DebGem

Ruby packages for Debian

Ruby programs and libraries

for Debian and Ubuntu

easy to install with apt-get
and no longer a pain

# edit /etc/apt/sources.list
# apt-get update
# apt-get install rails
# apt-get install libmemcache-client-ruby

...it all works!

-- It's free during the public beta period!

What is it?

Apt is the package management system of choice for Debian users. Historically, only a very limited number of Ruby programs and libraries are packaged for Debian and installable through Apt. Instead, most Ruby programs and libraries are installed through RubyGems, a separate package management system created specifically for Ruby.

DebGem provides an Apt repository for Ruby programs and libraries which are currently available as gems. Debian users can now manage all their Ruby software through a single, centralized package manager - Apt - thereby making system administration a joy again!

Advantages of DebGem over plain RubyGems

If you're setting up a new server, then DebGem is easier to setup than RubyGems. RubyGems needs to be installed from source, but before that, you need to install the correct Ruby programs, libraries and build tools by hand. Installing DebGem just involves adding an Apt source.
Debian packages integrate better into the system. Gems cannot handle native dependencies. For example, if you install the RMagick gem, then RubyGems won’t install ImageMagick for you. The DebGem Debian packages do, so installing an arbitrary Ruby library just involves a single command.
Security: the DebGem Apt repository is PGP-signed, making it less vulnerable to man-in-the-middle network attacks.
Debian system administrators are typically very skilled with Apt, but less so with RubyGems. Debian system administrators who are skilled with RubyGems are not as easy to find. RubyGems can be taught, but a typical Debian system administrator is likely to make less mistakes if he only has to deal with Apt, a tool he/she is already intimately familiar with.

Supported distributions

Distribution	Pure-Ruby gems	Gems with native extensions
Debian 4.0 (Etch), x86	Supported	Supported
Debian 4.0 (Etch), x86_64	Supported	Not yet supported
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS (Hardy), x86	Supported	Supported
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS (Hardy), x86_64	Supported	Not yet supported
Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid), x86	Supported	Supported
Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid), x86_64	Supported	Not yet supported

We're working on support for more distributions. Join our support forum if you desire us to support your distribution.

How does it work?

Just add our Apt repository URL to your Apt sources list, and you can immediately start installing Ruby software through Apt.

Many gems from RubyForge, RubyOnRails.org and Github are automatically converted to Debian packages in a periodic manner. No longer will one have to wait until Debian packages have been manually created by maintainers!

Does it work well?

Even though many packages are automatically converted from gems, the greatest care has been taken into making sure that the converted Debian packages work and integrate well into the system.

Gems that require native extensions are hand-tuned so that they depend on the correct Debian packages.

For example, the RMagick library requires on ImageMagick. The RMagick Debian package that DebGem provides properly depends on libmagick10.

Ruby on Rails works out of the box.

With DebGem, it is even possible to install multiple Ruby on Rails versions, ideal for developers who need to maintain applications for multiple Rails versions.

Debian packages register themselves as gems.

Even if you have Ruby software that insists that a certain dependency is a gem, DebGem will still work. All DebGem packages register themselves as Ruby gems, thereby providing full compatibility with Ruby software that expect gems.

FHS-compliant

The DebGem packages comply to the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard.

Finally, a service which allows Ruby software to
integrate well into Debian and Ubuntu systems!