This is the TODO for debhelper. As more and more people use debhelper, this list grows - I welcome patches to fix items on it! v8: * escaping in config files (for whitespace)? * make dh_install use hard links for efficiency (maybe?) * dh_installinit --restart-after-upgrade as default? * #487006: dh_installman with 3-letter codes * apply patch in #557603 (breaks compatibility slightly; see #560120) * clean up dh's handling of options passed onto commands it calls, by implementing one of the changes discussed in #570039 (either change #3, change #4, or change #5; change #0 was done, but was an incomplete workaround) * better package arch filtering for -N , -p (#576990) * Convert warning about unknown command-line options back to an error. * Support DEB_BUILD_OPTIONS=debug ; maybe also support passing -g -O2 by default. See patch (and discussion of why this breaks compatability) in #544844. Deprecated: * DH_COMPAT 1, 2, 3, 4. Can be removed once all packages are seen to be using a newer version. I won't hold my breath. Now with evil warning messages though. * Also, grep the entire archive for all dh_* command lines, and check to see what other switches are not being used, and maybe remove some of them. I'd also like to deprecate/remove debian/compress files, -X is a better idea. * dh_suidregister. Once nothing in the archive uses it. * dh_installmanpages. * dh_testversion. Remove as soon as nothing uses it. * dh_movefiles. I won't hold my breath. Have not added deprecation docs or message yet. * dh_undocumented * dh_installinit --init-script (make it warn) * dh_python * dh_clean -k (make it warn (need to make alien not use it 1st!)) * dh_desktop, dh_scrollkeeper. Remove eventually.. * -s flag, not formally deprecated yet; remove eventually * -u flag; add a warning on use and remove eventually * delsubstvar() and the last parameter to addsubstvar that makes it remove a string are not used in debhelper itself, but have been left in the library in case other things use them. Deprecate and remove.