Clear APT data
- Linux onlyThis script improves your privacy on Linux
- Multiple actionsThis page belongs to a category, containing some changes with similar goal.
- Impact: Minimum
System Functionality / Data Loss Risk: Low
This action improves privacy with minimal impact when you run the recommended script.
- Bash (Shell script)These changes use Linux system commands to update your settings.
- 4 scripts
- No subcategories
- Sudo/root requiredThis script requires privilege access to do the system changes
- IrreversibleYou can restore parts of this action (revert back to the original behavior) using the application.
Overview
Advanced Package Tool (APT) is a free software user interface that works with core libraries to handle the installation and removal of software on Debian, and Debian-based Linux distributions 1.
See also: "APT | Debian Wiki".
Sources
- "APT. Debian Wiki". (2022).
Original: https://wiki.debian.org/Apt
Archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20221029221422/https://wiki.debian.org/Apt - APT. Wikipedia. (2022).
Original: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APT_%28software%29
Archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20221029153651/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APT_%28software%29
Apply Now
Choose one of two ways to apply:
- Normal
- Maximum
Normal — Everyday Privacy (Enterprise-Grade)
- Recommended for all
- Safe for daily use
- No impact on system stability
Read more about Normal and other protection levels
Maximum — Strongest Possible Privacy (Military-Grade)
- Military-grade privacy protection
- Major system impact
- Consider having system backup.
Read more about Maximum and other protection levels
Help
How to apply "Clear APT data" using script
- ≈ 3 min to complete
- Tools: Web Browser
- Difficulty: Medium
- ≈ 6 instructions
- 1
Choose protection
Choose one of the options with different impact levels:
Normal
Some safe changes minimal system impact.Maximum
Some impactful changes with high system impact.
- 2
Download
Download the script file by clicking on thebutton above. - 3
Keep the file
If warned by your browser, keep the file. - 4
Open
Open the downloaded file. - 5
Exit
Once it's done, press any key to exit the window. - 6
Restart
Restart your computer for all changes to take effect.
Apply with privacy.sexy
Guided, automated application with safety checks- Recommended for most users
- Includes safety checks
- Shows the code
- Free
- Open-source
- Popular
- Offline/Online usage
Help
How to apply "Clear APT data" using privacy.sexy
- ≈ 3 min to complete
- Tools: privacy.sexy
- Difficulty: Simple
- ≈ 4 instructions
- 2
Choose script
- Search for the category name: Clear APT data
- Check the category by clicking on the checkbox of the category.
Applying Normal to limit the impact.
- 3
Run
Click on ▶️ Run button at the bottom of the page.This button only appears on desktop version (recommended). On browser, use 💾 Save button.
Explore This Guide
- 4 Privacy settings
Choose what to protect based on your needs: Click any option to learn more about what it does. Each change can be applied and reversed individually.
- Some settings and commands may require technical knowledge to apply correctly.
- Most users find the Normal protection above sufficient.
Clear obsolete APT packages
This script runs the "autoclean" command which removes package files that can no longer be downloaded, and are largely useless. This allows a cache to be maintained over a long period without it growing out of control.
Clear APT package file lists
This script removes package file lists. APT stores a copy of those files (in "/var/lib/apt/lists/") and searches are done within those local files to avoid going through the network for every search. An "apt-get update" will repopulate the necessary information and recreate the list file. The list files should be recreated as they get lost over time.
Clear orphaned APT package dependencies
This script runs the "autoremove" command, which removes packages that were automatically installed to satisfy dependencies for other packages and are now no longer needed. This script also purges removed packages, which means that the configuration files of the removed packages are deleted too.
Clear cache for APT packages
This script runs the "clean" command. It clears out the local repository of retrieved package files, meaning that it deletes downloaded packages (".deb") already installed (and no longer needed). It clears the whole "/var/cache/apt/archives/" directory that contains a copy of each downloaded ".deb" file. It clears the cache but does not delete the lists.
Similar Guides
Wider Goal
Guides below includes this guide to achieve a wider goal.See other more general settings that includes this one as one of its actions.
These plans combine multiple privacy settings, including this one, for stronger protection.
- Clear package manager data
- Privacy cleanup
Package managers store caches, statistics, and logs that may reveal data on how you use the package managers and software downloaded from them, such as your choice...
These scripts allow you to increase privacy by deleting collected data about you and your behavior.
Same Goal
Other guides in Clear package manager dataSee settings that are in the same category as this guide.
Using other actions in the same category may help you achieve your goal better.
About the Creators
These people have authored this documentation and written its scripts:
Reviewed By
This guide has undergone comprehensive auditing and peer review:Expert review by undergroundwires
- Verified technical accuracy and editorial standards
- Assessed system impact and user privacy risks
Public review by large community
- Privacy enthusiasts and professionals peer-reviewed
- Millions of end-users tested across different environments
History
We continually monitor our guides, their impact and all other privacy options. We update our guides when new information becomes available. On every update, we publicly store who made the change, what has been changed, why the change was made and when the change was made.