If you’re looking for an easier way to install third-party software on Ubuntu, Martin Wimpress has you covered with deb-get. Jack Wallen shows you how to install and use this handy tool.
How many times have you tried to install an application on Ubuntu using apt, only to find the application not in the default repositories? And if you look for a repository, there’s nothing to be had. Docker-ce is a good example of this. If you have the latest version of the . want to install docker runtime engine, you can install docker.io from the default repository (which isn’t the latest release with all the fancy bells and whistles), or you can go through the steps to install Docker-ce manually.
SEE: 40+ Open Source and Linux Terms You Should Know (Tech Republic Premium)
Or maybe you want to install the stable version of Chrome on Ubuntu, but don’t want the process of downloading the .deb file and then using dpkg to run the installation.
There are at least two problems with the first method: A) it’s not as easy as using apt and B) updating the software isn’t nearly as easy as with apt. The problem with the latter method is that sometimes those deb files are not easy to find.
To solve this problem, longtime Ubuntu developer and Linux champion Martin Wimpress has created a new project called deb-get to solve this problem that has been a thorn in the side of Ubuntu for quite some time.
Deb-get brings to deb packages what apt-get delivers to repositories — a simplified process for installation applications. With deb-get you can quickly install various third-party packages like with apt-get. Let me show you how.
What you need
To install and use deb-get, you need a running instance of Ubuntu or an Ubuntu-based distribution and a user with sudo privileges. That is it. Let’s get this deb-get party started.
How to deb get . to install
Installing Deb-get is very easy. You first need to make sure curl is installed with the command:
sudo apt-get install curl -y
With curl added, install deb-get with this handy script:
curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wimpysworld/deb-get/main/deb-get | sudo -E bash -s install deb-get
You can verify the installation with the command:
deb-get version
This will print the current version of the software, which should indicate that it is clearly still in beta. Upon installation, I found that deb-get was version 0.2.4.
How to use deb-get
Using deb-get is very similar to using apt-get. First, find a list of available applications with the command:
sudo deb-get list
While the list isn’t huge, there are plenty of titles available to install already, such as:
- 1password
- Atom
- azure click
- Bitwarden
- disagreement
- docker ce
- Docker desktop
- Dropbox
- enpass
- Google Chrome
- ONLY OFFICE Desktop Editors
- Opera
- power shell
- skype
- Spotify
- flaccid
- teams
Once you’ve found a package to install, simply run the command:
sudo deb-get install PACKAGE
Where PACKAGE is the name of the package to install (as shown in the sudo deb-get list
assignment). Here are other commands you can run with deb-get.
To resync package index files:
sudo deb-get update
Install the latest versions of all packages installed with deb-get:
sudo deb-get upgrade
To reinstall a package:
sudo deb-get reinstall PACKAGE
Where PACKAGE is the name of the software to be reinstalled.
To remove a package:
sudo deb-get remove PACKAGE
Remove a package and any leftover configuration files:
sudo deb-get purge PACKAGE
Clear the local repository of retrieved files:
sudo deb-get clean
To view details for a particular package:
sudo deb-get show PACKAGE
And that’s all it takes to use Martin Wimpress’s new deb-get tool. This easy-to-use addition to apt-get makes it significantly easier to install and keep up-to-date third-party applications with a single command. I highly recommend using deb-get on all your Ubuntu based Linux distributions.
Subscribe to TechRepublic’s How to make technology work on YouTube for all the latest technical advice for business professionals from Jack Wallen.