--- title: "Assembling Virtual Package Contents" order: 5 ---
Virtual packages are essentially references to other packages and resources, and before a virtual package can be consumed, it must first be "assembled" into a regular package.
Assembling a virtual package is essentially following pointers to resources and combining the contents of those resources. Once this is done, it's indistinguishable from a regular package and is therefore no longer considered "virtual". It's therefore a one-way process.
To assemble a virtual package, the following logic must be applied:
hash
is specified), and written to the target virtual path. A directory is created if it doesn't exist, and a file is overwritten if it already exists.hash
). The contents are then extracted to the target virtual path, overwriting any existing files.hash
is specified), and written to the target virtual path. A directory is created if it doesn't exist, and a file is overwritten if it already exists.hash
). The contents are then extracted to the target virtual path, overwriting any existing files.