Ubuntu cannot install RPM packages natively because APT and dpkg expect DEB files. When you need to install RPM packages on Ubuntu anyway, Alien can convert simpler RPM files into DEB packages that APT understands. That fallback works best for self-contained software, not large desktop applications with distro-specific dependencies.
On Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04, and 22.04, Alien installs from the default repositories. The same workflow applies across all three releases. Install Alien, check the RPM architecture, convert the file, install the generated DEB with APT, and then test the program immediately for runtime library problems.
Use Alien only when the vendor does not offer a native DEB package, an APT repository, Snap, or an AppImage build. If you still need a universal package format, install Flatpak on Ubuntu before you fall back to converting an RPM.
Install RPM Packages on Ubuntu with Alien
Start with package metadata refresh, then install Alien from Ubuntu’s Universe repository. Alien also pulls in the rpm tools it needs to inspect RPM headers and build a local DEB package.
Update Ubuntu and Install Alien
Refresh APT first so Ubuntu sees the current package metadata before you add the conversion tool.
sudo apt updateThese commands use
sudofor package-management tasks. If your account is not in the sudoers file yet, use root or follow the guide on how to add a new user to sudoers on Ubuntu.
Alien lives in Ubuntu’s Universe repository on 26.04, 24.04, and 22.04. If APT returns Unable to locate package alien on a minimal install, enable Universe and Multiverse in Ubuntu first, then retry the install.
sudo apt install -y alienInstalling Alien also pulls in the rpm and rpm2cpio utilities. Running sudo apt install rpm alone does not make Ubuntu an RPM-based system or let APT install .rpm files directly. It only adds the RPM inspection tools.
Confirm the converter is available before you touch the RPM you actually care about.
alien --versionalien version 8.95.9-1
Ubuntu 24.04 currently reports
alien version 8.95.6, and Ubuntu 22.04 reportsalien version 8.95.5. Any version output confirms Alien is installed correctly.
Check the RPM File Architecture on Ubuntu
Confirm your architecture before you convert anything. Ubuntu reports 64-bit x86 systems as x86_64 at the kernel level, even though DEB packages often use the amd64 label for the same hardware.
uname -mx86_64
Then check the downloaded file itself. Replace package-name.rpm with the RPM you already saved to your system.
file "$HOME/Downloads/package-name.rpm"A valid package reports an RPM archive. For example:
hello-2.12.2-1.el9.x86_64.rpm: RPM v3.0 bin
If file reports HTML, ASCII text, or another non-RPM type, download the package again from the vendor’s direct RPM URL instead of the landing page that led to it.
Convert the RPM to a DEB Package with Alien on Ubuntu
Run the next block from the directory that already contains the RPM. That keeps the generated DEB beside the source file, and the --to-deb flag makes the conversion target explicit when you revisit the command later.
cd ~/Downloads
sudo alien --to-deb package-name.rpmAlien rewrites the output filename into Debian style with underscores. A successful conversion ends with a generated line like this:
hello_2.12.2-2_amd64.deb generated
Install the Converted DEB Package with APT on Ubuntu
Use the exact DEB filename Alien just printed. Installing the local file through APT is safer than dpkg -i because APT can try to resolve repository dependencies in the same step.
sudo apt install ./package-name_1.0-2_amd64.debThe ./ prefix tells APT to install a local file instead of searching the repositories. If APT stops on missing repository dependencies, repair the package state once before you retry the local DEB.
sudo apt install --fix-brokenRelevant output from a successful local install includes:
Selecting previously unselected package hello. Unpacking hello (2.12.2-2) ... Setting up hello (2.12.2-2) ...
Verify the Converted Package on Ubuntu
Check the installed state first. Replace package-name with the package name inside the converted DEB, not the original RPM filename.
dpkg -s package-name | grep '^Status:'Status: install ok installed
If the package installs a command-line tool, run it immediately. A compatible EPEL 9 hello package returned Hello, world!, while a newer Fedora Rawhide build installed but still failed on Ubuntu 22.04 because it expected a newer glibc than that release provides.
Troubleshoot RPM Package Conversion on Ubuntu
Most Alien problems show up after the .deb exists, not while the file is being converted. These are the failure modes that show up most often on Ubuntu and the quickest way to identify them.
