtwayland - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtwayland-6.11.0

Description

Toolbox for making Qt based Wayland compositors

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtwebchannel - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtwebchannel-6.11.0

Description

Qt WebChannel

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtwebengine - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtwebengine-6.11.0

Description

Library for rendering dynamic web content in Qt6 C++ and QML applications

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtwebsockets - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtwebsockets-6.11.0

Description

Implementation of the WebSocket protocol for the Qt6 framework

Added to portage

2026-03-23

qtwebview - 6.11.0
Ebuild name:

dev-qt/qtwebview-6.11.0

Description

Module for displaying web content in a QML application using the Qt6 framew

Added to portage

2026-03-23

runit - 2.3.1
Ebuild name:

sys-process/runit-2.3.1

Description

A UNIX init scheme with service supervision

Added to portage

2026-03-23

seafile - 9.0.16
Ebuild name:

net-misc/seafile-9.0.16

Description

File syncing and sharing software with file encryption and group sharing

Added to portage

2026-03-23

seafile-client - 9.0.16
Ebuild name:

net-misc/seafile-client-9.0.16

Description

Seafile desktop client

Added to portage

2026-03-23

starlette - 1.0.0
Ebuild name:

dev-python/starlette-1.0.0

Description

The little ASGI framework that shines

Added to portage

2026-03-23

types-docutils - 0.22.3.20260322
Ebuild name:

dev-python/types-docutils-0.22.3.20260322

Description

Typing stubs for docutils

Added to portage

2026-03-23

whenever - 0.10.0_beta2
Ebuild name:

dev-python/whenever-0.10.0_beta2

Description

Modern datetime library for Python

Added to portage

2026-03-23

xvfbwrapper - 0.2.23
Ebuild name:

dev-python/xvfbwrapper-0.2.23

Description

Python wrapper for running a display inside X virtual framebuffer

Added to portage

2026-03-23

rdf newsfeed | rss newsfeed | Atom newsfeed
Copyright 2004-2025 Sascha Nitsch Unternehmensberatung GmbH
- Copyright and legal notices -
Time to create this page: 47.5 ms