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Hedy
Hedy

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How to install Gambas in Raspberry Pi?

#raspberrypi #gambas #raspberrypios #gambas3

You can install Gambas on a Raspberry Pi pretty easily, but the exact steps depend a bit on:

  • Your Raspberry Pi OS version (Bookworm/Bullseye/etc.)
  • Whether you’re okay using the repository version (easy) or want something newer (harder).

I’ll assume you’re using a normal Raspberry Pi OS with desktop (Debian-based).

Option 1 – Install Gambas from Raspberry Pi OS repositories (recommended)

1. Update your package list:

sudo apt update
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2. Install Gambas3 (IDE + runtime):

sudo apt install gambas3
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This usually installs:

  • Gambas3 IDE
  • Gambas runtime
  • Common libraries

3. Launch Gambas:

  • From the menu:
    Look under something like:
    Programming → Gambas 3 (or search “Gambas” in the application menu).

  • Or from terminal:

gambas3
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If that works, you’re done.

Option 2 – If apt install gambas3 doesn’t find it

On some newer/stripped-down images, you might need the “recommended” packages / desktop meta first.

  1. Make sure you’re on a desktop image or have GUI packages: 
sudo apt update
sudo apt full-upgrade
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  1. Then try again: 
sudo apt install gambas3
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If it still says “unable to locate package gambas3”:

  • Check your /etc/apt/sources.list and raspi.list to ensure standard Debian/Raspberry Pi OS repos are enabled.
  • Make sure you’re not on a super-minimal or unusual distro (like Arch, OpenSUSE, etc.). For those, use their package manager (e.g. pacman, zypper, etc.) and look for gambas3.

Option 3 – Build from source (only if you need latest Gambas)

Only do this if the repo version is missing or too old.

  1. Install build dependencies (example for Debian-based systems): 
sudo apt update
sudo apt install build-essential git \
     autoconf automake libtool \
     libgtk-3-dev libqt5x11extras5-dev \
     libqt5svg5-dev qtbase5-dev qtdeclarative5-dev \
     libcurl4-openssl-dev libssl-dev \
     libsqlite3-dev libmysqlclient-dev \
     libpq-dev
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(Exact list can differ; Gambas docs specify required libs.)

  1. Get Gambas source: 
git clone https://gitlab.com/gambas/gambas.git
cd gambas
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  1. Configure, build, install: 
./reconf-all
./configure
make -j4   # or -j2 or -j$(nproc) depending on your Pi
sudo make install
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  1. Then start with: 
gambas3
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This takes much longer and can be heavy on slower Pis, so only use it if the repo version isn’t usable.

Quick troubleshooting

Gambas doesn’t start / crashes:

  • Run in terminal: gambas3 and read the error output.
  • Make sure you’re running under a desktop environment, not just console.

Command not found after install:

  • Check the package actually installed:
    dpkg -l | grep gambas

  • Try logging out/in or rebooting once.

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