15.2.7. Verifying

Verifying a package compares information about files installed from a package with the same information from the original package. Among other things, verifying compares the size, MD5 sum, permissions, type, owner, and group of each file.

The command rpm -V verifies a package. You can use any of the Package Verify Options listed for querying to specify the packages you wish to verify. A simple use of verifying is rpm -V foo, which verifies that all the files in the foo package are as they were when they were originally installed. For example:

If everything verified properly, there is no output. If there are any discrepancies, they are displayed. The format of the output is a string of eight characters (a c denotes a configuration file) and then the file name. Each of the eight characters denotes the result of a comparison of one attribute of the file to the value of that attribute recorded in the RPM database. A single period (.) means the test passed. The following characters denote failure of certain tests:

If you see any output, use your best judgment to determine if you should remove or reinstall the package, or fix the problem in another way.