Package file extensions

The metadata here described is meant to extend both *.deb and *.rpm in a fully compatible way. Compliance with normal implementations is a top priority.

URIs

Package names are not properly unique, nor are they useful if you can find the name in no known repository. The Internet community has long ago solved the problem of unique identifiers with URIs. Packages SHOULD include a file in the metadata called “URIs”. This file should contain data on packages referenced in the file (including the package itself) in the following format:

packagename URI

package2 URI2

Where it is suggested that the URIs be HTTP URLs which, when retrieved with the header

Accept: application/x-debian-package

or

Accept: application/x-rpm

The latest package in that format is retrieved.

find

If this file is included with the metadata, it can be used to determine if this package or a newer version is already installed, without checking the filesystem manually. This file SHOULD be a POSIX shell script. An exit code of 0 means the program is not already installed or an older version is installed. Exit code 1 means this version is already installed. Exit code 2 means a newer version is already installed.