obsoletes

Obsoletes is a term used to describe items that have become outdated or superseded by newer versions or replacements. In information technology and software distribution, obsoletes denotes a formal relationship between items that signals one item should be considered the successor of another.

In packaging systems, the obsoletes relationship is used to manage transitions during upgrades. In RPM-based distributions, a package can declare Obsoletes: older-package to indicate that it supersedes that older package and may cause it to be removed when the newer package is installed. In Debian and its derivatives, the Obsoletes field in a package’s control data identifies packages that this package is intended to replace. These tags help package managers resolve upgrades cleanly, avoiding conflicts where multiple packages provide the same functionality.

Obsoletes is related to, but distinct from, other packaging concepts such as Replaces and Provides. Replaces indicates that a package can overwrite files from another package, while Provides lists virtual capabilities. Together, these relationships guide transition planning, minimize breakage during upgrades, and support automated removal of obsolete software.

Beyond software packaging, obsolescence describes items that are no longer current in standards, products, or data collections. An obsolete standard or format is one that has been superseded by a newer version and is typically discouraged or retired from active use. Examples include a library replacing an older API, or a distribution removing an old package in favor of a newer one during a release upgrade.