Softwarepropertiescommon

Softwarepropertiescommon is a Debian-based package that provides shared scripts and libraries for managing software sources on apt-based systems. It offers the functionality used by both command-line and graphical tools to handle repositories, including personal package archives (PPAs) and other third-party sources. The package supplies the add-apt-repository command (often used via apt-add-repository) and a Python module named softwareproperties that exposes an interface to sources.list and related authentication data. It also includes helper utilities that parse and modify repository entries, manage keys, and refresh package lists.

The primary user-facing tool is add-apt-repository, which allows adding or removing repositories by specifying a repository line, a PPA slug, or a URL. Examples include add-apt-repository ppa:user/repo and add-apt-repository -r ppa:user/repo. The library and scripts are used by graphical front ends such as software-properties-gtk and by other scripts that automate repository configuration.

Typical contents include executable binaries like /usr/bin/add-apt-repository and /usr/bin/apt-add-repository, Python modules under the system Python directories, and supporting data files used to manage software sources. The package is commonly preinstalled on Ubuntu desktop installations and is used to simplify the process of adding external repositories and enabling them for use with the package manager.

In summary, softwarepropertiescommon provides the underlying components that enable convenient management of apt sources and PPAs, supporting both command-line and GUI tools without altering the core behavior of the APT system.