apt-fast is a “shell script wrapper” for apt-get and aptitude that can drastically improve APT download times by downloading packages with multiple connections per package. apt-fast uses aria2c or axel download managers to speed up the APT download time. Just like the traditional apt-get package manager, apt-fast supports almost all apt-get functions such as install, remove, update, upgrade, dist-upgrade etc. And one more notable feature is it supports proxy too.
Install apt-fast On Ubuntu
Use the following PPA to install apt-fast. apt-fast developer says “Some distros, such as PCLinuxOS include apt-fast in their default repos”.
To Add apt-fast PPA, enter the following command in Terminal.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:apt-fast/stable
Update the sources list with command:
sudo apt-get update
Now install it using command:
sudo apt-get install apt-fast
During installation it will ask you to select the maximum number connections to download packages.
Select No and continue installation. If you select Yes, apt-get won’t ask you the confirmation during any package installation.
I found aria2 download manager has been installed along with apt-fast installation automatically. So you don’t have to install it separately.
If you want re-configure apt-fast options, you can do it using command:
sudo dpkg-reconfigure apt-fast
Usage
Similar to apt-get functions, we can use:
apt-fast install package
apt-fast remove package
apt-fast update
apt-fast upgrade
apt-fast dist-upgrade
and more.
apt-fast package manager in action:
Create alias (Optional)
Edit ~/.bashrc file and add the following line at the end.
alias apt-get='apt-fast'
Or simply run the following command to add it in your ~/.bashrc file.
sudo echo "alias apt-get='apt-fast'" >> ~/.bashrc
From now whenever you run apt-get command to install, remove, update and upgrade packages, it will use apt-fast automatically in the background. Sounds cool? Yes it should.
During testing i found it very fast compared to apt-get when downloading packages. Give it a try, you will agree with me. Cheers!!
