How can I install additional software on the CAEN Ubuntu VDI machines?

Overview

pkget is a third party script that lets you install Ubuntu/Debian packages into your home directory without root privileges. This is useful in environments like the CAEN Ubuntu VDI pool where users don’t have sudo access.

This guide explains how to set up pkget, how to handle dependencies, and how to configure your environment so installed software runs correctly. An example installation of nmap is provided for demonstration.

 

1. Setting up pkget

Download and make the script executable:

wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/0x00009b/pkget/master/pget && chmod +x pget

Keep pget in your home directory (~) for easy access.

2. Installing a package

To install a package (example: nmap):

./pget nmap

Packages and binaries are extracted into:

cd ~/.apt/usr/bin/

cdLibraries are extracted into:

cd ~/.apt/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/

You can confirm the install with: 

find ~/.apt/usr/bin -name "<package-name>"

3. Running the package

You may need to run it with the full path at first, for example:

~/.apt/usr/bin/nmap --version

4. Handling missing libraries

Sometimes, installed packages depend on additional libraries not included by default. To check for missing dependencies:

ldd ~/.apt/usr/bin/<package-name> | grep "not found"

For each missing library, install the corresponding package with pget. An example for nmap is:

./pget liblinear4
./pget liblua5.3-lpeg2

This places the required .so files in:

~/.apt/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/

5. Configuring your environment

To ensure executables and libraries are found automatically, update your shell configuration.

Add the following to your ~/.bashrc:

export PATH=$HOME/.apt/usr/bin:$PATH
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$HOME/.apt/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH

Reload the configuration:

source ~/.bashrc

Now you can run installed software normally:

nmap --version

6. Example Tested: nmap

As a test case, nmap was installed using pkget.

  • Issues encountered:
    • Missing liblinear.so.4 and liblua5.3-lpeg.so.2 libraries.
    • Dynamic linker didn’t know where to find user-installed libraries.
  • Solutions:
    • Installed dependencies using pkget.
    • Updated LD_LIBRARY_PATH to include ~/.apt/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/.
  • Result:
    • nmap runs successfully from the home directory without root privileges.
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