Converted Package Installs but Fails to Start on Ubuntu
A successful apt install does not guarantee the binary matches Ubuntu’s libc or library stack. Start the program from a terminal once so the loader error stays visible instead of disappearing behind a desktop launcher.
program-nameA runtime failure can look like this:
hello: /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version `GLIBC_ABI_DT_RELR' not found (required by hello)
This kind of error means the RPM was built for a newer base system than your Ubuntu release provides. At that point, stop forcing the conversion and look for an older vendor RPM, a native DEB package, or another supported package format instead.
Alien Cannot Read the Downloaded RPM File on Ubuntu
If Alien throws an unknown-file-type error or exits immediately, inspect the download itself before you blame the converter. The file command should identify an RPM archive. HTML or plain text usually means the browser or curl saved a landing page, login prompt, or 404 response instead of the package.
Download the RPM again from the vendor’s direct package URL, not the page that leads to it, then repeat the conversion once the archive identifies cleanly as an RPM.
APT Cannot Finish the Converted DEB Install on Ubuntu
A local apt install ./package-name_...deb can still fail if the converted package expects library names or package versions Ubuntu does not ship. Repair the interrupted install once, then decide whether the package is worth forcing further.
sudo apt install --fix-brokenIf the same dependency chain fails again after --fix-broken, stop there. That usually means the RPM depends on packages Ubuntu does not provide under compatible names, and a native package is the safer path.
Remove Alien and Converted RPM Packages on Ubuntu
Remove the converted application and Alien as separate steps. That keeps the cleanup predictable, and it lets you verify the converted package is gone before you remove the converter itself.
Remove the Converted Package on Ubuntu
Use the package name from the earlier dpkg -s check, not the original RPM filename. Replace remove with purge if you also want package-managed configuration files removed.
sudo apt remove package-nameVerify the removal with dpkg rather than repository candidate data. Ubuntu may still show a repository candidate if it already ships a package with the same name in its own archives.
dpkg -s package-namedpkg-query: package 'hello' is not installed and no information is available Use dpkg --info (= dpkg-deb --info) to examine archive files.
Remove Alien on Ubuntu
Once you are done converting RPM files, remove Alien itself without automatic cleanup first. On reused systems, a blind autoremove can sweep up unrelated packages you still want to review.
sudo apt remove alienIf you decide to clear Alien’s leftover dependencies too, run autoremove as a separate step so you can inspect the package list before you confirm it.
sudo apt autoremoveUbuntu’s package metadata should show Alien as removed while keeping the current repository candidate available.
apt-cache policy alienalien: Installed: (none) Candidate: 8.95.9-1 Version table: 8.95.9-1 500 500 http://au.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu resolute/universe amd64 Packages
On Ubuntu 24.04 the candidate currently shows 8.95.6, and on Ubuntu 22.04 it shows 8.95.5. The important signal is Installed: (none).
Delete the Downloaded RPM and Generated DEB Files on Ubuntu
After the application is either working or fully removed, you can delete the downloaded archives from your home directory.
rm ~/Downloads/package-name.rpm ~/Downloads/package-name_1.0-2_amd64.debThis only removes the local files. It does not uninstall anything that APT already added to the system.
RPM Packages on Ubuntu FAQ
RPM packages target Red Hat-family systems, while Ubuntu uses DEB packages managed through apt and dpkg. Alien can sometimes convert an RPM into a local .deb, but a native DEB package or vendor APT repository is still the better fit when one exists.
No. sudo apt install rpm only installs the RPM inspection tools. It does not make APT install .rpm files directly, and it does not turn Ubuntu into an RPM-based system.
The conversion can succeed even when the binary was built for a newer libc or a different dependency stack than your Ubuntu release provides. When that happens, the package is installed in APT, but the program still fails at runtime with loader or library errors.
Look for another format first. A native DEB package, vendor APT repository, Flatpak, Snap, or AppImage build usually gives you cleaner dependency handling and a simpler update path than a converted RPM.
Conclusion
Alien is in place on Ubuntu, and it gives you a workable escape hatch when a vendor only ships an RPM. When you move back to Ubuntu-managed software, update packages via the Ubuntu command line to keep repository installs current. If a conversion goes sideways, remove packages on Ubuntu from the command line to clean out old test installs and failed packages.
All work fine. thanks