Bundler cheat sheet
Summary
Cheat sheet with basic commands for Bundler, a package manager that provides a consistent environment for Ruby projects by tracking and installing the exact gems (software packages) and versions that are needed.
Introduction #
These commands should help you get started with Bundler and manage your Ruby project dependencies effectively. Adjust the commands and Gemfile according to your project’s needs.
Installing #
Installing Bundler #
gem install bundler
Installing specific groups of gems #
bundle install --without production
Installing gems from a specific source #
# Gemfile
source 'https://example.com/gems'
gem 'gem_name', 'version'
Using local or custom gems #
# Gemfile
gem 'gem_name', path: '/path/to/local/gem'
Install gems faster #
Define the maximum number of parallel download and install jobs with --jobs=[<number>] or -j[<number>]. The default is 1.
bundle install -j3
Installing dependencies #
bundle install
Install gems to a local vendor directory #
--path specifies a different path than the system default $BUNDLE_PATH or $GEM_HOME. Bundler will remember this value for future installs on the machine.
Installs dependencies, even gems that are already installed to your system gems, to a location other than your system’s gem repository. Common places are vendor/bundle or .bundle. In the following example, I use vendor/bundle:
bundle install --path vendor/bundle
It is recommended to first run this command, before installing gems.
Gemfile #
Creating a Gemfile #
Create a file named Gemfile in your project directory and specify your dependencies.
# Gemfile
source 'https://rubygems.org'
gem 'gem_name', 'version'
Creating a lock file (Gemfile.lock) #
bundle lock
Specifying a Ruby version #
# Gemfile
ruby '2.7.4'
Specifying a platform-specific gem #
# Gemfile
platform :ruby do
gem 'gem_name'
end
platforms :jruby do
gem 'jruby_specific_gem'
end
Maintenance #
Checking for outdated gems #
The command lists all the gems in the project that have newer versions available than what is currently specified in the Gemfile.lock.
bundle outdated
Updating dependencies #
Updates all the gems listed in the Gemfile to the latest versions that match the version constraints specified. If no version constraints are given, it updates to the latest version available. update re-resolves all gem dependencies, which can lead to other gems being updated as well if their dependencies have changed. It modifies Gemfile.lock to reflect the new versions of the gems.
bundle update
Cleaning up unused gems #
Removes all the gems that are not listed in Gemfile or Gemfile.lock. These are typically gems that were installed previously but are no longer needed based on the current Gemfile.
bundle clean [--dry-run] [--force]
Checking for security vulnerabilities #
bundle audit
Viewing a list of installed gems and their versions #
bundle list
Viewing detailed information about a gem #
bundle show gem_name
Initializing a new project #
bundle init
Scripts #
Running a script in the context of the bundle #
bundle exec ruby script.rb
Running scripts with a clean environment #
bundle exec --keep-file-descriptors ruby script.rb
Further readings #
Sources and recommended, further resources on the topic:
Author
Jonas Jared Jacek (J15k)
Jonas works as project manager, web designer, and web developer since 2001. On top of that, he is a Linux system administrator with a broad interest in things related to programming, architecture, and design. See: https://www.j15k.com/License
License: Bundler cheat sheet by Jonas Jared Jacek is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
This license requires that reusers give credit to the creator. It allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, for noncommercial purposes only. To give credit, provide a link back to the original source, the author, and the license e.g. like this:
<p xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#" xmlns:dct="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"><a property="dct:title" rel="cc:attributionURL" href="https://www.ditig.com/publications/bundler-cheat-sheet">Bundler cheat sheet</a> by <a rel="cc:attributionURL dct:creator" property="cc:attributionName" href="https://www.j15k.com/">Jonas Jared Jacek</a> is licensed under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="license noopener noreferrer">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>.</p>For more information see the DITig legal page.
“Make errors impossible. Making it impossible for the user to make errors is the best way to eliminate error messages.”