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Installing FME Desktop on Linux

Updating to a Newer FME Version

If you are updating to a newer version of FME Desktop, you must first manually uninstall the earlier version. Alternatively, you can install to a different directory and have multiple versions of FME Desktop (see Multiple Installations of FME Desktop in Parallel, below).

Make sure you back up or relocate any custom files that you have saved in your FME installation directory.

Uninstalling

Run the following command, "as root", depending on your Linux distribution:

  • Debian (Ubuntu):

    • apt-get remove fme-desktop-<release>

    For example:

    apt-get remove fme-desktop-2016

  • Fedora (RedHat, CentOS):

    • yum remove fme-desktop-<release>

    For example:

    yum remove fme-desktop-2016

Installing

All installation steps must be performed "as root" (via the sudo command on some distributions). FME Desktop is installed for ALL users.

The install location is /opt/fme-desktop-<release>. (For example, /opt/fme-desktop-2016.) When complete, the installer generates a configuration (.cfg) file to the install directory.

The following installers are available:

Platform Installer Name Example

Debian (Ubuntu)

fme-desktop-<release>_<version>-<build>_amd64.deb

 fme-desktop-2016_2016.0.1.2-16178_amd64.deb

Fedora (RedHat, CentOS)

fme-desktop-<release>-<version>-<build>.x86_64.rpm

 fme-desktop-2016-2016.0.1.2-16178.x86_64.rpm

Ensure that your system meets all the requirements. See Linux System Requirements.

Downloading the Installer

Download the FME Desktop Installer to your local machine. To obtain the installer, visit http://www.safe.com/support/downloads.php.

Running the Installer Using the Package Manager

To use the package manager to install FME Desktop and all dependencies, double-click on the package.

The Debian installation package does not support the Ubuntu 14.04 Unity package manager. Instead, use the command line to install.

Running the Installer Using the Command Line

Run the following commands, depending on your Linux platform, and substituting <release>, <version>, and <build> with the corresponding values from your installer name.

Debian package:

If gdebi is not already installed: apt-get install gdebi-core

gdebi fme-desktop-<release>_<version>-<build>_amd64.deb

Fedora package:

On RedHat or CentOS, you must first configure access to the EPEL and IUS package repositories. For more information:

EPEL: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/EPEL#How_can_I_use_these_extra_packages.3F

IUS/EPEL: http://www.rackspace.com/knowledge_center/article/install-epel-and-additional-repositories-on-centos-and-red-hat, https://iuscommunity.org/pages/Repos.html#release-packages

yum install fme-desktop-<release>-<version>-<build>.x86_64.rpm

Multiple Installations of FME Desktop in Parallel

If you want to have multiple of installations of FME Desktop on the same system, we recommend the following procedure:

  1. Install the first copy of FME Desktop as described above.
  2. Copy the contents of the install directory (/opt/fme-desktop-<release>) to another location (for example, /home/user/fme-desktop-b16040).
  3. Install the second copy of FME Desktop as described above.
  4. Run the first copy of FME Desktop directly from the location to which it was copied (for example, /home/user/fme-desktop-b16040) - not from a desktop shortcut. You can run the second copy of FME Desktop from a desktop shortcut, which points to the original install location (/opt/fme-desktop-<release>).