Welcome to our full guide to installing tar.gz files in Ubuntu. If you use Linux, especially Ubuntu, you may have seen software distributions that came in the tar.gz file. Installing software from a package manager is easy, but installing from a tar.gz file might seem scary to some people.
But don’t worry, because we’re here to help you install tar.gz files on your Ubuntu system with a step-by-step guide.
Understanding tar.gz Files
Before we talk about how to install, let’s talk about what tar.gz files are. A tar.gz file is an archive format that is often used on Linux systems to group several files and compress them to save room on the hard drive. The “.tar.gz” extension means that the file was archived and compressed using the tar and gzip tools, respectively.
Downloading the tar.gz File
You must first get the tar.gz file for the software you want to install before you can start the installation process. You can get the tar.gz file by going to the website of the software creator or a trusted repository. Make sure that the version you download works with your Ubuntu system. There may be more than one version for different Linux systems.
Access the Terminal
Once you’ve gotten the tar.gz file, open the terminal on your Ubuntu system. If you press Ctrl, Alt, and T on your computer, you can open the terminal. You can run commands directly on your machine using the terminal, which is a powerful tool.
Navigate to the Directory
Before you can install anything, you need to go to the area where the tar.gz file you downloaded is. The cd command can be used to change where you are. For example, if the file is in your “Downloads” folder, type the following command into the terminal:
cd ~/DownloadsExtract the tar.gz File
The next step is to get the file’s data out. Use the following code to do this:
tar -xzvf filename.tar.gzReplace filename.tar.gz with the real name of the tar.gz file you received. This command will take the files from the archive and put them in a new directory, which is generally called after the software.
Navigate to the Extracted Directory
After the extraction is done, you need to go to the path that was just made. To get to the directory again, use the cd command:
cd extracted_directory_nameReplace extracted_directory_name with the name of the directory that was made during the extraction process.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You were able to put a tar.gz file on your Ubuntu machine. With this way of installing, you can get and use software that might not be in the usual package manager. Make sure you only download software from places you know and trust to keep your system safe and reliable.
Installing software from tar.gz files is a powerful way to add to the capabilities of your Ubuntu machine. Keep in mind, though, that you need to know how to use the terminal and Linux tools. With this thorough guide, you should now be able to load tar.gz files and explore a wide range of options.
