UNIX for Beginners Questions & Answers

12.2. yum Commands

yum commands are typically run as yum <command> <package name/s>. 
By default, yum will automatically attempt to check all configured repositories 
to resolve all package dependencies during an installation/upgrade.

The following is a list of the most commonly-used yum commands. 
For a complete list of available yum commands, refer to man yum.

yum install <package name/s>

Used to install the latest version of a package or group of packages. 
If no package matches the specified package name(s), they are assumed to be a shell 
glob, and any matches are then installed.

yum update <package name/s>
Used to update the specified packages to the latest available version. 
If no package name/s are specified, then yum will attempt to update all installed packages.

If the --obsoletes option is used (i.e. yum --obsoletes <package name/s>, yum will process 
obsolete packages. As such, packages that are obsoleted accross updates will be removed and replaced accordingly.

yum check-update
This command allows you to determine whether any updates are available for your installed packages. 
yum returns a list of all package updates from all repositories if any are available.

yum remove <package name/s>
Used to remove specified packages, along with any other packages dependent on the packages being removed.