Usrportage

Usrportage is the local Portage tree used by Gentoo Linux, typically located under /usr/portage on systems that maintain a copy of the tree. It is the collection of ebuild scripts, metadata, and manifests that Portage uses to locate, fetch, build, and install packages. The tree is organized into categories such as app-*, dev-*, sys-*, and contains individual ebuild files that describe how to fetch, configure, compile, and install packages, along with their dependencies. It also includes Manifest files that verify source integrity and various metadata needed by the packaging system.

Updating usrportage is accomplished by syncing the local tree with Gentoo’s official repositories. Portage-provided tools run the sync process, typically via emerge --sync or equivalent maintenance commands, which pull updates from mirrors. Users can also extend or customize the tree by using overlays, which add or override entries in the main tree and may come from third-party or vendor-maintained sources.

Usrportage serves as the primary source for building software from source in Gentoo. It supports features such as masking and keywording to control package availability, as well as slots to allow multiple versions of libraries to coexist. The tree is continuously updated as new software packages are added, updated, or removed, reflecting ongoing changes in the upstream software ecosystem and in Gentoo’s packaging policies.

See also: Gentoo Linux, Portage, Overlay, Ebuild, EAPI.