You need to install the following ports to use these pkgtools:
lang/ruby18-- Ruby 1.8 interpreter, orlang/ruby19-- Ruby 1.9 interpreter.
If you want to be able to run tests, you will also need to install devel/ruby-testunit.
Portupgrade is a tool to upgrade installed packages via ports or packages. It allows you to upgrade installed packages without having to reinstall dependent/required packages by directly adjusting the package database located under /var/db/pkg, while it can also upgrade packages recursively.
Example: portupgrade gtk.
Portinstall is equivalent to `portupgrade -N', which means it tries to install the latest version when a specified package is not installed. Prior to the installation of a new package, all the required packages are upgraded.
Example: portinstall shells/zsh.
Portversion is a tool to compare the versions of install packages with those in the ports tree. It is a replacement for pkg_version(1) cooperative with portupgrade, that is, the command output is optimized for portupgrade. Besides, it runs much faster than pkg_version(1) because it utilizes the prebuilt ports database. (See portsdb)
Example: portversion.
Portsdb generates the ports database named INDEX.db from the ports INDEX file. It is commonly used among the tool suite and automatically updated on demand when it gets older than the ports INDEX file.
Example: portsdb -Uu.
Ports_glob expands ports globs. It understands wildcards and is capable of listing the required, dependent or master ports of a given port. It would be handy to use from within a shell script.
Example: ports_glob '*/*firefox*'.
Pkg_fetch is a tool to download binary packages from remote sites. It can optionally download packages recursively through dependencies.
Example: pkg_fetch -r sawfish.
Pkg_glob expands package globs. It understands wildcards and is capable of listing the required or dependent packages of a package. It would be handy to use from within a shell script.
Example: pkg_glob -R gnome.
Pkg_deinstall is a wrapper/replacement of pkg_delete(1), which understands wildcards and is capable of recursing through dependencies. It has an option to preserve shared libraries.
Example: pkg_deinstall -r xmms.
Pkgdb creates and updates the packages database which is commonly used among the tool suite. It keeps a hash that maps an installed file to a package name, a hash that maps a package to an origin, and a list of installed packages. The database file is automatically updated on demand when any package is installed or deinstalled after the database was last updated.
Example: pkgdb -u.
Pkgdb also works as an interactive tool for fixing the package registry database when -F is specified. It helps you resolve stale dependencies, unlink cyclic dependencies, complete stale or missing origins, and remove duplicates. You have to run this periodically so that portupgrade and other tools can work effectively and unfailingly.
Example: pkgdb -Fv.
Pkg_which inquires of the packages database which package each given file came from. If you do not have permission to update the database although it is outdated, it delegates tasks to pkg_info(1).
Example: pkg_which patgen.
Portsclean is a tool to clean ports working directories, no longer referenced distfiles, outdated package files, and/or obsolete and orphan shared libraries.
Example: portsclean -Di.
Portcvsweb is a tool to instantly browse a history of a given file via CVSweb. It may be more useful than you expect. Try it with src, www, doc, NetBSD pkgsrc, and OpenBSD ports files. :)
Example: portcvsweb sysutils/portupgrade.