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NAME

       dpkg-split - Debian package archive split/join tool

SYNOPSIS

       dpkg-split [options] command

DESCRIPTION

       dpkg-split  splits  Debian  binary package files into smaller parts and
       reassembles them again, to support the storage of large  package  files
       on small media such as floppy disks.

       It  can  be  operated  manually  using  the  --split, --join and --info
       options.

       It also has an automatic mode, invoked using the --auto  option,  where
       it  maintains  a  queue  of  parts  seen  but  not  yet reassembled and
       reassembles a package file when it has  seen  all  of  its  parts.  The
       --listq and --discard options allow the management of the queue.

       All  splitting,  joining  and  queueing  operations produce informative
       messages on standard output; these may safely be ignored.

COMMANDS

       -s, --split complete-archive [prefix]
              Splits a single Debian binary package into several parts.

              The parts are named prefix.NofM.deb where N is the part  number,
              starting  at  1,  and  M  is  the total number of parts (both in
              decimal).

              If no prefix is supplied then the complete-archive  filename  is
              taken, including directory, with any trailing .deb removed.

       -j, --join part...
              Joins  the  parts  of  a package file together, reassembling the
              original file as it was before it was split.

              The part files given as arguments  must  be  all  the  parts  of
              exactly  the  same  original  binary  file. Each part must occur
              exactly once in the argument list, though the parts to not  need
              to be listed in order.

              The  parts  must of course all have been generated with the same
              part size specified at split time, which means  that  they  must
              usually have been generated by the same invocation of dpkg-split
              --split.

              The parts' filenames are  not  significant  for  the  reassembly
              process.

              By default the output file is called package-version.deb.

       -I, --info part...
              Prints  information,  in a human-readable format, about the part
              file(s) specified. Arguments which are not binary package  parts
              produce  a  message  saying  so  instead  (but still on standard
              output).

       -a, --auto -o complete-output part
              Automatically queue parts and reassemble a package if  possible.

              The part specified is examined, and compared with other parts of
              the same package (if any) in the queue of packages file parts.

              If all parts of the package file of which part  is  a  part  are
              available  then  the  package  is  reassembled  and  written  to
              complete-output (which should not usually already exist,  though
              this is not an error).

              If  not  then  the  part  is copied into the queue and complete-
              output is not created.

              If part is not a split binary package part then dpkg-split  will
              exit  with  status  1; if some other trouble occurs then it will
              exit with status 2.

              The --output or -o option must be supplied  when  using  --auto.
              (If  this  were not mandatory the calling program would not know
              what output file to expect.)

       -l, --listq
              Lists the contents of the queue of packages to be reassembled.

              For each package file of which parts are in the queue the output
              gives  the  name of the package, the parts in the queue, and the
              total number of bytes stored in the queue.

       -d, --discard [package...]
              This discards parts from the queue  of  those  waiting  for  the
              remaining parts of their packages.

              If no package is specified then the queue is cleared completely;
              if any are specified then only parts of the relevant  package(s)
              are deleted.

       -h, --help
              Show the usage message and exit.

       --version
              Show the version and exit.

OPTIONS

       --depotdir directory
              Specifies  an  alternative  directory  for  the  queue  of parts
              awaiting automatic reassembly. The default is /var/lib/dpkg.

       -S, --partsize kibibytes
              Specifies the maximum part size  when  splitting,  in  kibibytes
              (1024 bytes). The default is 450 KiB.

       -o, --output complete-output
              Specifies the output file name for a reassembly.

              This  overrides the default for a manual reassembly (--join) and
              is mandatory for an automatic queue-or-reassemble (--auto).

       -Q, --npquiet
              When  doing  automatic  queue-or-reassembly  dpkg-split  usually
              prints  a  message  if  it  is given a part that is not a binary
              package part. This option  suppresses  this  message,  to  allow
              programs  such  as  dpkg  to  cope  with  both split and unsplit
              packages without producing spurious messages.

       --msdos
              Forces the output filenames generated by --split  to  be  msdos-
              compatible.

              This  mangles  the  prefix - either the default derived from the
              input filename or the one supplied as an argument: alphanumerics
              are  lowercased,  plus  signs  are replaced by x's and all other
              characters are discarded.

              The result is then  truncated  as  much  as  is  necessary,  and
              filenames of the form prefixNofM.deb are generated.

EXIT STATUS

       An exit status of 0 indicates that the requested split, merge, or other
       command succeeded.  --info commands count as  successful  even  if  the
       files are not binary package parts.

       An exit status of 1 occurs only with --auto and indicates that the part
       file was not a binary package part.

       An exit status of 2 indicates some kind of trouble, such  as  a  system
       call  failure,  a  file  that  looked  like a package part file but was
       corrupted, a usage error or some other problem.

BUGS

       dpkg-split  uses  some  rather  out-of-date  conventions  for  the  the
       filenames of Debian packages.

       Full details of the packages in the queue are impossible to get without
       digging into the queue directory yourself.

       There is no easy way to test whether  a  file  that  may  be  a  binary
       package part is one.

       The  architecture is not represented in the part files' header, only in
       the control information of the contained binary package file, and it is
       not present in the filenames generated.

FILES

       /var/lib/dpkg/parts
              The  default  queue  directory for part files awaiting automatic
              reassembly.

              The filenames used in this directory are in a format internal to
              dpkg-split  and are unlikely to be useful to other programs, and
              in any case the filename format should not be relied upon.

SEE ALSO

       deb(5), deb-control(5), dpkg-deb(1), dpkg(1).

AUTHOR

       Copyright (C) 1995-1996 Ian Jackson

       This is free software; see the GNU General Public Licence version 2  or
       later for copying conditions. There is NO WARRANTY.