If you're new to Linux, it's easy to feel a bit lost when you come across a .deb or .rpm file and no one tells you how to install it without using the terminal . In Windows, you just double-click and you're done, but in Linux, it seems like everyone tells you to open the terminal and type in strange commands. Let's clear things up and explain it all in a calm and straightforward way.
Throughout this article, you'll learn exactly what .deb and .rpm files are, how to install them without the terminal , their limitations, modern alternatives (Snap, Flatpak, etc.), and when converting between formats using tools like Alien makes sense . The goal is that, by the end of this article, you'll know exactly what to do when you download an installer from the internet and have no idea what the next step is.
What is a .deb file and what is it used for?
In the Linux ecosystem, .deb files are the typical packages for Debian and all its derivatives : Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, and many more. If you're coming from Windows, you can think of a .deb file as roughly equivalent to an .exe or .msi file —that is, a container that includes everything needed to install an application on your system.
The name comes from Debian, the distribution that introduced them . Technically, a .deb file is an "ar" file (a classic Unix packaging format) that contains several compressed and control files. Although it appears to be a single file from the outside, the package information and the data to be installed are clearly separated inside.
Within a .deb package, you'll always find some key components. The first is debian-binary , a small file that simply indicates the package format version (the most common being 2.0). It doesn't install anything itself, but it tells the system how to interpret the rest of the package contents.
Another very important file is control.tar.* (usually .gz or .xz), where the package's metadata is stored : internal name, description, dependencies, installation scripts , and other critical data. This is what package managers use to understand what that .deb file does and what it needs.
The "heavy" part of the package is in data.tar, data.tar.gz, data.tar.bz2, or data.tar.lzma . That's where all the actual files that will be copied to your system go: executables, libraries, documentation, icons, default configuration files, etc. When you install a .deb package, the system unpacks this content into the appropriate locations.
Many packages also include scripts like preinst, postinst, prerm, and postrm . These run automatically before or after installing or removing the package and handle tasks such as creating system users, migrating configurations, or cleaning up leftover software. Another common script is config , which handles the interactive configuration phase when the package requires it.
Where are .deb packages used and why are they so common?
.deb files are the native format for Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, and all their variants . Since Ubuntu and Mint are among the most popular distributions for home users, it's logical that this format is, de facto, the most widespread on the Linux desktop.
When you install software from official repositories using apt or the graphical Software Center, what's actually being downloaded and installed are .deb packages . These are packaged, signed, and maintained in the distribution's repositories and managed through the system's packaging tools.
Interestingly, even iOS uses .deb containers adapted for its own ecosystem, although the internal structure isn't exactly the same as in Debian. This gives you an idea of ​​how widespread the format is beyond the traditional PC.
Now, these packages have their limitations: they do not always include all dependencies that the program needs. Normally, the .deb file declares "I need these libraries," and the package manager takes care of downloading them, but if you try to install an isolated .deb file (for example, on a distro that is neither Debian nor Ubuntu, or without internet access), you may encounter errors due to unmet dependencies.
Install .deb files without using the terminal
One of the most common complaints from users returning to Linux from Windows is that they miss installing programs with just a double-click on the downloaded file. In many modern distributions this should work, but sometimes the experience isn't as seamless as one might expect.
In Ubuntu and its derivatives, double-clicking a .deb file usually opens the distribution's Software Center or Gdebi (if you have it installed) . From that graphical window, you should be able to click "Install," enter your password, and forget about the terminal.
However, there are cases where the file opens with the compressed file manager or isn't associated with any graphical installer . If this happens to you, a good solution is to install GDebi and associate the .deb extension with this tool. This way, whenever you double-click, the specific installer for these packages will be used.
It's understandable that someone might get frustrated expecting a "modern" system to allow one-click installation , but the reality of Linux is that many formats and package managers coexist. If your priority is absolute convenience, focus your program installations on your distribution's repositories and integrated image stores.
In any case, even if you don't want to use commands daily, it's good to know that behind the double-click there are always tools like dpkg, apt or Gdebi working , and that if something goes wrong you can rely on them to diagnose the problem.
RPM: the other major package format in Linux
Besides .deb, another widespread format exists in the Linux world: .rpm packages, managed by the RPM (Red Hat Package Manager) tool . They are the standard in distributions such as Fedora, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, openSUSE, and other derivatives.
In principle, distributions like Ubuntu or Debian don't natively use .rpm files . However, it's relatively common to find software distributed only in this format and want to install it on a Debian-based distribution. For these cases, there are two main approaches: converting the package to .deb or installing it directly using specific tools.
Convert .rpm packages to .deb with Alien
The classic utility for navigating between worlds is Alien , a tool that allows you to convert .rpm packages to .deb and vice versa . This way, you can use software packaged for Fedora or Red Hat on a Debian-based distribution.
