Packages from Other Distributions¶
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Symptoms¶
- There is a useful package that is not yet available in the SliTaz repositories.
- Can I use packages from other distributions on my SliTaz installation?
Explanation¶
Packages in a general sense are simply a collection of files and meta-data, compiled from source code to suit a particular environment and installation. Software binaries from other distributions can sometimes run if the libraries that power it exist for SliTaz. It is an easy but not-always-accurate way of testing packages before writing SliTaz Receipts for a SliTaz version of the package.
The SliTaz Package Manager, Tazpkg, can convert packages from the Debian, RedHat, Slackware and Arch Linux formats, by unpacking them and using the meta-data information inside to create a Tazpkg.
Solution¶
Simply run the following command in a Terminal:
tazpkg convert {filename}
The converted Tazpkg will be created after auto-detection of the original format.
Important
There may be occasions where the generated package does not function. This could be a result of mismatching libraries or missing dependant software. Similarly, the binaries may under-perform as they may have been compiled for a different environment and have to adapt. For these reasons, it is highly advisable to compile the software from source code and create a Tazpkg proper.