Textbook of Linux

pacman is the package manager of Arch Linux and its derivatives (Manjaro, EndeavourOS, Artix). It uses a simple flag-based command syntax that newcomers sometimes find cryptic but power users find concise. A single command can install, upgrade, remove, and query packages depending on which flags you supply.

sudo pacman -Syu                    # sync db, upgrade everything
sudo pacman -S nginx                 # install
sudo pacman -R nginx                 # remove
sudo pacman -Rns nginx               # remove with unused deps and config
pacman -Ss keyword                   # search remote
pacman -Qs keyword                   # search installed
pacman -Qi nginx                     # installed package info
pacman -Ql nginx                     # file list
pacman -Qo /etc/nginx/nginx.conf    # which package owns file

Arch's rolling-release model means pacman -Syu brings the whole system up to date in a single transaction—sometimes a large one. Arch does not support partial upgrades, so always combine sync and upgrade. Packages are signed and verified against the Arch keyring.

Alongside pacman, Arch users rely on the AUR (Arch User Repository) for community-contributed build scripts (PKGBUILDs) of software not in the main repos. AUR helpers like yay or paru provide convenient pacman-like commands for building and installing AUR packages.