How To Install Ruby on Ubuntu and LinuxMint using RVM

By RahulAugust 25, 20154 Mins ReadUpdated:July 26, 2019

Ruby is a popular programming language among a large number of developers. Rails are the framework to run ruby language. Ruby language was created by Yukihiro “Matz” Matsumoto and first published in 1995. This article will help you to install ruby on rails on Ubuntu and LinuxMint Linux systems using RVM. RVM is the Ruby Version Manager helps for installing and managing Ruby language on systems.

Step 1 – Install RVM

First of all, install the latest stable version of RVM on your system using the following command. This command will automatically download all required files and install on your system.

Install CURL

apt-get install curl

Install RVM

Before installing RVM first we need to import public key in our system then use curl to install rvm in our system.

curl -sSL https://rvm.io/mpapis.asc | sudo gpg2 --import -
curl -sSL https://rvm.io/pkuczynski.asc | sudo gpg2 --import -
curl -sSL https://get.rvm.io | sudo bash -s stable

After installing RVM first we need to set up rvm environment using below command. so that current shell takes new environment settings.

source /etc/profile.d/rvm.sh

Install Ruby Dependencies

Install all the dependencies for installing Ruby automatically on the system. Run below command on terminal.

rvm requirements

Step 2 – List Available Ruby Versions

Get a list of available versions of Ruby language. You can install any version of your choice or requirements showing on the list.

rvm list known

[ruby-]1.8.6[-p420]
[ruby-]1.8.7[-head] # security released on head
[ruby-]1.9.1[-p431]
[ruby-]1.9.2[-p330]
[ruby-]1.9.3[-p551]
[ruby-]2.0.0[-p648]
[ruby-]2.1[.10]
[ruby-]2.2[.10]
[ruby-]2.3[.8]
[ruby-]2.4[.6]
[ruby-]2.5[.5]
[ruby-]2.6[.3]
[ruby-]2.7[.0-preview1]
ruby-head

Step 3 – Install Ruby on Ubuntu

RVM is useful for installation of multiple Ruby versions on the single system. Use the following command to install required Ruby on your system. As shown below example will install Ruby 2.4.1 on your system.

rvm install 2.6

[Sample Output]

Searching for binary rubies, this might take some time.
No binary rubies available for: ubuntu/18.04/x86_64/ruby-2.6.3.
Continuing with compilation. Please read 'rvm help mount' to get more information on binary rubies.
Checking requirements for ubuntu.
Requirements installation successful.
Installing Ruby from source to: /usr/local/rvm/rubies/ruby-2.6.3, this may take a while depending on your cpu(s)...
ruby-2.6.3 - #downloading ruby-2.6.3, this may take a while depending on your connection...
  % Total    % Received % Xferd  Average Speed   Time    Time     Time  Current
                                 Dload  Upload   Total   Spent    Left  Speed
100 13.8M  100 13.8M    0     0  13.8M      0 --:--:-- --:--:-- --:--:-- 13.8M
ruby-2.6.3 - #extracting ruby-2.6.3 to /usr/local/rvm/src/ruby-2.6.3.....
ruby-2.6.3 - #configuring......................................................................
ruby-2.6.3 - #post-configuration..
ruby-2.6.3 - #compiling...........................................................................................
ruby-2.6.3 - #installing................
ruby-2.6.3 - #making binaries executable..
ruby-2.6.3 - #downloading rubygems-3.0.4
  % Total    % Received % Xferd  Average Speed   Time    Time     Time  Current
                                 Dload  Upload   Total   Spent    Left  Speed
100  862k  100  862k    0     0  24.0M      0 --:--:-- --:--:-- --:--:-- 24.0M
ruby-2.6.3 - #extracting rubygems-3.0.4.....
ruby-2.6.3 - #removing old rubygems........
ruby-2.6.3 - #installing rubygems-3.0.4.........................................
ruby-2.6.3 - #gemset created /usr/local/rvm/gems/[email protected]
ruby-2.6.3 - #importing gemset /usr/local/rvm/gemsets/global.gems................................................................
ruby-2.6.3 - #generating global wrappers.......
ruby-2.6.3 - #gemset created /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.6.3
ruby-2.6.3 - #importing gemsetfile /usr/local/rvm/gemsets/default.gems evaluated to empty gem list
ruby-2.6.3 - #generating default wrappers.......
ruby-2.6.3 - #adjusting #shebangs for (gem irb erb ri rdoc testrb rake).
Install of ruby-2.6.3 - #complete

Step 4 – Setup Default Ruby Version

Use rvm command to set up default ruby version to be used by applications. You can install multiple versions as defined in the above step. Now select which version you want to use.

