diff --git a/.github/workflows/main.yml b/.github/workflows/main.yml
index b93d91375..983fa0468 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/main.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/main.yml
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Refresh dependencies
         run: sudo apt update
       - name: Install dependencies
-        run: ./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py | sudo xargs apt install -y
+        run: sudo ./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies -o ubuntu --yes
       - name: Check ABI
         run: ./contrib/ci/check-abi $(git describe --abbrev=0 --tags) $(git rev-parse HEAD)
 
diff --git a/contrib/ci/README.md b/contrib/ci/README.md
index 76140f9e3..f0a9e891a 100644
--- a/contrib/ci/README.md
+++ b/contrib/ci/README.md
@@ -99,7 +99,7 @@ Each distribution will have `package` elements and `control` elements.
 * `inclusive` elements represent an inclusive list of architectures to be installed on
 * `exclusive` elements represent an exclusive list of architectures to not be installed on
 
-For convenience there is also a standalone script __generate_dependencies.py__ that parses `dependencies.xml`.
+For convenience there is also a helper script `./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.p install-dependencies` that parses `dependencies.xml`.
 
 ### Dockerfile.in
 
diff --git a/contrib/ci/arch.sh b/contrib/ci/arch.sh
index d479f81d6..f196616dd 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/arch.sh
+++ b/contrib/ci/arch.sh
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ shopt -s extglob
 . ./contrib/ci/get_test_firmware.sh
 
 #install anything missing from the container
-./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py | xargs pacman -S --noconfirm --needed
+./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies -o arch
 
 # prepare the build tree
 rm -rf build
diff --git a/contrib/ci/debian.sh b/contrib/ci/debian.sh
index d8615def2..014dbdf02 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/debian.sh
+++ b/contrib/ci/debian.sh
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ sed s/quilt/native/ debian/source/format -i
 #check if we have all deps available
 #if some are missing, we're going to use subproject instead and
 #packaging CI will fail
-./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py  | xargs apt install -y || true
+./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies -o debian --yes || true
 if ! dpkg-checkbuilddeps; then
 	./contrib/ci/ubuntu.sh
 	exit 0
diff --git a/contrib/ci/fedora.sh b/contrib/ci/fedora.sh
index 24811aa48..5e822aee7 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/fedora.sh
+++ b/contrib/ci/fedora.sh
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ set -e
 set -x
 
 #get any missing deps from the container
-./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py | xargs dnf install -y
+./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies --yes -o fedora
 
