#+TITLE: TIL: Debian's apt-get satisfy

#+LANGUAGE: en

Debian's APT accepts the syntax =apt-get install 'some-package=1.32'= to
install an exact version of a package. TIL about [[https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/apt/apt-get.8.en.html#:~:text=satisfy%20causes%20apt-get%20to%20satisfy%20the%20given%20dependency%20strings][=apt-get satisfy=]], which lets
you ask for a version range, as in:

  : apt-get satisfy 'some-package (>=1.30)'

I found it useful for a CI script fragment where I don't care if the executor
runs Debian or Ubuntu, I only want to ensure that I'm using a recent enough
version of =some-package=.

[[https://www.debian.org/doc/debian-policy/ch-relationships.html][The syntax]] is the same as in the =Depends:= field of a =control= file. You
pretty much have to use quotes to avoid the shell interpreting brackets or
redirection characters. Several packages are separated with commas, as in
=apt-get satisfy 'foo (>=1.8), bar (> 2.3)'=.

Remember to use =apt-get= in scripts, [[https://manpages.debian.org/bookworm/apt/apt.8.en.html#SCRIPT_USAGE_AND_DIFFERENCES_FROM_OTHER_APT_TOOLS][=apt= comes with the following note]]:

#+BEGIN_QUOTE
The =apt(8)= commandline is designed as an end-user tool and it may change
behavior between versions. While it tries not to break backward compatibility
this is not guaranteed either if a change seems beneficial for interactive
use.

All features of =apt(8)= are available in dedicated APT tools like
=apt-get(8)= and =apt-cache(8)= as well. =apt(8)= just changes the default
value of some options (see =apt.conf(5)= and specifically the Binary scope).
So you should prefer using these commands (potentially with some additional
options enabled) in your scripts as they keep backward compatibility as much
as possible.
#+END_QUOTE