How to build and install Alpine Linux package with newapkbuild

Alpine LinuxLightweight, security-oriented Linux distribution. provides a utility tool named newapkbuild that helps in creating a new apkbuildA script to build an alpine package (".apk" files).. .apk files provide complete instructions on how to specify data such as package's version, name, source URLs, description, and complete install procedures.

Here is the complete guide on how to build Linux package using newapkbuild.

Set up the environment

It is essential to prepare your environment by installing essential software before building packages.

Installing Alpine SDK

Update the package list and install the Alpine SDK. It includes newapkbuild and all the necessary tools required to create Alpine packages. 

apk update
apk add alpine-sdk

Creating a new user

It is usually recommended to build packages by creating a new user. If you build the package as the root user, it may cause potential damage by the build scripts.

Create a new user, add it to abuild, and switch to the newly created user. 

adduser -D new_User
addgroup new_User abuild
su - new_User

Here,

  • Line 1: It creates a new user named new_User. The -D flag specifies that it is a system user.

  • Line 2: addgroup adds the newly created user to the abuild group. These groups in Linux are essential to control access to resources and manage permissions.

Line 3: It finally switches the current user to the new user.

Set up abuild

Before using abuild to build your packages, you need to generate a new RSA keypair.

Generating keypair

abuild-keygen -a i

The -a flag adds the newly created public key to the following directory. 

|--etc
    |--apk
        |--keys
Directory for public key

The -i flag installs the keypair to the home directory of the user $HOME/.abuild.

Create a new package

After preparing your environment, you are now ready to create a new package.

Generating a new apkbuild file

Use newapkbuild to generate a new apkbuild file. The given command creates a directory named my_new_package containing apkbuild file. 

newapkbuild -n my_new_package -d "My first Alpine pakcage" -l "https://my_new_package.example.com" -s "git+https://git.example.com/my_new_package.git" -y "APGL-3.0-only" -a "x86_64"

In the above command,

  • -n: Specifies the name of the package

  • -d: Gives description about the package

  • -l: Sets the URL for where the package is to be hosted

  • -s: Specifies the source repository of the package

  • -y: Sets the license of the package

  • -a: Sets the architecture the package should be build for

Note:

  • The apkbuild file is just a template. You will have to make necessary changes depending on the software you are packaging.

  • Read the Reference Document to understand how to write the apkbuild file.

Building the package

After completing the apkbuild file, you are now ready to build your package.

Building the package with abuild

Use abuild to build the package. 

cd my_new_package
abuild -r

Line 2: The -r flag makes the abuild check for any missing dependencies and install them automatically.

Installing the package

After building the package, you can install it using apk package manager.

Installing the package with apk

Use apk to install the package.

sudo apk add /home/new_User/packages/main/x86_64/my_new_package-*.apk

Here,

  • sudo: Runs the followed command with superuser privileges.

  • apk: Used to install, upgrade, and delete packages.

  • add: Installs the apk package with the path to the package file you want to install.

Note:

  • If you want to distribute the package you have created to others, you need to host the compiled package on a server.

  • After that, distribute the public part of the RSA keypair.

  • Doing this allow others to verify that the package came from the original source and has not been tampered with.

You have now successfully built and installed a package on Alpine Linux.

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