# Ubuntu installation query **URL:** \ **Category:** Scilab beginners\ **Created:** [May 12, 2026, 1:04pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149 "2026-05-12T13:04:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2026, 1:04pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/1 "2026-05-12T13:04:55Z")
Hi all, I mainly work with Scilab on windows, but have now upgraded an Intel i3 Laptop with integrated Intel Graphics to Ubuntu 26.04. How do I install Scilab correctly on Unbuntu 26.04? Thanks ---
**Author:** ![mario](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/scilab.discourse.group/mario/32/396_2.png) [@mario](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/mario)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2026, 2:49pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/2 "2026-05-12T14:49:13Z")
I’m using Debian, but I think Ubuntu works similarly. You can`sudo apt install scilab`, but I had some problems both with this apt version and with the flatpak one, so I prefer to download it manually, even thoug this should be not the most “official” way (moreover, this way you get the very last version). Therefore, download the .tar.xz from the Scilab website; then unpack the archive in a folder you like (in my case `~/scilabXXX`). To launch it, run the scilab file in the scilabXXX/bin/ folder; in terminal, something like `~/scilabXXX/bin/./scilab`. 😉 🐧 ---
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2026, 12:12pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/3 "2026-05-13T12:12:25Z")
Hi Mario, I just plugged the query into ChatGPT and it made an install script, but not sure if it is valid. Create a file install-scilab.sh eg in Kate #!/bin/bash set -e echo “=========================================” echo " Scilab Installer for Ubuntu 26.04" echo “=========================================” cd ~/Downloads echo “” echo “Looking for Scilab download…” FILE=$(ls scilab-\*.tar.xz 2\>/dev/null | head -n 1) if [-z “$FILE”]; then echo “ERROR: No Scilab .tar.xz file found in ~/Downloads” exit 1 fi echo “Found: $FILE” echo “” echo “Extracting archive…” tar -xvf “$FILE” DIR=$(tar -tf “$FILE” | head -n 1 | cut -d/ -f1) echo “” echo “Detected extracted folder:” echo “$DIR” INSTALL\_DIR=“/opt/$DIR” echo “” echo “Moving Scilab to:” echo “$INSTALL\_DIR” sudo mv “$DIR” “$INSTALL\_DIR” echo “” echo “Installing required packages…” sudo apt update sudo apt install -y openjdk-17-jre libncurses6 libtinfo6 libx11-6 libxext6 libxrender1 libxtst6 libxft2 libgtk-3-0 echo “” echo “Creating compatibility symlink…” if [! -e /usr/lib/x86\_64-linux-gnu/libtinfo.so.5]; then sudo ln -s /usr/lib/x86\_64-linux-gnu/libtinfo.so.6 /usr/lib/x86\_64-linux-gnu/libtinfo.so.5 fi echo “” echo “Creating desktop launcher…” mkdir -p ~/.local/share/applications cat \> ~/.local/share/applications/scilab.desktop \<\\> ~/.bashrc fi echo “” echo “Refreshing application database…” update-desktop-database ~/.local/share/applications || true echo “” echo “=========================================” echo " Installation Complete" echo “=========================================” echo “” echo “You can now:” echo “” echo “1. Launch Scilab from the Applications menu” echo “2. Or type:” echo “” echo " scilab" echo “” echo “in a new terminal window.” echo “” make script executable chmod +x install-scilab.sh run installer ./install-scilab.sh I still work with Scilab on Windows, and the sudo apt version is likely an older version (?2024). but I couldn’t get that working when I tried, even with pointing to the universe repository. Lester ---
**Author:** ![vmagnin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/scilab.discourse.group/vmagnin/32/1048_2.png) [@vmagnin](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/vmagnin)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2026, 1:56pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/4 "2026-05-13T13:56:44Z")
> [@arctica](#): > > How do I install Scilab correctly on Unbuntu 26.04? Just download [https://www.scilab.org/download/2026.0.1/scilab-2026.0.1.bin.x86\_64-linux-gnu.tar.xz](https://www.scilab.org/download/2026.0.1/scilab-2026.0.1.bin.x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.xz) and extract the content into your home. In the `bin\` directory, there is a script `scilab` that you can run to launch the software. I have installed it recently in Ubuntu 26.04 and it works perfectly. I have the latest 2026.0.1, instead of the 2024 officially available in the Ubuntu repositories. If ever some libraries are needed, you will have to install them also. ---
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2026, 11:04am UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/5 "2026-05-14T11:04:30Z")
Hello, Thanks for the information, I will try the route you suggest. I have an icon for the Home folder in the bottom right, is that where it has to extract to? Still getting my head around moving around directories. Thanks Lester ---
**Author:** ![vmagnin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/scilab.discourse.group/vmagnin/32/1048_2.png) [@vmagnin](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/vmagnin)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2026, 12:25pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/6 "2026-05-14T12:25:26Z")
> [@arctica](#): > > I have an icon for the Home folder in the bottom right, is that where it has to extract to? If there is a house on the icon, yes it will open your home folder. In Linux, home folders are stored into the `/home/` folder. The path to your home is `/home/your_login/` and the `scilab-2026.0.1` directory should be installed there. In Ubuntu, there is a _File Roller_ application to extract archive files. ---
