2022-09-27 19:17:19 +08:00
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Lintian - Static Debian package analysis tool
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=============================================
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Lintian is a static analysis tool for finding many bugs, policy
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violations and other issues in Debian based packages. It can process
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binary Debian packages (.deb), micro/installer packages (.udeb),
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Debian source packages (.dsc) and (to a limited degree) the "buildinfo"
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and "changes" files.
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Running Lintian
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===============
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Running Lintian is as simple as invoking
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$ lintian path/to/pkg_version_arch.changes
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Alternatively, you can pass Lintian binary/udeb or dsc files directly
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instead of the .changes file. Lintian is designed to work directly
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from the source tree (simply use "frontend/lintian" itself).
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For information about command options, please run lintian (or
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lintian-info) with "--help". Alternatively, you can also read the
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manpages lintian(1) and lintian-info(1).
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Advice / Tips and Tricks
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------------------------
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If there is a tag you are not familiar with, you can use "--info" or
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lintian-info to get more information:
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$ lintian-info -t no-version-field
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If you want to enable all tags, simply use the "Evil and pedantic"
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mnemonic:
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$ lintian -EvIL +pedantic path/to/pkg_version_arch.changes
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You may want to drop the "-v", which may make Lintian more verbose
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than you would like. Also, keep in mind that "-E" enables
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"experimental" tags and "-L +pedantic" enables some very pedantic
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tags.
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Lintian is not always right! Static analysis involves a trade-off
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between "accuracy" and CPU/memory usage. Furthermore, in some cases,
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certain packages trigger a corner case where the Debian Policy gives
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more leeway than Lintian does.
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If you have installed Lintian via the "lintian" Debian package, you
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can find the Lintian User's Manual in:
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$ sensible-browser /usr/share/doc/lintian/lintian.html
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# or in txt format
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2024-05-07 09:34:01 +08:00
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$ zless /usr/share/doc/lintian/lintian.txt.gz
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2022-09-27 19:17:19 +08:00
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Compiling Lintian
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=================
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Lintian is written in pure Perl and therefore does not require any
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"building" at all. Consequently, Lintian currently does not have a
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build system. Instead it relies on its Debian build system
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(implemented in debian/rules) and debhelper. Thus, on Debian-based
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systems, installing the build dependencies (see debian/control) and
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running:
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$ dpkg-buildpackage
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will provide you with a "lintian" Debian package.
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So far there has been little work in providing a stand-alone build
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system as Lintian requires a fair share of "Debian specific" tools and
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libraries, including the "Dpkg" and "AptPkg" Perl modules.
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We are willing to accept and maintain a stand-alone build system for
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Lintian. Where not intrusive, we may also be willing to accept
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alternative dependencies for "Debian specific" libraries/tools.
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Developing/Patching Lintian
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===========================
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If you are interested in developing patches for Lintian or just
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writing your own Lintian checks, please review
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[CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md).
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Feedback
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========
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Please file bugs against the "lintian" package in the Debian Bug
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Tracker. We recommend using reportbug(1) for filing bugs, but
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in its absence you send a [mail to the BTS][bts-report-bug].
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Any comments, critics, or suggestions about Lintian or related topics
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are highly appreciated by the authors! Please contact
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<lintian-maint@debian.org>. Thanks!
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Please note that all data submitted to the Debian Bug Tracker and the
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address <lintian-maint@debian.org> will be available to the general
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public. Should you be aware of a severe non-disclosed security issue
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in Lintian, then please contact the
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[Debian Security Team][report-security-issue] instead.
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[bts-report-bug]: https://www.debian.org/Bugs/Reporting
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[report-security-issue]: https://www.debian.org/security/faq#contact
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