pkg_add
The facts below are what the maker publishes about pkg_add, checked and dated. Our editors have not written about it yet.
Plans and prices
From pkg_add's own pricing page, checked 12 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | OpenBSD package installation and updates |
The facts
Each one read from pkg_add's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Dependencies
- It automatically installs packages needed to satisfy dependencies.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Dependency resolution
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Intended users
- OpenBSD's package FAQ advises using packages over building applications from ports in general.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Interactive choices
- On a tty, pkg_add is interactive by default and may ask the user to resolve package ambiguities or difficult decisions.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Limit
- System distribution files such as base and comp sets are not packages and cannot be installed with pkg_add.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Limits
- System distribution files such as base and comp sets are not packages and cannot be installed with pkg_add.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Offline installation
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Package availability
- A large collection of precompiled packages is available for the most common architectures, but some packages may be unavailable due to architecture or licensing constraints.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Package coverage
- The FAQ says precompiled packages are available for the most common architectures, and some packages may be unavailable because of architecture or licensing constraints.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Package formats
- TGZ,gzip-compressed ustar archives with packing listschecked 22 Sep 2026
- Package information
- OpenBSD-specific information about individual packages is documented under /usr/local/share/doc/pkg-readmes/.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Package scripts
- The manual warns that package files may contain scripts or programs that can expose a system to attacks, and advises using trusted sources.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Package sources
- Package names can refer to local files or FTP, HTTP, HTTPS, or SCP locations.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Project
- OpenBSD describes itself as a free, multi-platform 4.4BSD-based UNIX-like operating system project developed entirely by volunteers.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- pkg_add installs or updates software packages created from the OpenBSD ports tree.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Recovery
- If a system crash corrupts the package database, the manual points to pkg_check for repair.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Security
- By default, it rejects unsigned packages unless they come from a trusted source or unsigned packages are explicitly allowed.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Signature checks
- For signed packages, it checks the signature and signing key, and verifies the compressed package data before unpacking.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Support
- The OpenBSD site links to commercial support resources.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Update modes
- It can update named installed packages or all installed packages when no package name is specified.checked 12 Oct 2026
- Updates
- The -u option updates specified installed packages and their dependencies, or all installed packages when no names are given.checked 11 Oct 2026
Money
- Free plan
- Yeschecked 22 Sep 2026
Where it runs
- Supported platforms
- OpenBSD alpha,amd64,arm64,armv7,hppa,i386,landisk,luna88k,macppc,octeon,powerpc64,riscv64,sparc64checked 22 Sep 2026
