AUR & Software Management

3. AUR & Software Management

AUR (Arch User Repository) Overview

The AUR is a community-driven repository of ~80,000+ package build scripts (PKGBUILDs) for software not in the official repos. It powers Arch’s massive software availability.

How it works:

• AUR packages are PKGBUILD scripts — instructions to compile software from source
• Anyone can submit a PKGBUILD; popular ones get “trusted” status and move to the community repo
• AUR is NOT a binary repo — packages are built on your machine (via makepkg)

Key terms:

• AUR — Arch User Repository (untrusted, user-submitted)
• community — Trusted AUR packages (maintained by TU, treated like official)
• ABS — Arch Build System (infrastructure to rebuild official packages with modifications)

AUR Helpers

AUR helpers automate: finding packages, cloning repos, resolving dependencies, building, and installing. Manual PKGBUILD workflow is also available.

yay (Yet Another Yogurt) — Most Popular

# Install yay
pacman -S yay
 
# Search
yay -Ss <pkg>
 
# Install from AUR
yay -S <pkg>
 
# Upgrade everything (including AUR)
yay -Syu
 
# Remove package
yay -Rns <pkg>
 
# Show package info
yay -Si <pkg>

paru — Modern Alternative

# Install paru
pacman -S paru
 
# Same commands as yay (CLI is similar)
paru -S <pkg>
paru -Syu
 
# paru-specific: news before upgrade
paru -Syu --devel

pamac — GUI (Manjaro’s Default)

• Integrated into Manjaro’s Gnome/KDE edition
• Tabs for: Installed, Available, AUR, Updates
• Built-in package search
• Settings → AUR to enable AUR support

PKGBUILD and makepkg (Manual Workflow)

If you prefer not to use a helper, or want to inspect a package before building:

# Clone AUR repo
git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/<pkgname>.git
cd <pkgname>
 
# View PKGBUILD (ALWAYS review before building!)
cat PKGBUILD
 
# Build package (creates .pkg.tar.zst)
makepkg -si
 
# Components of a PKGBUILD:
# pkgbase / pkgname / pkgver / pkgrel
# arch=()
# depends=()
# makedepends=()
# source=()
# build() { }
# package() { }

Key PKGBUILD Variables

pkgname = package-name
pkgver = 1.2.3
pkgrel = 1
arch = ('x86_64')
url = "https://example.com"
license = ('GPL3')
depends = ('glibc>=2.25' 'gtk3')
makedepends = ('cmake' 'ninja')
source = ("https://example.com/${pkgname}-${pkgver}.tar.gz")
md5sums = ('SKIP')

build() {
  cd "$pkgname-$pkgver"
  ./configure --prefix=/usr
  make
}

package() {
  make DESTDIR="$pkgdir" install
}

ABS (Arch Build System)

ABS lets you rebuild official packages with custom modifications (e.g., adding a patch, changing compile flags).

# Install abs
pacman -S abs
 
# Sync ABS tree
sudo abs
 
# Example: rebuild nginx with custom config
mkdir ~/abs
cp /var/abs/core/nginx PKGBUILD ~/abs/nginx-custom/
cd ~/abs/nginx-custom
# Edit PKGBUILD as needed
makepkg -si

Third-Party Repositories

chaotic-aur

A fast mirror of popular AUR packages as pre-built binaries. Used by Garuda, can be added to Manjaro.

# /etc/pacman.conf
[chaotic-aur]
Server = https://aur.chaotic.cx/x86_64
 
# Update
pacman -Syu

archlinuxcn (Chinese Community Repo)

Popular in China; contains many Chinese apps and tools as binaries.

# Add to /etc/pacman.conf
[archlinuxcn]
Server = https://repo.archlinuxcn.org/$arch
 
# Install
pacman -S archlinuxcn-keyring
pacman -S <pkg>

Flatpak and Snap

Some software is also available as Flatpak or Snap (not exclusive to Arch):

Flatpak

pacman -S flatpak
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub <app>

Snap

pacman -S snapd
systemctl enable --now snapd.socket
snap install <app>

Managing Package Conflicts and Issues

# Check what owns a file
pacman -Qo /path/to/file
 
# List files in a package
pacman -Ql <pkg>
 
# Get package by file (if not installed)
pkgfile <file>           # Install: pacman -S pkgfile
 
# View package dependencies
pacman -Qi <pkg>         # Installed
pacman -Si <pkg>         # In repos
 
# Dependency tree
pactree <pkg>
 
# Check for package updates in AUR
yay -Sua                 # AUR only upgrade

Cleaning Up

# Remove cached packages (keep last 1 version)
paccache -r
 
# Or manually
rm -rf /var/cache/pacman/pkg/*
 
# Remove all cached packages
pacman -Sc
 
# List size of largest packages
pacman -Qi | awk '/^Name/{name=$3} /^Installed Size/{print $4$5}' | sort -rh | head -20
 
# Remove orphans
pacman -Rns $(pacman -Qdtq)

Useful Tools

# pkgstats — send anonymous package stats to Arch (helps prioritize)
pacman -S pkgstats
 
# aurvote — vote for AUR packages to become official
# (discontinued but still works)
 
# namcap — lint-check PKGBUILDs for common mistakes
pacman -S namcap
namcap PKGBUILD
namcap <package-file>.pkg.tar.zst

Security Notes on AUR

• AUR packages are UNTRUSTED by default — always review PKGBUILD before building
• Never run makepkg as root if you can avoid it (use makepkg --asroot if needed)
• AUR helpers that auto-install without review are a risk — use yay -S --edit to review before installing
• Trusted packages in [community] have been vetted by Trusted Users (TUs)