paru installs repository package without prompting when AUR package with same base name exists

[simonbcn]

Description

When running paru -S zen-browser, paru automatically selects and installs the repository package cachyos/zen-browser-bin without prompting the user, even though there's an AUR package aur/zen-browser with a more exact name match.

Expected Behavior

One of the following should happen:

1. Paru should prompt the user to choose between available packages when multiple sources exist
2. Paru should prioritize exact name matches from AUR when using -S (since paru is an AUR helper)
3. At minimum, inform the user which package is being selected when there are multiple options

Actual Behavior

Paru silently selects cachyos/zen-browser-bin from the CachyOS repository without user interaction.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Search for the package:

$ paru -Ss zen-browser

Output shows multiple packages including:

aur/zen-browser 1.19.3b-1 [+41 ~3.68]
    Experience tranquillity while browsing the web without people tracking you
aur/zen-browser-bin 1.19.3b-1 [+280 ~17.20]
    Performance oriented Firefox-based web browser
cachyos/zen-browser-bin 1.19.3b-1 [0 B 350.39 MiB]
    Performance oriented Firefox-based web browser

2. Attempt to install:

$ paru -S zen-browser

3. Observe that cachyos/zen-browser-bin is selected automatically without prompting:

resolving dependencies...
looking for conflicting packages...

Package (4)                 New Version  Net Change

cachyos-extra-v3/dbus-glib  0.114-1.1      0.78 MiB
cachyos-extra-v3/ffmpeg4.4  4.4.6-4.1     23.37 MiB
extra-x86-64-v3/libmfx      23.2.2-6.1     0.28 MiB
cachyos/zen-browser-bin     1.19.3b-1    350.39 MiB

Total Installed Size:  374.82 MiB

System Information

• Paru version: v2.1.0 - libalpm v16.0.1
• OS: Arch Linux
• Desktop: KDE Plasma / Wayland
• Repositories enabled: CachyOS (cachyos, cachyos-extra-v3), extra

Configuration

~/.config/paru/paru.conf:

[options]
Devel
BottomUp
Provides
PgpFetch
NewsOnUpgrade
CleanAfter
UpgradeMenu
CombinedUpgrade
SaveChanges
SkipReview

[bin]
FileManager = ranger

Workaround

To install the AUR package specifically, use:

paru -S aur/zen-browser

Additional Context

This behavior is confusing because:

• The exact package name zen-browser exists in AUR
• The repository package has a different name (zen-browser-bin)
• No prompt is given to the user about package selection
• This differs from expected AUR helper behavior where AUR packages would typically be prioritized or at least presented as an option

[pfeifferj]

this is working as designed since repo packages take priority over AUR, and pacman's provides mechanism is what resolves zen-browser to cachyos/zen-browser-bin. this is standard alpm behavior and consistent with how pacman itself handles virtual packages.

that said, silently installing a differently-named package without any indication is poor UX. I've added a prompt when a target is matched only via provides (not exact name) in #1525, so you'll see something like:

:: zen-browser is not in repos but cachyos/zen-browser-bin provides it
:: Install cachyos/zen-browser-bin? [Y/n]:

answering no sends it to AUR. --noconfirm defaults to the repo package to preserve script compatibility

in the meantime, paru -S aur/zen-browser explicitly targets the AUR package