# Using pkg on PowerPC iBook: Unable to Update Repository



## iBookG4 (Aug 22, 2014)

I'm new to FreeBSD but have learned some of the ropes on an x86_64 Intel virtual machine. So far, I like it. I installed FreeBSD for 32-bit PowerPC on an iBook G4.

I tried running `pkg install nano` as root, and it failed to connect to some server to get the port. After researching, I found recommendations to run `portsnap fetch ; portsnap extract ; portsnap update` to fix this. After waiting several hours for that to finish, I tried `pkg install nano` again, and it failed to find a couple of txz files then said "Unable to Update Repository".

Anyway, I don't think I'm understanding this correctly. If I'm using PowerPC, can I just not use pkg? I see that /usr/ports has a ton of source code for software in it. Do I have to cd into /usr/ports/(something) and `make install` to install everything?

P.S. This thing is so slow that I'm going to ask my brother what the CPU clock speed is on this so I can make sure dev.cpu.0.freq is set properly in sysctl.


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## SirDice (Aug 25, 2014)

iBookG4 said:
			
		

> If I'm using PowerPC, can I just not use pkg?


You can use pkg(8) but there are no official package repositories for PowerPC. It's a Tier 2 architecture.


> I see that /usr/ports has a ton of source code for software in it.


Keep in mind all versions and architectures use the same ports tree. Some ports may not build on PowerPC.


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## iBookG4 (Sep 22, 2014)

Thanks for the info. I knew it was tier 2 before but misunderstood what that really meant. Yes, some ports also failed to build. And the CPU was running at half frequency. To anyone using an iBook, be sure to check your CPU frequency.


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