How to Install Spree eCommerce Platform on Ubuntu Linux

Spree eCommerce is a leading open-source eCommerce platform built with Ruby on Rails. It makes it super easy to develop and host your online storefront and sell your products directly to your customers.

Spree is an excellent place to start if you want an open-source eCommerce platform that is scalable and performs at a high level.

Spree is built on an open-source core with support for open standards, which might be very useful in helping you run your digital content…

This eCommerce platform is designed for ease of use to allow enterprises and business owners to collaborate and automate engaging experiences with users across multiple devices, including mobile…

For more about Spree, please check their Homepage

• Ruby version 2.5.3
• Rails version 5.2.1

Install Ruby

You’ll need to install some dependencies to install Ruby and Rails on Ubuntu. To make that happen, install Node.js and Yarn repositories. This will make installing the dependencies easier.

First, install these curl and git packages.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install curl git

Then, run the commands below to add Node.js and Yarn repositories and keys to your system. Then, install some core packages to get your environment going.

curl -sL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_8.x | sudo -E bash -
curl -sS https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/pubkey.gpg | sudo apt-key add -
echo "deb https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/yarn.list

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install nodejs yarn zlib1g-dev build-essential libssl-dev libreadline-dev libyaml-dev libsqlite3-dev sqlite3 libxml2-dev libxslt1-dev libcurl4-openssl-dev software-properties-common libffi-dev

When you’re done, Continue below:

After adding the repositories and installing the necessary packages above, install Ruby with your local profile settings using rbenv. You’ll then use rbenv to install ruby-build.

cd ~/
git clone https://github.com/rbenv/rbenv.git ~/.rbenv
echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.rbenv/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
echo 'eval "$(rbenv init -)"' >> ~/.bashrc
exec $SHELL

git clone https://github.com/rbenv/ruby-build.git ~/.rbenv/plugins/ruby-build
echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.rbenv/plugins/ruby-build/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc
exec $SHELL

After setting up your local profile, run the commands below to install Ruby version 2.5.3. If a newer version is available, replace the version number with that. Then, visit this site to find out about Ruby’s latest versions.

rbenv install 2.5.3
rbenv global 2.5.3

To verify that Ruby is installed, run the commands below:

ruby -v

You should see similar lines below:

ruby 2.5.3p105 (2018-10-18 revision 65156) [x86_64-linux]

Another package management you’ll want to install is bundler. to do that, run the commands below

gem install bundler

Now run the command below after installing the bundler.

rbenv rehash

Install Rails

Now that the Ruby environment is set up run the commands below to install Rails. Rails can be installed from Node.Js. First, run the commands below to install the Node.js repository, then install the Node.js package.

curl -sL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_8.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

Now that Node.js is installed run the commands below to install Rails.

gem install rails -v 5.2.1

Don’t forget to rehash your Rbenv environment and install new packages.

rbenv rehash

To verify if Rails is installed, run the commands below.

rails -v

You should see something similar to the lines below:

Rails 5.2.1

Install Spree eCommerce

Now that your environment is ready run the commands below to install Spree eCommerce and build your first site. Next, run the commands below.

rails new spree

Next, change it into the spree folder and install it there.

cd ~/spree

Then, run the commands to open the Gemfile there.

nano Gemfile

Please copy and paste the lines below into the file and save them when it opens.

gem 'spree', '~> 3.6.4'
gem 'spree_auth_devise', '~> 3.3'
gem 'spree_gateway', '~> 3.3'

Then the file should look like this:

ruby '2.5.3'
#spree 
gem 'spree', '~> 3.6.4'
gem 'spree_auth_devise', '~> 3.3'
gem 'spree_gateway', '~> 3.3'

# Bundle edge Rails instead: gem 'rails', github: 'rails/rails'
gem 'rails', '~> 5.2.1'
# Use sqlite3 as the database for Active Record
gem 'sqlite3'

Save and exit.

After that, run the commands below:

bundle install

After a while, the necessary packages should be installed. When you’re done, run the commands below to create an admin user and install Spree.

You will be prompted to create an admin email address and a password.

rails g spree:install --user_class=Spree::User
rails g spree:auth:install
rails g spree_gateway:install

Finally, run the commands below to start the server.

rails server --binding=0.0.0.0

Now open your browser and browse to the hostname followed by port # 3000

You should see Spree’s home page.

Log on to the backend using the admin address and password.

http://localhost:3000/admin

You can always perform any of these steps later by using these commands.

bundle exec rake railties:install:migrations
bundle exec rake db:migrate
bundle exec rake db:seed
bundle exec rake spree_sample:load

Congratulation! You have successfully installed the Spree eCommerce platform on Ubuntu 16.04 | 18.04 | 18.10