mandb:tldr:2c716

The command "mandb --no-purge" is used to update the manual page database without removing any previously installed manual pages.

In Unix-like operating systems, manual pages (or man pages) provide information about various commands, functions, and system calls. The "mandb" command is used to create and update the manual page database so that users can easily access these man pages.

By default, when "mandb" is executed, it performs two actions: updates the database with any new or modified manual pages and removes any manual pages that no longer exist on the system.

However, when "--no-purge" option is added to the command, it prevents the removal of any existing manual pages. This can be useful in situations where you want to update the database but keep all previously installed manual pages intact.

So, when you run "mandb --no-purge", it will only update the manual page database by adding any new or modified manual pages but won't remove any existing ones.