Finding Packages for Kali Linux
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| Finding Packages for Kali Linux |
Of the various interfaces available to search for packages, apt-cache is the most basic and rudimentary of them all.
However, it is also the interface we tend to use most often because it is fast, easy, and efficient. By default, apt-cache searches for a given term in package names as well as their descriptions.
Use this command: apt-cache search PACKAGES NAME
For example, knowing that all Kali Linux metapackages include ‘aircrack-ng’ in their names, we can easily search for all of them.
Enter this command: apt-cache search aircrack-ng
In many cases, apt-cache returns far too many results because it searches in package descriptions. The searches can be limited to the package names themselves by using the –names-only option.
root@kali:~# apt-cache search nmap | wc -l
37
root@kali:~# apt-cache search nmap --names-only
dnmap - Distributed nmap framework
fruitywifi-module-nmap - nmap module for fruitywifi
nmap-dbgsym - debug symbols for nmap
python-libnmap - Python 2 NMAP library
python-libnmap-doc - Python NMAP Library (common documentation)
python3-libnmap - Python 3 NMAP library
libnmap-parser-perl - parse nmap scan results with perl
nmap - The Network Mapper
nmap-common - Architecture independent files for nmap
zenmap - The Network Mapper Front End
nmapsi4 - graphical interface to nmap, the network scanner
python-nmap - Python interface to the Nmap port scanner
python3-nmap - Python3 interface to the Nmap port scanner
Since apt-cache has such wonderfully greppable output, we can keep filtering results until they’re at a manageable number.
root@kali:~# apt-cache search nmap --names-only | egrep -v '(python|perl)'
dnmap - Distributed nmap framework
fruitywifi-module-nmap - nmap module for fruitywifi
nmap - The Network Mapper
nmap-common - Architecture independent files for nmap
nmap-dbgsym - debug symbols for nmap
nmapsi4 - graphical interface to nmap, the network scanner
zenmap - The Network Mapper Front End
You can further filter down the search results but once you start chaining together a few commands, that’s generally a good indication that it’s time to reach for a different tool.
Use aptitude
The aptitude application is a very close cousin of apt and apt-get except it also includes a very useful ncurses interface. It is not included in Kali by default but it can quickly be installed as follows.
root@kali:~# apt update && apt -y install aptitude
After installation, running aptitude without any options will launch the ncurses interface. One of the first things you will notice is that you can quickly and easily browse through packages by category, which greatly helps with sorting through the thousands of available packages.
To search for a package, either press the / character or select ‘Find’ under the ‘Search’ menu. As you enter your query, the package results will be updated dynamically
Once you’ve located a package of interest, you can mark it for installation with the + character or to remove/deselect it, the – character.
At this point, you can keep searching for other packages to mark for installation or removal. When you’re ready to install, press the g key to view the summary of the actions to be taken.
If you’re satisfied with the proposed changes, press g again and aptitude will complete the package installations as usual.
Use search engines
If you want to restrict your searches to tools that are packaged by the Kali team, the easiest way to do so is probably by using the search engines site (Google, Bing or DuckDuckGo) search operator.
Using this keyword: site:kali.org PACKAGES NAME
Example: site:kali.org lynis
Read more
* What is Kali Linux Metapackages and How to install it?: http://bit.ly/2IGVcub
* DEBIAN PACKAGE MANAGEMENT
From Kali Linux
