Why are the hidden settings-folders not deleted when purging an application?

Question

I did

sudo apt-get remove --purge

for several packages, but apparently the personal settings are kept. Is there a command or tool to delete them automatically?

Florian Diesch · Accepted Answer · 2011-05-13 18:32:33Z

up vote 10 down vote accepted

If you mean the folders in your home folder: No, the package manager never touches anything in a users's home folder.

I don't know of any tool that assists you in cleaning your home folder from config files you don't need any more - but that sounds like a nice idea.

answered May 13 '11 at 18:32

Florian Diesch
15.4k12947

	What about sudo apt-get purge mentioned by @Cas in his comment? – MestreLion May 28 '11 at 0:05
	@MestreLion `sudo apt-get purge` removes global config files (usually somewhere in `/etc/`) not removed by `sudo apt-get remove` but still doesn't touch the user's home folder – Florian Diesch May 28 '11 at 0:29
	Wow... I didnt know that! I always used Synaptics instead of Software Center to remove a software because i thought that "purge" would be the cleanest way, and it purged everything. That means most of my ~/.folders are orphaned garbage. Thats sad! :( – MestreLion May 28 '11 at 6:40

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