update-alternatives Command Examples

Convenientily maintain symbolic links to determine default commands. More information: https://manned.org/update-alternatives.

• Add a symbolic link:

sudo update-alternatives --install {{path/to/symlink}} {{command_name}} {{path/to/command_binary}} {{priority}}

• Configure a symbolic link for java:

sudo update-alternatives --config {{java}}

• Remove a symbolic link:

sudo update-alternatives --remove {{java}} {{/opt/java/jdk1.8.0_102/bin/java}}

• Display information about a specified command:

update-alternatives --display {{java}}

• Display all commands and their current selection:

update-alternatives --get-selections