i the abstraction over all package managers

i stands for install. You can use i to install any software via any package manager.

TL;DR i is an abstraction over all other package managers available on Linux/MacOS.

Why ?

If you used to apt or brew, and need to use dnf or swupd. It is hard sometimes. But if you use i, it will be always the same.

Install 'i'

Use Go to install i:

go install github.com/abanoubha/i@latest

Build the project from source:

# get project deps/libs, then build the binary/executable and call it 'i'
go mod tidy && go build -o i .

# run the program
./i

supported package managers

You can list all supported package managers using i pmlist:

$ i pmlist
Supported package managers:
- apk
- apt
- brew
- dnf
- emerge
- flatpak
- nix-env
- pacman
- pkg
- snap
- xbps
- yum
- zypper

package manager	exec	Operating Systems	status
brew (Homebrew)	1	MacOS, Linux, BSD	✅
port (MacPorts)	1	MacOS	✅
apt	1	Linux (Debian-based)	✅
apt-get	1	Linux (Debian-based)	apt
dnf	1	Linux (Fedora)	✅
nix-env	1	Linux, NixOS	✅
pacman	1	Linux	✅
rpm	1	Linux	✅
emerge	1	Linux	✅
zypper	1	Linux	✅
apk	1	Linux	✅
xbps	1	Linux	✅
snap	2	Linux	✅
flatpak	2	Linux	✅
pkg	2	Linux	✅
yum	2	Linux	✅
scoop	2	Linux	✅
pkgsrc	2	Linux	---
urpm	2	Linux	✅
slackpkg	2	Linux	✅
prt-get	2	Linux	✅
pkgman	2	Linux	✅
opkg	2	Linux	✅
eopkg	2	Linux	✅
guix	2	Linux	✅
cards	2	Linux	✅
winget	2	Windows	✅
choco (Chocolatey)	2	Windows	✅

* exec stands for execution priority. * pm stands for package manager.

How to use i the abstraction over all package managers

# install a package
i install vim
# or
i add vim

# search for a package
i search vim
# or
i find vim

# show info about a package
i info vim
# or
i show vim

# uninstall a package
i uninstall vim
# or
i remove vim
# or
i rm vim

# upgrade a package
i upgrade vim
# or
i update vim
# or
i up vim

# upgrade all packages installed by all found package managers
i upgrade
# or
i update
# or
i up

You can add --verbose flag to get verbose output with more details like this:

$ sudo i --verbose install vim
Using package manager: apt
Executing: apt install vim
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Reading state information... Done
vim is already the newest version (2:9.1.0016-1ubuntu7.9).
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 44 not upgraded.

As you can see, --verbose flag will show more details about the installation process like these two lines in the output above.

Using package manager: apt
Executing: apt install vim

Show all installed/found package managers on your system:

$ i pms
Available package managers:
- apt
- snap

Specify a package manager to use

Force i to use apt to install vim:

i --apt install vim

Force i to use brew to get info about vim:

i --brew info vim

Force i to use a specific package manager

You can force i to use a specific package manager by aliasing i to the package manager name or by symlinking i to the package manager name.

• aliasing i to a package manager:

alias apt=/usr/bin/i

• Or create a symlink:

ln -s /usr/bin/i /usr/local/bin/apt

So, you can use apt install vim to install vim using the apt package manager through the i alias/symlink.

build executables for all operating systems / platforms

# linux 64 bit (current os)
go build -o i-linux-x64 .
# linux 64 bit (if not working on Linux distro)
GOOS=linux GOARCH=amd64 go build -o i-linux-x64 .

# windows 64 bit
GOOS=windows GOARCH=amd64 go build -o i-windows-x64.exe .

# macOS M-series
GOOS=darwin GOARCH=arm64 go build -o i-macos-apple-silicon .
# macOS intel 64 bit
GOOS=darwin GOARCH=amd64 go build -o i-macos-x64 .