Most of Linux software sources are available for free of charge , so developer can easily convert the source code into distribution based package format. Distribution based packages are easy installable and configurable . There are two package types used in all Linux distribution
- deb package [ Debian based Package ]
- rpm package [ Redhat Package Manager]
Debian, Ubuntu, Gentoo, and other Debian based OS are using DEB package, Redhat, Fedora, CentOS are using RPM package. The conversion between rpm based package to deb package is given in this article. The tool ” alien ” is used for doing this job.
Step 1: Install alien through Synaptic Package Manager or type the given command in Terminal
#sudo apt-get install alien
Step 2: Convert tar.gz to deb
#sudo alien /opt/eclipse-helios.tar.gz
This command will create eclipse-helios.deb package in /opt directory.
Step 3: Convert rpm to deb
#sudo alien ffmpeg-0.6-3.fc13.i686.rpm
The same syntax can be used for other format also ….