010-150 · Question #87
Which of the following Linux distributions use the dpkg package management system? (Choose TWO correct answers.)
The correct answer is C. Debian D. Ubuntu. Debian and Ubuntu both use the dpkg package management system, as Ubuntu is derived from Debian and inherits its packaging toolchain.
Question
Which of the following Linux distributions use the dpkg package management system? (Choose TWO correct answers.)
Options
- ASuse
- BRed Hat
- CDebian
- DUbuntu
- EMandriva
How the community answered
(55 responses)- A4% (2)
- B11% (6)
- C80% (44)
- E5% (3)
Why each option
Debian and Ubuntu both use the dpkg package management system, as Ubuntu is derived from Debian and inherits its packaging toolchain.
SUSE uses the RPM package format and the zypper (or older YaST) package manager, not dpkg.
Red Hat uses the RPM package format managed by yum or dnf, not dpkg.
Debian is the original distribution that created and uses dpkg as its low-level package manager, with APT layered on top. Ubuntu is a downstream derivative of Debian and therefore also uses dpkg and APT for package management. Both share the .deb package format and the dpkg database.
Mandriva (and its successor Mageia) uses the RPM format with the urpmi package manager, not dpkg.
Concept tested: Linux distribution package management systems
Source: https://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/debian-faq/pkg-basics.en.html
Topics
Community Discussion
8
Carlos M.May 25, 2026C and D. Debian is the origin of dpkg and the .deb format, and Ubuntu is Debian-based so it inherits the same package management stack. The other options (Suse, Red Hat, Mandriva) all use RPM-based systems.
Grace U.Jun 25, 2026Yes, Debian and Ubuntu are the two here, and the connection makes sense once you know that Ubuntu was built on top of Debian, so they share the same underlying package tooling, which is why apt and dpkg both feel familiar across those two systems.
Ingrid P.Jun 26, 2026C and D are the ones to card up. Debian invented dpkg, and Ubuntu is Debian-derived, so both ship with dpkg as the low-level tool under apt. Red Hat, SUSE, and Mandriva all use RPM-based tooling, which makes the wrong answers easy to eliminate if you keep a simple card: "dpkg distros = Debian and its descendants."
Carlos M.Jun 29, 2026Solid card rule, just worth adding that Ubuntu's default package workflow goes through apt or apt-get on top of dpkg, so if the question ever asks which tool a user directly invokes versus which handles the low-level db, those are different answers.
Ola B.Jun 26, 2026Yep, C and D, Debian is the origin, Ubuntu inherits dpkg from it.
Ingrid P.Jun 29, 2026Right, and worth adding one card for this: Ubuntu's package management stack is dpkg at the base and apt layered on top, where apt is the dependency-resolving front end, so if your exam question distinguishes "dpkg handles .deb files directly" from "apt resolves dependencies," those are two separate recall items, not one.
Anjali D.Jun 10, 2026Our group landed on C and D without much debate, and I think that is the right call. Debian literally gave dpkg its name, and Ubuntu is built on top of Debian so it inherits the whole dpkg toolchain, including apt as the front end. The other three, Suse, Red Hat, and Mandriva, all belong to the RPM family, which is a totally separate ecosystem. If anyone in the group was tempted by Mandriva because it has less name recognition, just remember that obscurity does not mean different package format, it still uses RPM under the hood. Anyone see a reason to second-guess this one?
Ingrid P.Jun 10, 2026Solid reasoning, and worth adding that if you are drilling this for a card, the cleanest cue is to pair the package format with the command name, dpkg for the dot-deb world and rpm for everything else, because mixing up the ecosystem is the actual mistake the exam tries to catch.