(I am completely new to Linux besides basic stuff with proot-distro on Termux on Android): I simply want to take a text file I have made of specified Debian packages I want for my local repository (one for AMD64, the other for ARM64), and download those packages as well as their depends, predepends recursively, and whatever other packages that would have been installed with ?apt install?. ?apt install --download only? will miss packages that are already installed right? So that leaves me with making a list using ?apt-cache depends? or the apt-rdepends package , but the apt-rdepends package doesn't show virtual packages, apt-cache depends does but does not resolved the virtual package with what apt install would've defaulted to resolving to. Then, if I try to target a different architecture, first adding with dpkg --add-architecture command then apt update, I can list other packages, but apt-rdepends only lists the specified architecture for first set of dependencies and after tries to recurse with current native architecture packages; apt-cache depends will work if typing ?package:<arch>? but for some reason will include duplicates of certain packages where one will have the ending :<arch> and the other will not, and for the native architecture packages, now apt-cache depends will show both the unmarked native packages and some :<arch> marked packages of the foreign architecture along with it. Modifying sources.list for [ arch=<arch> ] fixes only when looking up native packages, but the foreign architecture packages still do that weird duplicate thing.
How on earth can I just simply download a list of packages and all their base needed packages like how apt install would have while ALSO including already installed packages in the downloading process.
I thank whoever can help me. I just want this ONE thing before I truly start my Linux adventure.


--- PyGate Linux v1.5.6
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

fireoflegend@gmail.com wrote:

[reformatting]

(I am completely new to Linux besides basic stuff with proot-distro
on Termux on Android): I simply want to take a text file I have made
of specified Debian packages I want for my local repository (one for
AMD64, the other for ARM64), and download those packages as well as
their depends, predepends recursively, and whatever other packages
that would have been installed with ?apt install?.

1. Why?


2. On an AMD64 machine, run:
sudo apt clean
sudo apt -d install --reinstall package1 package2 ... packageN
Now /var/cache/apt/archives holds all those packages and their
dependencies.

3. Repeat on an ARM64 machine.

?apt install
--download only? will miss packages that are already installed
right?

You are confused. "apt install" won't install a package that is
already installed, unless you specify --reinstall.

apt install -d ... stops the install process after the packages
are downloaded.

to resolving to. Then, if I try to target a different architecture,
first adding with dpkg --add-architecture command then apt update, I
can list other packages

To a first approximation, you never want to add an architecture.

The various cases where you would:

case: you are building a local mirror of multiple architectures.
solution: use real mirroring software.

case: you are switching from x86-32 to amd64
solution: OK, this is where you would want to use
--add-architecture, but a better solution is not to get int
this mess in the first place.

I thank whoever can help me. I just want this ONE thing before I truly start my Linux adventure.

I repeat question 1: Why are you doing this? What do you want to
accomplish?

-dsr-

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.6
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Thu, Jan 29, 2026 at 15:18:55 -0500, Dan Ritter wrote:

To a first approximation, you never want to add an architecture.

The various cases where you would:

case: you are building a local mirror of multiple architectures.
solution: use real mirroring software.

case: you are switching from x86-32 to amd64
solution: OK, this is where you would want to use
--add-architecture, but a better solution is not to get int
this mess in the first place.

The most *common* case, though, is that you're using an amd64 system
and you need to run an i386 program on it. In that situation, you
can add the i386 architecture and download the i386 shared library
packages that your i386 program requires.

This should become less common over time, as new i386 programs stop
being produced. Or so we can hope.

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.6
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Thu, 29 Jan 2026, fireoflegend@gmail.com wrote:

(I am completely new to Linux besides basic stuff with proot-distro
on Termux on Android):

Hello. That sounds fun and I hope you have a good time.

I simply want to take a text file I have made of specified Debian
packages I want for my local repository (one for AMD64, the other
for ARM64), and download those packages as well as their depends,
predepends recursively, and whatever other packages that would have
been installed with \u201capt install\u201d.
\u201capt install --download only\u201d

(I see a hyphen missing between "download" and "only")

will miss packages that are already installed right?

Correct, as long as the already-installed packages in question are the
most current available version. (Any that can be upgraded, I expect
WILL be included.)
Also, are you aware that
/var/cache/apt/archives/
most likely contains those already-installed packages?
Two more details:
DETAIL 1: I don't use "apt", don't know anything about it. I use
apt-get, apt-cache, (and occasionally apt-mark). So above I have
assumed we are talking about
# apt-get --download-only install whatever
which I would shorten to
# apt-get -d install whatever
and I would also add -V to improve legibility of the list of packages
to be installed. Hence:
# apt-get -Vd install whatever
DETAIL 2: The result of
# apt-get -Vd install whatever
will partly depend on your APT configuration. For example, I have
$ cat /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/80unimportant_depends
// Only install important dependencies.
APT {
Install-Recommends "false";
Install-Suggests "false";
};
which means if I want recommends installed, then I need to ask for
them explicitly on the command line, in one way or another.

