In the ever-evolving software development landscape, GitHub stands as a cornerstone, enabling collaboration, version control, and seamless project management. Whether you’re a seasoned coder or just beginning your coding journey, having GitHub Desktop at your fingertips can significantly enhance your productivity and streamline your development workflow.
However, if you’re an Ubuntu user, you might wonder how to get this powerful tool running on your Linux machine. Fear not, for in this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the step-by-step process of installing GitHub Desktop on Ubuntu, ensuring you’re equipped with all the tools you need to take your coding projects to the next level.
So, let’s dive right in and empower your Linux development experience!
Table of Contents
Install GitHub Desktop for Ubuntu via the Package Manager
There is no official GitHub Desktop package for Linux as of this writing. Luckily, it is open-source, and another developer has published their version of Linux. In this section, we’ll install GitHub Desktop Ubuntu through the APT package manager by adding a third-party repository.
Open a terminal and run the following commands. The commands will add the APT package repository for GitHub Desktop on Ubuntu.
wget -qO - https://apt.packages.shiftkey.dev/gpg.key | gpg --dearmor | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/shiftkey-packages.gpg > /dev/null sudo sh -c 'echo "deb [arch=amd64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/shiftkey-packages.gpg] https://apt.packages.shiftkey.dev/ubuntu/ any main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/shiftkey-packages.list'
Once the repository is configured, run this command to update the package index.
sudo apt update
You can confirm that the repository is active based on the screenshot below.
Run this command to install GitHub Desktop on Ubuntu.
sudo apt install -y github-desktop
GitHub Desktop is now installed.
Install GitHub Desktop Debian Package
The following method we’ll discuss in this post is to install GitHub Desktop Debian package. This method provides a direct and reliable way to bring the capabilities of GitHub Desktop to your development environment.
The convenience of this method is it does not require using any third-party tools. However, it does not offer an automatic update mechanism, which can be a downside. Let’s start.
Open your web browser, navigate to the GitHub Desktop Releases page, and download the appropriate DEB package for your system.
Once downloaded, locate the file on your computer, right-click, and select “Open With Other Application.”
Choose “Software Install” to open the DEB file.
Click the Install button.
You can now launch GitHub Desktop from the application launcher.
Install GitHub Desktop Ubuntu AppImage
Another method to install GitHub Desktop on your Ubuntu system is an AppImage. The AppImage format has gained popularity for its simplicity and cross-distribution compatibility, making the installation a breeze.
If you’re looking for a hassle-free way to bring the power of GitHub Desktop to your Ubuntu environment, read on to learn how to set it up effortlessly. Here’s how to do it.
Open your web browser, navigate to the GitHub Desktop Releases page, and download the appropriate AppImage file for your system.
When finished, open a terminal window and change the working directory where you downloaded the AppImage file.
cd ~/Downloads
Make the AppImage file executable by running this command:
chmod +x GitHubDesktop-linux-<arch>-linux1.AppImage
Before running the AppImage file on Ubuntu 22.04, you must install the libfuse2 package.
sudo apt install -y libfuse2
Execute the AppImage file:
./GitHubDesktop-linux-<arch>-linux1.AppImage
Install GitHub Desktop Ubuntu Flatpak
Let’s discuss installing GitHub Desktop on your Ubuntu system using the Flatpak package manager. Flatpak offers a containerized, distribution-agnostic approach to software installation, making it an excellent choice for getting GitHub Desktop running smoothly on your Ubuntu machine.
First, install the Flatpak package manager:
sudo apt install flatpak
Add the Flathub repository so that Flatpak knows where to download the GitHub Desktop Ubuntu Flatpak package:
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://dl.flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
Reboot your computer to complete the Flatpak setup:
sudo reboot
After rebooting, open the terminal and execute this command.
flatpak install -y flathub io.github.shiftey.Desktop
You can now open GitHub Desktop from the application launcher or run this command in the terminal.
flatpak run io.github.shiftey.Desktop
Congratulations! You’ve successfully installed GitHub Desktop on Ubuntu.
