# Can't install rubygems on Debian 3.1

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/cant-install-rubygems-on-debian-3-1/52352>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [January 13, 2006, 12:20am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/cant-install-rubygems-on-debian-3-1/52352 "2006-01-13T00:20:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/spiz)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2006, 12:20am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/cant-install-rubygems-on-debian-3-1/52352/1 "2006-01-13T00:20:47Z")

</div>

Hi all,

When I try to install rubygems I get this:

install security.rb /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems  
install gem\_openssl.rb /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems  
\<— lib/rubygems  
\<— lib  
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require__': no such file to load -- zlib (LoadError) from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require’  
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/package.rb:9  
from  
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require' from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/builder.rb:1 from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require’  
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems.rb:61:in  
`manage_gems' from /home/init/junk/rubygems-0.8.11/./post-install.rb:64:in`install\_sources’  
from /home/init/junk/rubygems-0.8.11/./post-install.rb:75:in  
`try_run_hook' from setup.rb:577:in`run\_hook’  
from setup.rb:1315:in `exec\_task\_traverse’

I also get that when I run gem after trying to install it:

/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require__': no such file to load -- zlib (LoadError) from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require’  
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/package.rb:9  
from  
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require' from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/builder.rb:1 from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require’  
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems.rb:61:in  
`manage_gems' from /usr/local/bin/gem:4 /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require\_\_’: no such file to load – zlib (LoadError)  
from  
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require' from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/package.rb:9 from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom_require.rb:21:in`require’  
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/builder.rb:1  
from  
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site\_ruby/1.8/rubygems/custom\_require.rb:21:in  
`require' from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems.rb:61:in`manage\_gems’  
from /usr/local/bin/gem:4  
litttest:/home/init/junk/rubygems-0.8.11#

I’ve already installed everything related to “zlib”, no help.

Any ideas?

STeveT

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/spiz)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2006, 2:57am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/cant-install-rubygems-on-debian-3-1/52352/2 "2006-01-13T02:57:47Z")

</div>

Does the answer to this posting provide any ideas for you?

[http://rubyforge.org/tracker/index.php](http://rubyforge.org/tracker/index.php)?  
func=detail&aid=2196&group\_id=126&atid=576

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@spiz](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/spiz)\
**Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 3:39pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/cant-install-rubygems-on-debian-3-1/52352/3 "2006-01-21T15:39:58Z")

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Lori M Olson wrote:

> Does the answer to this posting provide any ideas for you?
> 
> [http://rubyforge.org/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=2196&group\_id=126&atid=576](http://rubyforge.org/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=2196&group_id=126&atid=576)
> 
> On Jan 12, 2006, at 4:21 PM, Steve L. wrote:
> 
> > `require\_\_': no such file to load – zlib (LoadError)

Debian Administration also recently posted an article on getting Rails  
up and running:

[http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/329](http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/329)

It might be helpful.

These are the only zlib packages I had installed on my system and I  
built rubygems fine:

% dpkg -l ‘_zlib_’  
…  
||/ Name Version Description  
++±==============-==============-============================================  
ii libcompress-zl 1.34-1 Perl module for creation and  
manipulation of  
ii zlib1g 1.2.2-4.sarge. compression library - runtime  
ii zlib1g-dev 1.2.2-4.sarge. compression library - development

I don’t even have libzlib-ruby installed. Did you make sure the -dev  
package was installed so rubygems had the appropriate header files to  
build from?

-F