Do I have to run apt-get remove package_name before apt-get purge package_name?

Question

I want to uninstall a package and erase its settings. Do I have to run:

• sudo apt-get remove package_name

and only then:

• sudo apt-get purge package_name

? Or the latter would be enough?

Answer 1

Running the remove command will retain some of the configuration files in case you want to reinstall the package in the future.

If you want to completely remove a package and the configuration files, you can run the purge command alone. However, as pointed out by @blueskies, the purge command will not delete any data or configuration stored in your home directory.

Yes, the latter would be enough.