First, make sure you have the universe repository available (on Ubuntu), as Alien is usually located there. To add it, you can use:
sudo add-apt-repository universe
Then you update the package list:
sudo apt-get update
And finally, you install Alien with:
sudo apt-get install alien
Once installed, converting an .rpm to .deb is as simple as running:
sudo alien nombre-de-paquete.rpm
By default, Alien uses the `-do --to-deb` option to generate the corresponding .deb package in the same directory where you are working. If the .rpm file is, for example, on your Desktop, you can navigate to that directory using the terminal or specify the full path to the file.
After the conversion you will have a .deb file ready to install with dpkg, apt or Gdebi , just like any other native Debian or Ubuntu package.
Install an .rpm directly with Alien
If you're not interested in keeping the generated .deb file and just want to install the .rpm as quickly as possible , Alien offers a shortcut: the -i option , which converts and installs in one go.
The command would be:
sudo alien -i nombre-de-paquete.rpm
Internally, it will convert the file to .deb and register it with the system using standard packaging tools. As before, if the .rpm file is in a different folder, you will need to specify the full path.
There is another, less common, method, which involves directly installing support for handling .rpm packages on a Debian or Ubuntu system and using the rpm command itself to install them. It would look something like this:
sudo apt-get install rpm
rpm -i nombre-de-paquete.rpm
However, in most scenarios, the best option is to convert to .deb or use Alien with the -i option , so that the package is integrated into the Debian/Ubuntu management system and you can later uninstall or update it normally.
How to view and manipulate the contents of a .deb file on other systems
You might sometimes want to open a .deb file on Windows or macOS just to see what's inside , without actually intending to install it. This is possible, but with some caveats: you'll be able to browse the files, but not run the program as if it were a native system component.
Windows does not natively handle .deb files . If you need to work with them on Windows, you can use WSL2 or third-party tools to decompress their contents. One example is Zipware, a free compression program that understands this format and allows you to open it as if it were a .zip file.
Zipware lets you view the folders and files included in the .deb package and extract them to your disk. However, you can't configure your Windows system to run the program as if you were on Linux; you're only inspecting the package contents.
On macOS, it's also possible to unpack .deb files from the terminal . One way is to use the `ar` command to extract the contents of the main container:
ar -x nombrearchivo.deb
If you want something closer to the Debian experience, you can install dpkg using Homebrew :
brew install dpkg
And then extract the contents of a .deb file with a command like this:
dpkg -x nombrearchivo.deb /ruta/de/destino
Just like on Windows, on macOS you'll be exploring and unpacking the package , but you won't be able to install or run the application as if it were native to the system.
Where to safely download .deb and .rpm files
When the software you're looking for isn't available in your distribution's store or standard repositories, you can turn to specialized pages and official sites to safely download .deb and .rpm files.
The best approach is to always use the developers' official websites whenever possible . Almost all reputable projects offer a downloads section on their website that links to installers for different systems, usually including .deb and .rpm files for Linux. This is the best way to ensure you download the latest and most genuine version.
Another very useful resource is Debian's own package search engine . From the official Debian website, you can find thousands of .deb packages, filtered by distribution version, architecture, and branch (stable, testing, unstable). The advantage is that all the information is in Spanish and very well organized , making it easy to find exactly what you need.
There are also package-focused search engines, such as RPM Seek or RPM PBone Search. Although their names suggest they are only for .rpm packages, they actually allow you to find packages in .deb format as well and apply a large number of filters to locate the exact variant you want to install.
If the project is open source and hosted on GitHub or GitLab , the developer often uploads the .deb and .rpm files directly to the "Releases" section . Simply go to the project page, navigate to the version you're interested in, and download the file appropriate for your architecture.
In some of these repositories, especially in Debian, you'll see packages for the stable branch, the testing branch, and the unstable version . Testing and unstable packages usually bring new features first, but they're also the ones that can carry the most bugs and security issues.
Updating and maintaining programs installed with .deb
When you install an application from a manually downloaded .deb file, the way you update it depends heavily on how the developer packaged it . Not all programs behave the same way in this regard.
Some popular applications, such as Google Chrome or Discord , include the necessary configuration in their .deb files to add their own repository to your system . This way, from that point on, you'll receive updates via apt just as if they came from the official distro repositories, without having to download new .deb files each time.
Other developers don't set up this infrastructure and simply publish new versions on their website or on GitHub . In these cases, if you want to keep the program up to date, you'll have to monitor for updates and manually download the new .deb version when it becomes available, repeating the installation process. Typically, the new version will overwrite the previous one without any major issues.
It's important not to forget about manually installed applications, because sticking with very old versions can lead to security problems or incompatibilities with newer system libraries. If you plan to use a program extensively, it's worth checking if it offers a repository or a Snap/Flatpak version that updates automatically.
With all of the above in mind, it's clearer that .deb and .rpm files are the foundation of software management in Linux , but not the only option available today. Learning how to install them, resolve their dependencies, and, when necessary, convert between them using tools like Alien allows you to move easily between distributions and formats, while understanding alternatives like Snap and Flatpak opens the door to more portable and easier-to-maintain solutions for everyday use.
