{"id":833,"date":"2024-06-14T15:03:05","date_gmt":"2024-06-14T15:03:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/serverhost.com\/blog\/deb-installers-to-be-integrated-into-ubuntu-app-center-soon\/"},"modified":"2024-12-09T06:46:41","modified_gmt":"2024-12-09T06:46:41","slug":"deb-installers-to-be-integrated-into-ubuntu-app-center-soon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/serverhost.com\/blog\/deb-installers-to-be-integrated-into-ubuntu-app-center-soon\/","title":{"rendered":"DEB Installers to be Integrated into Ubuntu App Center Soon"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the biggest drawbacks to Ubuntu\u2019s new App Center<\/em>, the Flutter-based replacement for GNOME\u2019s Software Center<\/em>, is that it doesn\u2019t let you install DEBs downloaded from the web.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

To be clear (since confusion often creeps in), the Ubuntu App Center<\/em> does allow you to install DEB software as long as it\u2019s in the Ubuntu repos. What it doesn\u2019t currently do, which many software center incarnations over the years did, is \u2018side load\u2019 DEB packages.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

But, at long last, this feature is coming.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

On the App Center<\/em> Github there\u2019s been a spurt of activity<\/a> in a pull request to plumb in support for installing DEBs using the App Center<\/em>. This lets Ubuntu users do what they\u2019re used to: download a DEB installer then double-click it to install via a guided, GUI process.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Obviously, given that DEBs aren\u2019t sandboxed and<\/em> could be made by\/come from untrustworthy sources, the distro will educate users as\/when they attempt to install DEB packages like Google Chrome<\/em>, Discord<\/em>, and Steam<\/em> using App Center<\/em> with warnings:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

There\u2019s likely to be some gasping and pearl clutching at word DEB installer support is in the works. Some frame making it easier for Ubuntu users to install DEB packages they (choose to) download from the web as tantamount to \u2018encouraging\u2019 it.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Which, as the warnings the distro will show to users when \u2018side-loading\u2019 a DEB package make clear, has potentially severe security implications.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

DEBs aren\u2019t sandboxed and get unrestricted root access to a user\u2019s system. Plus, unlike DEB packages in the Ubuntu repos, 3rd-party DEBs downloaded from the web are not vetted, can be produced by anyone, and could contain anything. It\u2019s a valid fear.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

At least in theory?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

People Use DEBs, Get Over It!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

In all the time I\u2019ve been blogging about Ubuntu \u201416 years<\/em>\u2014 I can\u2019t recall any widespread and\/or recurring incidents involving dodgy DEBs stuffed with malware and masquerading as other apps. It could be done, but generally, it hasn\u2019t been.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Why? Speaking from experience, making a working, valid DEB package isn\u2019t a low-effort task: it takes time. Even then, making the DEB is one thing, getting people to discover and<\/em> install it? Harder than uploading to a store which will surface it to users for you.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Anyway, in 2024, the vast majority of 3rd-party DEB installer Ubuntu users download from the web are not cribbed from backwater channels, dodgy sources, or obscure websites.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Most Ubuntu users simply want to install a DEB from a company, developer, or service they (to varying ethical degrees) feel they can trust, like Google<\/a><\/em>, Discord<\/a><\/em>, Steam<\/a><\/em>, Zoom<\/a><\/em>, Microsoft<\/a><\/em>, Proton<\/a><\/em>, etc.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Everything else? These days, that tends to come from the Ubuntu repo, the Canonical Snap Store<\/a><\/em>, Flathub<\/a><\/em>, nix, and other more modern, segregated software mechanisms.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Those of us who already know how to install DEBs through other means (CLI, etc) don\u2019t need this, and a few may argue that gatekeeping the secret of side-loading is a security boon, but I disagree.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t see how re-implementing support for 3rd-party DEB installs using a GUI \u2014 a feature Ubuntu has had since 2004 \u2014 will somehow ignite an arms-race in DEB-packaged malware that has, in 20 years to date, failed to materialise. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n

So in all, I welcome this \u2014 and the good news is that because App Center<\/em> is a snap this feature will be available to users on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, not just those who install or upgrade to Ubuntu 24.10 later this year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. You can still do that in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS if you install Gdebi<\/em> first, but that\u2019s not a tool which is preinstalled by default, and it sits in the universe repo, not main. \u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    One of the biggest drawbacks to Ubuntu\u2019s new App Center, the Flutter-based replacement for GNOME\u2019s Software Center, is that it doesn\u2019t let you install DEBs downloaded from the web. To be clear (since confusion often creeps in), the Ubuntu App Center does allow you to install DEB software as long as it\u2019s in the Ubuntu […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[292,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-833","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-app-center","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nDEB Installers Coming Soon to Ubuntu App Center | ServerHost<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ubuntu App Center will soon support DEB package installers, simplifying application installation and expanding software compatibility. 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