>> In essence, this file is a list of desired packages, and apk will install and uninstall packages so that the system state converges to the list. Exactly what

>> In essence, this file is a list of desired packages, and apk will install and uninstall packages so that the system state converges to the list. Exactly what I’d been looking for, but built right into the package manager. Actually it’s not just built into the package manager: it’s the very foundation of how it works. apk add actually adds a package to that list, and then installs any that are not present. apk del removes a package from that list, and only uninstalls it if it’s not a dependency for anything else. > This is fairly standard for how package managers work, afaik. i don't think there is a similar concept as that of `/etc/apk/world` in archlinux. from the article it seems that it is a list of packages that i want, and then you let `apk` run its course, installing everything (and its dependencies) mentioned therein. not sure about debian, but for gentoo `/var/lib/portage/world` see this: https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Selected-packages_set_(Portage)#Editing_world_file_by_hand https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Selected-packages_set_(Portage)... regarding editing that file by hand. it will be overwritten (and _aggresively_ at that)