AppImages
An AppImage is a whole app in one file. Nothing is installed on the system.
Installing one
Double-click the .AppImage file. It opens in the Software Center; click Install. The Software Center copies it to ~/.local/share/rakuos/appimages/, adds it to your app launcher, and can check it for updates. You can delete the file you downloaded afterwards.
Some projects ship their AppImage inside an archive (.zip, .tar.gz, .tar.xz, .7z and similar). Open the archive the same way: the Software Center finds the AppImage inside and installs that.
To remove one, open Installed → AppImages and click Uninstall. That removes the app and its launcher entry.
Update settings
AppImages don't update through a repository, so the Software Center needs to know where new versions come from. Open the app (Installed → AppImages, then click it) and fill in Update Settings:
| Setting | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Source | Where releases are published: GitHub releases, GitLab releases, Direct URL, or None to never check |
| owner/repo (GitHub) | The project's GitHub name, for example LykosAI/StabilityMatrix. The full https://github.com/... address works too |
| namespace/repo (GitLab) | The project's GitLab path, for example group/app (subgroups are fine) |
| URL (Direct URL) | A download link that always points at the newest file |
| Pattern | The name of the release file to download. * stands for any text, for example MyApp-*-x86_64.AppImage. Upper and lower case don't matter |
| Version | The version you have installed. It's filled in from the AppImage when it says; if it's empty, type it in, for example 2.13 |
Click Save Settings. Many AppImages carry their own update information, and then Source, owner/repo and Pattern are already filled in.
Finding the right pattern
Open the project's latest release page and look at the list of downloads. Pick the one for Linux on a normal PC (x86_64 / x64), and use its file name as the pattern. Replace the version number in it with * so the pattern still matches next time:
StabilityMatrix-linux-x64.ziphas no version in the name, so use it as it is.MyApp-2.4.1-x86_64.AppImagebecomesMyApp-*-x86_64.AppImage.
The download can be the AppImage itself or an archive containing it.
How updates show up
The Software Center checks with your other updates (see Updating RakuOS), and you can check by hand on the Updates page. An update appears when the project's newest release has a higher version number than the one in Version. Update downloads the release file that matches the pattern, unpacks it if it's an archive, replaces the old AppImage, and records the new version.
With Direct URL there's no version number to compare: an update appears whenever the file at the link changes.
If no update ever shows up
- Check that owner/repo names the right project and that the release page has a file matching your Pattern exactly (apart from the
*). - Check Version. If it's newer than the latest release, or the project numbers its releases differently, no update shows up.
- GitHub only counts full releases, not pre-releases.
Running one without installing
chmod +x ~/Downloads/SomeApp.AppImage
~/Downloads/SomeApp.AppImage
The Software Center doesn't track AppImages you run this way.