 #generate a tarball
 git config tar.tar.xz.command "xz -c"
diff --git a/contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py b/contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..32bf4f8a7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py
@@ -0,0 +1,165 @@
+#!/usr/bin/python3
+#
+# Copyright (C) 2017 Dell, Inc.
+# Copyright (C) 2020 Intel, Inc.
+# Copyright (C) 2021 Mario Limonciello
+#
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1+
+#
+import os
+import sys
+import argparse
+
+# Minimum version of markdown required
+MINIMUM_MARKDOWN = (3, 3, 3)
+
+
+def get_possible_profiles():
+    return ["fedora", "centos", "debian", "ubuntu", "arch", "void"]
+
+
+def detect_profile():
+    try:
+        import distro
+
+        target = distro.id()
+        if not target in get_possible_profiles():
+            target = distro.like()
+    except ModuleNotFoundError:
+        target = ""
+    return target
+
+
+def test_markdown():
+    import markdown
+
+    new_enough = markdown.__version_info__ >= MINIMUM_MARKDOWN
+    if not new_enough:
+        print("python3-markdown must be upgraded")
+    sys.exit(not new_enough)
+
+
+def parse_dependencies(OS, SUBOS, requested_type):
+    import xml.etree.ElementTree as etree
+
+    deps = []
+    dep = ""
+    directory = os.path.dirname(sys.argv[0])
+    tree = etree.parse(os.path.join(directory, "dependencies.xml"))
+    root = tree.getroot()
+    for child in root:
+        if "type" not in child.attrib or "id" not in child.attrib:
+            continue
+        for distro in child:
+            if "id" not in distro.attrib:
+                continue
+            if distro.attrib["id"] != OS:
+                continue
+            packages = distro.findall("package")
+            for package in packages:
+                if SUBOS:
+                    if "variant" not in package.attrib:
+                        continue
+                    if package.attrib["variant"] != SUBOS:
+                        continue
+                if package.text:
+                    dep = package.text
+                else:
+                    dep = child.attrib["id"]
+                if child.attrib["type"] == requested_type and dep:
+                    deps.append(dep)
+    return deps
+
+
+def get_build_dependencies(os, variant):
+    return parse_dependencies(os, variant, "build")
+
+
+def _get_installer_cmd(os, yes):
+    if os == "debian" or os == "ubuntu":
+        installer = ["apt", "install"]
+    elif os == "fedora":
+        installer = ["dnf", "install"]
+    elif os == "arch":
+        installer = ["pacman", "-Syu", "--noconfirm", "--needed"]
+    elif os == "void":
+        installer = ["xbps-install", "-Syu"]
+    else:
+        print("unable to detect OS profile, use --os= to specify")
+        print("\tsupported profiles: %s" % get_possible_profiles())
+        sys.exit(1)
+    if yes:
+        installer += ["-y"]
+    return installer
+
+
+def install_packages(os, variant, yes, debugging, packages):
+    import subprocess
+
+    if packages == "build-dependencies":
+        packages = get_build_dependencies(os, variant)
+    installer = _get_installer_cmd(os, yes)
+    installer += packages
+    if debugging:
+        print(installer)
+    subprocess.call(installer)
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+
+    command = None
+    # compat mode for old training documentation
+    if "generate_dependencies.py" in sys.argv[0]:
+        command = "get-dependencies"
+
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
+    if not command:
+        parser.add_argument(
+            "command",
+            choices=[
+                "get-dependencies",
+                "test-markdown",
+                "detect-profile",
+                "install-dependencies",
+                "install-pip",
+            ],
+            help="command to run",
+        )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "-o",
+        "--os",
+        default=detect_profile(),
+        choices=get_possible_profiles(),
+        help="calculate dependencies for OS profile",
+    )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "-v", "--variant", help="optional machine variant for the OS profile"
+    )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "-y", "--yes", action="store_true", help="Don't prompt to install"
+    )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "-d", "--debug", action="store_true", help="Display all launched commands"
+    )
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+
+    # these require variants to be set
+    if not args.variant and (args.os == "ubuntu" or args.os == "debian"):
+        args.variant = os.uname().machine
+    if not command:
+        command = args.command
+
+    # command to run
+    if command == "test-markdown":
+        test_markdown()
+    elif command == "detect-profile":
+        print(detect_profile())
+    elif command == "get-dependencies":
+        dependencies = get_build_dependencies(args.os, args.variant)
+        print(*dependencies, sep="\n")
+    elif command == "install-dependencies":
+        install_packages(
+            args.os, args.variant, args.yes, args.debug, "build-dependencies"
+        )
+    elif command == "install-pip":
+        install_packages(args.os, args.variant, args.yes, args.debug, ["python3-pip"])
diff --git a/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py b/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py
deleted file mode 100755
index 4aa99d2b4..000000000
--- a/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,81 +0,0 @@
-#!/usr/bin/python3
-#
-# Copyright (C) 2017 Dell, Inc.
-# Copyright (C) 2020 Intel, Inc.
-#
-# SPDX-License-Identifier: LGPL-2.1+
-#
-import os
-import sys
-import argparse
-import xml.etree.ElementTree as etree
-
-
-def parse_dependencies(OS, SUBOS, requested_type):
-    deps = []
-    dep = ""
-    directory = os.path.dirname(sys.argv[0])
-    tree = etree.parse(os.path.join(directory, "dependencies.xml"))
-    root = tree.getroot()
-    for child in root:
-        if "type" not in child.attrib or "id" not in child.attrib:
-            continue
-        for distro in child:
-            if "id" not in distro.attrib:
-                continue
-            if distro.attrib["id"] != OS:
-                continue
-            packages = distro.findall("package")
-            for package in packages:
-                if SUBOS:
-                    if "variant" not in package.attrib:
-                        continue
-                    if package.attrib["variant"] != SUBOS:
-                        continue
-                if package.text:
-                    dep = package.text
-                else:
-                    dep = child.attrib["id"]
-                if child.attrib["type"] == requested_type and dep:
-                    deps.append(dep)
-    return deps
-
-
-if __name__ == "__main__":
-    possible_targets = ["fedora", "centos", "debian", "ubuntu", "arch"]
-
-    try:
-        import distro
-
-        target = distro.id()
-        if not target in possible_targets:
-            target = distro.like()
-    except ModuleNotFoundError:
-        target = None
-
-    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
-    parser.add_argument(
-        "-o",
-        "--os",
-        default=target,
-        choices=possible_targets,
-        help="dependencies for OS",
-    )
-    args = parser.parse_args()
-
-    # these require variants to be set
-    if args.os == "ubuntu" or args.os == "debian":
-        args.os = "%s-%s" % (args.os, os.uname().machine)
-
-    target = os.getenv("OS", args.os)
-    if target is None:
-        print("Missing OS environment variable")
-        sys.exit(1)
-
-    _os = target.lower()
-    _sub_os = ""
-    split = target.split("-")
-    if len(split) >= 2:
-        _os, _sub_os = split[:2]
-    dependencies = parse_dependencies(_os, _sub_os, "build")
-    print(*dependencies, sep="\n")
diff --git a/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py b/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py
new file mode 120000
index 000000000..cc1f5adae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+fwupd_setup_helpers.py
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/contrib/ci/generate_docker.py b/contrib/ci/generate_docker.py
index 7390cb661..9640ab1c0 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/generate_docker.py
+++ b/contrib/ci/generate_docker.py
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import os
 import subprocess
 import sys
 import shutil
-from generate_dependencies import parse_dependencies
+from fwupd_setup_helpers import parse_dependencies
 
 
 def get_container_cmd():
diff --git a/contrib/ci/ubuntu.sh b/contrib/ci/ubuntu.sh
index 2a7c01ec2..1688ace83 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/ubuntu.sh
+++ b/contrib/ci/ubuntu.sh
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ set -x
 . ./contrib/ci/get_test_firmware.sh
 
