Installing ClamAV and ClamTk

Question

My computer experience dates from 1961 but I am an Ubuntu/Linux rookie. I am accustomed to downloading software, saving it, and merely clicking on it and voila it is installed.

I have downloaaded Clamav and Clamtk. I just noticed the surceforge similar question and shall check it out, but to be on the safeside have my back with another source for installation by the numbers installation. Incidentally naturally I'm a DOS/Windows guy and struggle with much of the Linux/Ubuntu terminology so any references or other help on this would also be appreciated.

Solution 1

I'm not sure I understand your question exactly, but is there any reason you have downloaded these from Sourceforge? Most of the software you will ever used is stored in repositories (commonly shortened to "repos").

A quote from the Ubuntu wiki on what repos are:

There are literally thousands of Ubuntu programs available to meet the needs of Ubuntu users. Many of these programs are stored in software archives commonly referred to as repositories. Repositories make it very easy to install new software onto Ubuntu using an Internet connection, while also providing a high level of security, as each program available in the repositories is thoroughly tested and built specifically for each version of Ubuntu.

Repositories are like libraries of software. Ubuntu has a file called sources.list located in /etc/apt that contains a list of all the repositories that you have enabled on your computer. When you run the command:

sudo apt-get update  

your computer checks the remote sources for updates and caches the list of packages in each repository you have enabled.

Both ClamAV and ClamTK are already in the repositories, so there is no need to download them from their respective sites. To install them you can use this command from the command line:

sudo apt-get install clamtk clamav  

Or you can install them from the Ubuntu Software Center

ClamTK

ClamAV

Like Windows, Ubuntu does support packaged binaries that allow you to install on a click. However Ubuntu (and all Debian based distros in general) use .deb as their file format, not .exe like Windows. What you probably downloaded was the source code to these programs, compressed in a format like tar.bz2 or tar.gz. These formats are like the more generic .zip. In order to install programs from their source you need to compile them and this process varies depending on what language the program was written in, etc.

Resources:

• Why aren't viruses an issue?

• Do I need to have 'antivirus software' installed?

• How do I install the latest clamav & clamtk?

• How to install software in Ubuntu

Solution 2

No, http://clamtk.sourceforge.net does have .deb files for download. You can just double-click it.

Comments

[Eliah Kagan]

Is it your express intention to use the versions on SourceForge, rather than the packages included in Ubuntu's official software sources? (If you're not sure, then that is probably not your express intention.)

[user68186]

See How to install software in Ubuntu. I found this one the easiest to follow.

[Jonathan Hartley]

Might it be the case people are booting a livecd, in which case clamav is not present in the default repositories, hence they are trying to get it from other channels?

[web.learner]

@JonathanHartley It is though?

[Jonathan Hartley]

Oh, ok. I just booted from a livecd to fix my inlaws windows box, and thought I had to enable universe or multiverse before I could find clamav. Maybe I was mistaken then.