DPKGbased

Dpkgbased describes operating systems or distributions that use the dpkg package management system as the foundation for software installation and maintenance. dpkg is the low-level package manager developed for Debian; it handles installation, configuration, upgrade, and removal of .deb packages and maintains the local package database. Dpkgbased distributions typically rely on a higher-level tool such as apt, apt-get, or aptitude to resolve dependencies and manage repositories, while delegating the actual package operations to dpkg.

The core package format is the Debian package (.deb), containing metadata and the files to install. A .deb package specifies dependencies, conflicts, and install scripts. The system stores package state in /var/lib/dpkg, including the status file that records installed packages and their versions.

Examples include Debian itself; Ubuntu and many of its derivatives such as Linux Mint and Pop!_OS; Kali Linux; and Raspberry Pi OS. Distributions derived from Debian or Ubuntu share the same packaging model and .deb format, enabling some cross-compatibility for software and tooling.

Usage notes: to install, upgrade, or remove software on a dpkgbased system, users typically rely on apt, apt-get, or aptitude for daily tasks, because these tools handle dependency resolution. dpkg is usually reserved for low-level tasks such as installing a single downloaded .deb file, repairing a broken install, or querying status with dpkg -l, -s, or listing files with dpkg -L.

See also: dpkg, apt.