Tools for CRAN-like Repositories

A set of functions to manage CRAN-like repositories efficiently. This package is an alternative to tools::write_PACKAGES. The goal is to make updates to the repository easier and faster, without the need of scanning all the package files.

cranlike keeps the package data in a SQLite database, in addition to the PACKAGES* files. This database is the canonical source of the package data. It can be updated quickly, to add and remove packages. The PACKAGES* files are generated from the database.

install.packages("cranlike")

library(cranlike)

create_empty_PACKAGES creates an empty CRAN-like repository in the specified directory. It creates the SQLite database (if it does not exist), and also the PACKAGES* files.

update_PACKAGES is similar, but it also scans the directory for package files, and adds them to the database. Use this function on an existing CRAN-like repository. It creates and updates the database, and then the PACKAGES* files.

add_PACKAGES adds one or more package files to the repository. The files must already exist in the directory. The database is created if needed, and then updated with the new packages. Then the PACKAGES* files will be re-generated.

remove_PACKAGES removes one or more package files from the repository. It first removes them from the database, and then removes the files from the directory. Finally, it re-generates the PACKAGES* files.

package_versions lists all packages in the repository. It uses the SQLite database instead of parsing the PACKAGES* files, so it is much faster.

GPL Version 2 or higher © R Consortium