Removing program

[DragonWing_88]

Hey everyone 

Im new to linux and was wondering how you delete a program. Im running ubuntu and I downloaded docker desktop and i didn't use the app center so now I can't figure out how to delete it. 

[Skipple]

Welcome to Linux. I highly recommend starting to get used to the terminal. 

To completely remove a snap package: 

sudo snap remove --purge [package name]

 

[C2dan88]

20 minutes ago, DragonWing_88 said:

Im running ubuntu and I downloaded docker desktop

Try purging using apt

sudo apt purge docker docker-*

Will uninstall anything docker related.

 

If you prefer GUI then use synaptic package manager. Search for Docker and select all packages and click remove/uninstall button.

[DragonWing_88]

42 minutes ago, C2dan88 said:

Try purging using apt

sudo apt purge docker docker-*

Will uninstall anything docker related.

 

If you prefer GUI then use synaptic package manager. Search for Docker and select all packages and click remove/uninstall button.

Thank you that worked 

[DragonWing_88]

1 hour ago, Skipple said:

Welcome to Linux. I highly recommend starting to get used to the terminal. 

To completely remove a snap package: 

sudo snap remove --purge [package name]

 

I have enjoyed learning how use the terminal. There are just so many commands to try and remember especially the ones you don't use all the time

[NoLeafClover]

Welcome to Linux!

 

1 hour ago, DragonWing_88 said:

I have enjoyed learning how use the terminal. There are just so many commands to try and remember especially the ones you don't use all the time

Indeed. Though Snap and Flatpak are some outliers. Both are distro-agonstic ways of packaging and deploying/installing software, which also runs "sandboxed" and only has access to parts of the system that it has been given access to (though some permissions may be required to run the software). Software packages from Snap and Flatpak are often third-party and not packaged, verified, or maintained by the maintainers of your Linux of choice. Most non-Ubuntu based distros tend to favour Flatpak as it's entirely FLOSS, unlike Snap which has a proprietary backend/server side. Personally, I would avoid Snap like the plague as a matter of principle for it having non-free component but, unfortunately, Snap is Canonical's little baby and these days it can be a bit of a hassle to completely avoid on Ubuntu. But outside of philosophical differences, they both aim to achieve the same goal.

 

For Debian and Ubuntu based distros (which use APT) a few common commands for standard packages to keep in your cheat sheet are:

 

Install a package:

sudo apt install [--no-install-recommends] <package>

The "--no-install-recommends" argument can optionally be provided to tell APT that you only want to install the specified package and its minimum set of dependencies (i.e. other packages that are required for the specified package to run). Debian packages have the flexibility of suggesting and recommending additional packages. Suggested packages are not installed by default, but recommended are, unless this flag is passed in or the global APT configuration is set to not do so.
 

Remove a package:

sudo apt purge <package>

Clean-up package dependencies that are no longer needed:

sudo apt autoremove

Look up / find package(s) based on a keyword:

apt-cache search <keyword>

Show information about a specific package:

apt show <package>

 

Most GUI-based "software centres", albeit IMHO very clunky, should be able to handle all packages from APT, Snap, and Flatpak.

[1ball]

2 hours ago, DragonWing_88 said:

I have enjoyed learning how use the terminal. There are just so many commands to try and remember especially the ones you don't use all the time

That is very true, even for someone like me who has been using Linux on a daily basis for like 4-5 years at this point. Learning how to use man pages and getting used to looking stuff up on the internet is your best friend. It is also worth remembering the "scope" of the application. If it is some package manager command vs something like tar, this can really help you narrow or broaden your search and find more useful results.

 

Its a challenging road, but one that is worth it. The terminal is an amazing tool.