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2026, 11:37pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/7 "2026-05-14T23:37:59Z")
Hello, I downloaded the Linux version and managed to extract it to the home folder. I right click on the Scilab file (run as program) and it runs but the text is all tiny and impossible to work with, is there a fix for that? Apologies, I am not a “native” Linux user. Is there away to make an icon/shortcut that one can just click on to launch Scilab like in Windows? Lester ---
**Author:** ![vmagnin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/scilab.discourse.group/vmagnin/32/1048_2.png) [@vmagnin](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/vmagnin)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 8:55am UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/8 "2026-05-15T08:55:45Z")
Concerning the display, see: > [@Scilab 2026.0.0 font and scaling issue](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/scilab-2026-0-0-font-and-scaling-issue/1062): > > I recently migrated to Linux mint from windows. Downloaded Scilab and installed it without problem but when I open it, the font and icon scaling is wrong, as you can see in the snapshot. I tried to increase the font under preferences but that only works for the scinotes and console code. I also tried to change my display scale settings but that didn’t work too. I found a similar post where the solution was to replace a file named “scirenderer.jar“ inside the installation directory. I tried it bu… That’s a Java problem (Scilab has a Java GUI). You probably have a screen with a very high definition. I have the same problem on some machines and I have just set big fonts (30 or 36) in the preferences. Not a perfect solution. If you look at the end of the cited post there is something to install to fix the problem, but I have not tried. As you have not installed Scilab from the official Ubuntu repositories, you will have to follow those steps for the icon: - Open the folder `/home/your_login/.local/share/applications`. In Linux, folders (and files) having a name beginning by a dot are hidden. The shortcut `CTRL+H` can be used to display or hide them. - There, with a text editor, create a file `scilab.desktop` containing such lines: ```auto [Desktop Entry] Type=Application Name=Scilab Exec=/home/your_login/scilab-2026.0.1/bin/scilab Terminal=false Categories=Programming; Keywords=script;Scilab Icon=/home/your_login/scilab-2026.0.1/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/scilab.png ``` - If the icon is still not available in the Ubuntu menus, you may also need to type in a terminal (don’t type the `$`): ```bash $ update-desktop-database ~/.local/share/applications ``` (the `~` is a shortcut for `/home/your_login/`) Welcome in the Linux world 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2026, 12:35pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/9 "2026-05-15T12:35:17Z")
I got the font sizes increased for console and scinotes, that helps for the coding areas. Not a perfect solution but the simplest option for now. Verified that the Java was there and present as Java jdk and jre (25.xx). The font scaling in other parts of the window are still there; not sure what else to try. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![vmagnin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/scilab.discourse.group/vmagnin/32/1048_2.png) [@vmagnin](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/vmagnin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2026, 9:21am UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/10 "2026-05-16T09:21:29Z")
The problem is described here: > **[How to Set DPI for Java Swing Apps on Windows/Linux: Fix Small Fonts on High...](https://www.javaspring.net/blog/how-to-set-the-dpi-of-java-swing-apps-on-windows-linux/)** > > High-DPI (dots per inch) monitors—such as 4K, 5K, or Retina displays—offer crisp, detailed visuals, but they often cause problems for older Java Swing applications. Swing, a GUI toolkit for Java, was designed in an era of low-DPI screens and relies... Maybe a “solution” would be to have a secondary screen with a moderate resolution. On one machine, I have a 1920x1080 screen and Scilab 2026 is displayed perfectly (Ubuntu 26.04). ---
**Author:** ![arctica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@arctica](https://scilab.discourse.group/u/arctica)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2026, 3:43pm UTC](https://scilab.discourse.group/t/ubuntu-installation-query/1149/11 "2026-07-07T15:43:03Z")
Hi all, At the moment, I cannot get Scilab 2026.1.0 to install properly on Ubuntu 26.04. The java issue is not helping with the font sizing problem; pushing the font size up is not a perfect solution. It really needs a fundamental check from the developers to make it work properly. The display I have is 1920 x 1080. The issue is the way GNOME50 works I guess and Java; Java is installed by default. Maybe if there is a well documented methodology, with screen images to show how it can be installed, without fiddling with the fonts which is not a solution since it only affects the console and editor. At the moment I have to use it on Windows which is all fine. I am not an expert with the Linux system. Sudo apt install scilab seems to work, but the apps don’t want to run (only gets v 2024). Hopefully someone has a foolproof and simple workflow to install on Ubuntu and not have to change font sizes. On my Windows version I have the console font at 13 and Scinotes at 18, both using the default Monospaced Plain font. Apologies for repeating this query. Lester