 #check for and install missing dependencies
-./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py | xargs apt install -y
+./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies --yes -o ubuntu
 
 #evaluate using Ubuntu's buildflags
 #evaluate using Debian/Ubuntu's buildflags
diff --git a/contrib/ci/void.sh b/contrib/ci/void.sh
index 81739897a..9aa03786f 100755
--- a/contrib/ci/void.sh
+++ b/contrib/ci/void.sh
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ set -x
 
 #install dependencies
 xbps-install -Suy python3
-./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py | xargs xbps-install -y
+./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py install-dependencies --yes -o void
 
 #clone test firmware if necessary
 . ./contrib/ci/get_test_firmware.sh
diff --git a/contrib/setup b/contrib/setup
index 0abef17c2..1c4bd36d3 100755
--- a/contrib/setup
+++ b/contrib/setup
@@ -3,21 +3,14 @@
 
 cd "$(dirname "$0")/.."
 
+HELPER=./contrib/ci/fwupd_setup_helpers.py
+HELPER_ARGS="-y"
+
 setup_deps()
 {
-    OS=$1
-    read -p  "Install build dependencies? (y/n) " question
+    read -p "Install build dependencies? (y/n) " question
     if [ "$question" = "y" ]; then
-        DEPS=$(./contrib/ci/generate_dependencies.py)
-        if [ "$OS" = "debian" ] || [ "$OS" = "ubuntu" ]; then
-            sudo apt install $DEPS
-        elif [ "$OS" = "fedora" ]; then
-            sudo dnf install $DEPS
-        elif [ "$OS" = "arch" ]; then
-            pacman -Syu --noconfirm --needed $DEPS
-        elif [ "$OS" = "void" ]; then
-            xbps-install -Syu $DEPS
-        fi
+        $(which sudo) python3 $HELPER install-dependencies $HELPER_ARGS -y
     fi
 }
 
@@ -47,34 +40,79 @@ setup_git()
     git config include.path ../.gitconfig
 }
 
+install_pip()
+{
+    package=$1
+    args=$2
+    if ! python3 -m pip install $package $args; then
+        $(which sudo) python3 $HELPER install-pip $HELPER_ARGS -y
+    fi
+    #try once more
+    python3 -m pip install $package
+}
+
 setup_precommit()
 {
     echo "Configuring pre-commit hooks"
     python3 -m venv venv
     source venv/bin/activate
 
-    python3 -m pip install pre-commit
+    install_pip pre-commit
     pre-commit install
 }
 
 check_markdown()
 {
-    if python3 -c "import markdown; import sys; sys.exit(markdown.__version_info__ >= (3,3,3))"; then
-        echo "Upgrading python3-markdown version"
-        python3 -m pip install markdown --upgrade
+    if ! python3 $HELPER test-markdown; then
+        install_pip markdown --upgrade
     fi
 }
 
+detect_os()
+{
+    for i in "$@"; do
+        case $i in
+            --os=*)
+                OS="${i#*=}"
+                shift
+                ;;
+            --debug)
+                DEBUG=1
+                shift
+                ;;
+            *)
+                ;;
+        esac
+    done
+    if [ -z $OS ]; then
+        OS=$(python3 $HELPER detect-profile)
+        if [ -z "$OS" ]; then
+            install_pip distro
+            OS=$(python3 $HELPER detect-profile)
+        fi
+        echo "Using OS profile $OS to setup"
+    fi
+    if [ -n "$OS" ];then
+        HELPER_ARGS="$HELPER_ARGS --os $OS"
+    fi
+    if [ -n "$DEBUG" ]; then
+        set -x
+        HELPER_ARGS="$HELPER_ARGS --debug"
+    fi
+}
+
+#needed for arguments for some commands
+detect_os "$@"
+
 #if interactive install build deps and prepare environment
 if [ -t 2 ]; then
-    OS=$(python3 ./contrib/ci/detect_os_profile.py)
     case $OS in
         debian|ubuntu|arch|fedora)
-            setup_deps $OS
+            setup_deps
             setup_run_dev
             ;;
         void)
-            setup_deps $OS
+            setup_deps
             ;;
     esac
     check_markdown