rvm use 2.6.3 --default 

Using /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.6.3

Step 5 – Check Ruby Version

Using following command you can check the current ruby version is used.

ruby --version

ruby 2.6.3p62 (2019-04-16 revision 67580) [x86_64-linux]

Step 6 – Install Rails

You can install the latest stable release version of Rails by running the following command. It will install Rails in global Gemset So that all applications share the same version of Rails.

gem install rails
rails -v

Or we can get a specific version of Rails by defining –version during installation. Visit here to get available rails versions.

gem install rails --version=5.2.3

Congratulation’s, You have successfully installed Ruby on your system. Read our next articles to deploy Ruby with Apache or Ruby with Nginx web server with simple steps.

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22 Comments

tyson on March 7, 2021 4:14 pm
in step if u have gpg2 package missing then do
sudo apt-get install gnupg2
in step 4 rvm will not set ruby version to default directly if throw error ” RVM is not a function, selecting rubies with ‘rvm use …’ will not work.”
then do :
bash –login
rvm –default use 2.6.6
Reply
Aether on January 13, 2021 1:29 pm
I think you need to use sudo in this case since the /usr directory is protected under super user access only.
Try
>> sudo rvm requirements
Reply
Isabelle on February 7, 2019 4:35 pm
Thanks!
Reply
Nirmal Sinha on June 19, 2018 6:58 am
Thanks, Bro
Reply
Mark Long on May 31, 2018 6:52 pm
$ rvm requirements
Checking requirements for mint.
Installing requirements for mint.
mkdir: cannot create directory ‘/usr/local/rvm/log/1527792630’: Permission denied
tee: /usr/local/rvm/log/1527792630/update_system.log: No such file or directory
Updating system…..
Error running ‘requirements_debian_update_system ‘,
please read /usr/local/rvm/log/1527792630/update_system.log
Requirements installation failed with status: 1.
Reply
David Merrick on March 28, 2018 8:45 pm
Problem solved needed to install Node.js using sudo apt-get install nodejs
Reply
David Merrick on March 28, 2018 5:37 am
Hi I keep getting this error
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:84:in `rescue in block (2 levels) in require’: There was an error while trying to load the gem ‘uglifier’. (Bundler::GemRequireError)
Gem Load Error is: Could not find a JavaScript runtime. See https://github.com/rails/execjs for a list of available runtimes.
Reply
David Merrick on March 28, 2018 4:39 am
[email protected] ~/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp $ source /etc/profile.d/rvm.sh
[email protected] ~/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp $ rails server
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:84:in `rescue in block (2 levels) in require’: There was an error while trying to load the gem ‘uglifier’. (Bundler::GemRequireError)
Gem Load Error is: Could not find a JavaScript runtime. See https://github.com/rails/execjs for a list of available runtimes.
Backtrace for gem load error is:
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/execjs-2.7.0/lib/execjs/runtimes.rb:58:in `autodetect’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/execjs-2.7.0/lib/execjs.rb:5:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/execjs-2.7.0/lib/execjs.rb:4:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/uglifier-3.2.0/lib/uglifier.rb:5:in `require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/uglifier-3.2.0/lib/uglifier.rb:5:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:81:in `require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:81:in `block (2 levels) in require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:76:in `each’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:76:in `block in require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:65:in `each’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:65:in `require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler.rb:114:in `require’
/home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/config/application.rb:7:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:129:in `require’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:129:in `block in perform’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:126:in `tap’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:126:in `perform’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor/command.rb:27:in `run’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor/invocation.rb:126:in `invoke_command’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor.rb:387:in `dispatch’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/command/base.rb:63:in `perform’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/command.rb:44:in `invoke’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands.rb:16:in `’
/home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/rails:9:in `require’
/home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/rails:9:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/rails.rb:28:in `load’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/rails.rb:28:in `call’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/command.rb:7:in `call’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client.rb:30:in `run’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/bin/spring:49:in `’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/binstub.rb:31:in `load’
/usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/binstub.rb:31:in `’
/home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/spring:15:in `require’
/home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/spring:15:in `’
bin/rails:3:in `load’
bin/rails:3:in `’
Bundler Error Backtrace:
