Ubuntu LTS 12.04 64-bit is the recommended platform.

• OS with 64-bit or 32-bit architecture
• C++ toolchain
• Git
• node.js (0.10.x or 0.12.x) or io.js (1.x or 2.x)
• npm v1.4.x (bundled with Node.js)
  • npm -v to check the version.
  • npm config set python /usr/bin/python2 -g to ensure that gyp uses python2.
    • You might need to run this command as sudo, depending on how you have set up npm.
• development headers for GNOME Keyring

• sudo apt-get install build-essential git libgnome-keyring-dev fakeroot
• Instructions for Node.js.
  • Make sure the command node is available after Node.js installation (some systems install it as nodejs).
  • Use which node to check if it is available.
  • Use sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/node node /usr/bin/nodejs 10 to update it.

• sudo dnf --assumeyes install make gcc gcc-c++ glibc-devel git-core libgnome-keyring-devel rpmdevtools
• Instructions for Node.js.

• sudo pacman -S --needed gconf base-devel git nodejs npm libgnome-keyring python2
• export PYTHON=/usr/bin/python2 before building Atom.

• sbopkg -k -i node -i atom

• sudo zypper install nodejs nodejs-devel make gcc gcc-c++ glibc-devel git-core libgnome-keyring-devel rpmdevtools

If you have problems with permissions don't forget to prefix with sudo

1. Clone the Atom repository:

git clone https://github.com/atom/atom
cd atom

2. Checkout the latest Atom release:

git fetch -p
git checkout $(git describe --tags `git rev-list --tags --max-count=1`)

3. Build Atom:

script/build

This will create the atom application at $TMPDIR/atom-build/Atom.

4. Install the atom and apm commands to /usr/local/bin by executing:

sudo script/grunt install

To use the newly installed Atom, quit and restart all running Atom instances.

5. Optionally, you may generate distributable packages of Atom at $TMPDIR/atom-build. Currently, .deb and .rpm package types are supported. To create a .deb package run:

script/grunt mkdeb

To create an .rpm package run

script/grunt mkrpm

sudo script/grunt install --install-dir /install/atom/here

script/build --build-dir /build/atom/here

If you get following error with a big traceback right after Atom starts:

TypeError: Unable to watch path

you have to increase number of watched files by inotify. For testing if this is the reason for this error you can issue

sudo sysctl fs.inotify.max_user_watches=32768

and restart Atom. If Atom now works fine, you can make this setting permanent:

echo 32768 | sudo tee -a /proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_watches

See also #2082.

If you get this notice when attempting to script/build, you either do not have Node.js installed, or node isn't identified as Node.js on your machine. If it's the latter, entering sudo ln -s /usr/bin/nodejs /usr/bin/node into your terminal may fix the issue.

On some variants (mostly Debian based distros) it's preferable for you to use Alternatives so that changes to the binary paths can be fixed or altered easily:

sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/node node /usr/bin/nodejs 1 --slave /usr/bin/js js /usr/bin/nodejs

If you get following error with a big traceback while building Atom:

sys.exit(gyp.script_main()) AttributeError: 'module' object has no attribute 'script_main' gyp ERR!

you need to uninstall the system version of gyp.

On Fedora you would do the following:

sudo yum remove gyp

• Use this search to get a list of reports about build errors on Linux.