Gumstix uses the ipkg package manager to allow you to easliy update the software on your machine without having to rebuild the software from source code. The package manager also enables you to download new software packages to add to the function of your machine. This section will teach you the basics of package management.

To update your software to the latest release of all installed packages:

$ ipkg update
$ ipkg upgrade

To install a new software package (PERL in this example):

$ ipkg update
$ ipkg install perl

To view a list of all packages that are available for you to install (be prepared, it's a long list):

$ ipkg update
$ ipkg list

To remove a package you no longer need (again PERL for this example):

$ ipkg remove perl

If you have limited free space on your root files system you can install packages on memory cards:

• Installing packages to MMC/SD/microSD memory cards
• Installing packages to CF memory cards