How do I remove all i386 architecture packages from my Debian installation?

I added foreign architecture i386 to my Debian amd64 installation. How do I remove it? When I try this command: dpkg --remove-architecture i386, I am told to first remove all i386 packages.

Solution 1:

I am answering my own question after gathering important information from other blog posts.

1. Show what foreign architectures are installed: dpkg --print-foreign-architectures
   • Might show: i386
2. Review i386 packages on your system: dpkg -l | grep i386
3. Remove all i386 packages: apt-get purge ".*:i386"
   • Note: The purge keyword (instead of remove) removes all configuration files associated with the packages you're uninstalling. (Thanks PCGuyIV!)
4. Now you can remove the i386 architecture: dpkg --remove-architecture i386

Solution 2:

I would use "purge" instead of "remove".

~# apt-get purge ".*:i386"
~# dpkg --remove-architecture i386

The "purge" keyword removes all configuration files associated with the packages you're uninstalling.

Solution 3:

$ sudo apt remove `dpkg --get-selections |grep i386 |awk '{print $1}'`
$ sudo dpkg --remove-architecture i386