So that leaves me with making a list using \u201capt-cache depends\u201d or the apt-rdepends package,

I had never heard of this package, apt-rdepends. Interesting.

but the apt-rdepends package doesn't show virtual packages,
apt-cache depends does but does not resolved the virtual package
with what apt install would've defaulted to resolving to.

Once a package has been installed, it seems to me that
$ apt-cache --installed depends whatever
does something quite close to what you are asking for.
(In case two installed packages satisfy some dependency, I expect the
result will include both.)
To trim away Suggests and Recommends, instead do
$ apt-cache --important --installed depends whatever
or (shorter)
$ apt-cache -i --installed depends whatever

Then, if I try to target a different architecture,

[Much rocket science omitted]
Hoo boy, you're flying above my pay grade here.

How on earth can I just simply download a list of packages and all
their base needed packages like how apt install would have while
ALSO including already installed packages in the downloading
process.

# apt-get -d install $whatever
will download the package $whatever, and any packages it depends on,
MINUS those already installed, and put them in
/var/cache/apt/archives
Also, unless you have removed them somehow, that same directory should
ALREADY contain the packages of any already-installed dependencies for $whatever (and the package $whatever itself, if already installed).

I thank whoever can help me. I just want this ONE thing before I
truly start my Linux adventure.

Good luck with your project :D


--- PyGate Linux v1.5.6
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Minor correction below:
On Thu, 29 Jan 2026, Davidson wrote:

On Thu, 29 Jan 2026, fireoflegend@gmail.com wrote:

[snip]

\u201capt install --download only\u201d

[snip]

will miss packages that are already installed right?

[snip]

DETAIL 1: I don't use "apt", don't know anything about it. I use
apt-get, apt-cache, (and occasionally apt-mark). So above I have
assumed we are talking about

# apt-get --download-only install whatever

which I would shorten to

# apt-get -d install whatever

and I would also add -V to improve legibility of the list of packages
to be installed. Hence:

...to be DOWNLOADED. Not to be installed (because of option -d).

# apt-get -Vd install whatever

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.6
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Thu, 29 Jan 2026, fireoflegend@gmail.com wrote:

(I am completely new to Linux besides basic stuff with proot-distro on Termux on Android): I simply want to take a text file I have made of specified Debian packages I want for my local repository (one for AMD64, the other for ARM64), and download those packages as well as their depends, predepends recursively, and whatever other packages that would have been installed with ?apt install?. ?apt install --download only? will miss packages that are already installed right? So that leaves me with making a list using ?apt-cache depends? or the apt-rdepends package , but the apt-rdepends package doesn't show virtual packages, apt-cache depends does but does not resolved the virtual package with what apt install would've defaulted to resolving to. Then, if I try to target a different architecture, first adding with dpkg --add-architecture command then apt update, I can list other packages, but apt-rdepends only lists the specified architecture for first set of depende!

ncies and after tries to recurse with current native architecture packages; apt-cache depends will work if typing ?package:<arch>? but for some reason will include duplicates of certain packages where one will have the ending :<arch> and the other will not, and for the native architecture packages, now apt-cache depends will show both the unmarked native packages and some :<arch> marked packages of the foreign architecture along with it. Modifying sources.list for [ arch=<arch> ] fixes only when looking up native packages, but the foreign architecture packages still do that weird duplicate thing.

How on earth can I just simply download a list of packages and all their base needed packages like how apt install would have while ALSO including already installed packages in the downloading process.

I thank whoever can help me. I just want this ONE thing before I truly start my Linux adventure.

I do this this way:

APT_CONFIG=${APT_CONFIG} \
DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive \
apt-get -q -y --allow-unauthenticated install -d \
-o APT::Install-Recommends=false \
"$@"

Where apt-config is setup like this:
cat <<CATEOF >"${APT_CONFIG}"
APT::Architecture "${ARCH}";
APT::Install-Recommends "false";
APT::Get::AllowUnauthenticated "${expired_key}"; Acquire::AllowInsecureRepositories "${expired_key}";
Acquire::Check-Valid-Until "true";
Acquire::http::Proxy "http://localhost:3128/";

Dir::Etc::PreferencesParts "${APT_WORK}/preferences.d";
Dir::Etc::SourceParts "${APT_WORK}/sources.list.d";
Dir::Etc::TrustedParts "${aptdir}/trusted.d";
Dir::Etc::Parts "${aptdir}/conf.d";

Dir::State::Lists "${APT_WORK}/lists";
Dir::State::Status "${APT_WORK}/status";
Dir::Cache::Archives "${APT_WORK}/archives";
Dir::Cache::srcpkgcache "${APT_WORK}/srcpkgcache";
Dir::Cache::pkgcache "${APT_WORK}/pkgcache";
CATEOF

You'll need to create the directories, and populate a sources.list or
two, but then apt will see a completely empty directory and download everything (except essential packages which aren't depended on).

For the essential package I have a separate package that depends on them
for exactly this purpose.

This, along with a lot of extra stuff, can be found here: https://sourceforge.net/projects/dbootstrap/

have a look at build-tarfiles.sh

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.8
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)