Ruby Installation

Introduction

There are several tools to install Ruby in different operating systems. Here we have discussed how to use major package management systems and third-party tools for managing and installing Ruby and how to build Ruby from source.

You can use the following installation method to install Ruby :

• For a UNIX-like operating system, system package manager is the easiest way to install.
• For specific or multiple Ruby versions an installer can be used.
• Build Ruby from source.

The following overview lists available installation methods for different needs and platforms.

• Package Management Systems
  • Debian, Ubuntu
  • CentOS, Fedora, RHEL
  • Gentoo
  • Arch Linux
  • OS X
  • Solaris, OpenIndiana
  • Other Distributions
• Installers
  • ruby-build
  • ruby-install
  • RubyInstaller (Windows)
  • RailsInstaller and Ruby Stack
• Building from source

Package Management Systems:

You can use your system’s package manager to install Ruby without using a third-party tool or compile your own Ruby.

apt (Debian or Ubuntu) :

apt package manager is used to installing Ruby on Debian GNU/Linux and Ubuntu. You can use the following command :

$ sudo apt-get install ruby-full

yum (CentOS, Fedora, or RHEL):

yum package manager is used to installing Ruby on CentOS, Fedora and RHE. You can use the following command :

$ sudo yum install ruby

portage (Gentoo):

portage package manager is used to install Ruby on Gentoo. You can use the following command :

$ sudo emerge dev-lang/ruby

pacman (Arch Linux):

pacman package manager is used to install Ruby on Arch Linux. You can use the following command :

$ sudo pacman -S ruby

Homebrew (OS X.):

Homebrew package manager is used to install Ruby on OS X Yosemite and Mavericks, Ruby 2.0 is included. OS X Mountain Lion, Lion, and Snow Leopard ship with Ruby 1.8.7. You can use the following command :

$ brew install ruby

Ruby on Solaris and OpenIndiana :

Ruby 1.8.7 is available for Solaris 8 through Solaris 10 on Sunfreeware and Ruby 1.8.7 is available at Blastwave. Ruby 1.9.2p0 is also available at Sunfreeware, but this is outdated. You can use the following command :

$ pkg install runtime/ruby-18

Note : The third-party tools might be a good way to obtain the latest version of Ruby.

Installers:

To install a newer version of Ruby on an existing older version you can use a third-party installer. Some installer allows you to install multiple version on the same system where associated managers can help to switch between the different Rubies. If you use RVM as a version manager you do not need a separate installer, it comes with its own.

ruby-build :
ruby-build is a plugin for rbenv that allows you to compile and install different versions of Ruby into arbitrary directories. ruby-build can also be used as a standalone program without rbenv. It is available for OS X, Linux, and other UNIX-like operating systems.

ruby-install:
ruby-install allows you to compile and install different versions of Ruby into arbitrary directories. There is also a sibling, chruby, which handles switching between Ruby versions. It is available for OS X, Linux, and other UNIX-like operating systems.

RubyInstaller:
If you are on Windows, there is a great project to help you install Ruby: RubyInstaller. It gives you everything you need to set up a full Ruby development environment on Windows

Building from Source:

You can install Ruby from source. Download and unpack a tarball, then execute the following commands :

$ ./configure
$ make
$ sudo make install

The above will install Ruby into /usr/local.
To change, pass the --prefix=DIR option to the ./configure script.

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