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:80:in `block (2 levels) in require’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:76:in `each’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:76:in `block in require’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:65:in `each’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler/runtime.rb:65:in `require’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/bundler-1.16.1/lib/bundler.rb:114:in `require’
from /home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/config/application.rb:7:in `’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:129:in `require’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:129:in `block in perform’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:126:in `tap’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands/server/server_command.rb:126:in `perform’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor/command.rb:27:in `run’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor/invocation.rb:126:in `invoke_command’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/thor-0.20.0/lib/thor.rb:387:in `dispatch’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/command/base.rb:63:in `perform’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/command.rb:44:in `invoke’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/railties-5.1.2/lib/rails/commands.rb:16:in `’
from /home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/rails:9:in `require’
from /home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/rails:9:in `’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/rails.rb:28:in `load’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/rails.rb:28:in `call’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client/command.rb:7:in `call’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/client.rb:30:in `run’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/bin/spring:49:in `’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/binstub.rb:31:in `load’
from /usr/local/rvm/gems/ruby-2.4.1/gems/spring-2.0.2/lib/spring/binstub.rb:31:in `’
from /home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/spring:15:in `require’
from /home/dave/Documents/Rails/TestApps/GamesRailsProject/SampleApp/bin/spring:15:in `’
from bin/rails:3:in `load’
from bin/rails:3:in `’
Reply
JMQ on September 10, 2017 3:42 pm
Thanks for the tutorial.
It didn’t work with Linux Mint. I think rvm does not recognize Mint as an Ubuntu derivative. It does not find binaries for Mint and the compile fails. I tried various different version numbers and the compilation errors are slightly different but generally some files are not found e.g. ‘strlcat.c’
Reply
f4b1 on April 14, 2017 8:21 am
It’s Work, thanks for this tips !
Reply
Taufan Fatahillah Haigal Maulana on August 22, 2016 2:14 pm
How to fix bash: /etc/profile.d/rvm.sh: No such file or directory
Reply
- Sasa on October 24, 2016 7:34 pm
  Just open new terminal window to start anew. I too did not find the file but it was not needed.
  Reply
Anonymous on July 19, 2016 2:44 am
Good tutorial!
Reply
lexprimost on May 20, 2016 9:39 am
everything works fine sometime you just need to type “sudo” before camands to get root permissions
thank you Rahul
Reply
Tom on March 6, 2016 6:21 pm
Not a good tutorial. Nothing was saved even when I ran the commands as root.
Reply
Mark on January 29, 2016 4:57 pm
In my instance I had to enable the “Run command as a login shell” option for my terminal in Mint.
Edit > Profile Preferences > Title and Command > Run Command as login shell
Everything worked perfectly after that.
Reply
- Sasa on October 24, 2016 7:37 pm
  You do not need to do that. Instead use command
  $> rvm alias create default X.Y.Z
  when setting the default ruby. (change X,Y,Z for the correct numbers)
  If not sure about the numbers/versions, use
  $> rvm list
  to see what versions you have installed
  Reply
dX on May 11, 2015 10:31 pm
This works, but when i turn off the terminal its all gone? Why, i was using terminal in root mode.
Reply
- Joe on January 5, 2016 7:07 am
  same thing happened to me
  Reply
  - Rahul on January 5, 2016 9:34 am
    Hi Joe,
    Can you please explain your issue more ?
    Reply
    - Joe on January 5, 2016 8:07 pm
      Hi Rahul
      I installed the program as root but when I log on as a normal user it’s not available.
      Would I need to reinstall as normal user or is there another way?
      Many thanks
      Reply
- Dejan on March 3, 2017 12:10 pm
  you must type:
  # source /etc/profile.d/rvm.sh
  every time before working with it. I’v added this line to .bashrc file in my home directory on linux mint. Now it is fine and no need to type it every time.
  Reply

How To Install Ruby on Ubuntu and LinuxMint using RVM

Step 1 – Install RVM

Install CURL

Install RVM

Install Ruby Dependencies

Step 2 – List Available Ruby Versions

Step 3 – Install Ruby on Ubuntu

Step 4 – Setup Default Ruby Version

Step 5 – Check Ruby Version

Step 6 – Install Rails

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22 Comments

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How To Install Ruby on Ubuntu and LinuxMint using RVM

Step 1 – Install RVM

Install CURL

Install RVM

Install Ruby Dependencies

Step 2 – List Available Ruby Versions

Step 3 – Install Ruby on Ubuntu

Step 4 – Setup Default Ruby Version

Step 5 – Check Ruby Version

Step 6 – Install Rails

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How to Install Ruby on CentOS/RHEL 8 and Scientific Linux

How to Install Ruby on Debian with RVM

How to Deploy Ruby App with Nginx and Passenger on Ubuntu and Debian

How to Deploy Ruby App with Apache and Passenger on Ubuntu and Debian

How to Deploy Ruby Application with Passenger and Apache on CentOS 7/6, Fedora 27

22 Comments

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply