How to Install Snapd & Snap-Store on Manjaro 21 Linux

In Linux, there are a few different ways to install various types of software. One of the most popular methods is a package manager like APT, DNF, PacMan, Zypper, etc. However, this method has its limitations; for example, it can be difficult to install software from a specific upstream source or to manage multiple versions of the same software on a single system. This is where Snap comes in as software deployment and package management system that makes installing and managing software on Linux easy, with the packages are called “snaps,” and the tool for using them is “snapd.”

Snapd works across various Linux distributions and allows for distribution-agnostic upstream software deployment. This means you can easily install software from specific upstream sources or manage multiple versions of the same software on a single system. Snap was initially designed and built by Canonical, the company behind the popular Ubuntu Linux distribution. However, it is now available on various Linux distributions, such as Manjaro Linux.

In the following tutorial, you will learn how to install Snapcraft on Manjaro 21 Linux with the terminal and GUI methods, with essential tips on how to launch or install/remove packages with Snapcraft.

Update Manjaro Linux

First, update your system to ensure all existing packages are up to date.

sudo pacman -Syu

Install Snapcraft – Snapd Terminal

Snapcraft, also known as Snap or Snapd, is available to be installed from Manjaro’s default repository for users that wish to only install the terminal version of Snapcraft with the package named snapd.

Begin the Snap installation, and run the following command.

sudo pacman -S snapd

Next, before you continue any further, it is highly advised to reboot your system. Failure to do this may result in errors in the following steps; reboot if you skip and encounter any issues.

You can quickly reboot while in the terminal by using the following command.

reboot

Now enable Snapd service as follows.

sudo systemctl enable snapd --now

Additionally, you may need to enable the AppArmor service for snapd, failure to do this may result in some applications not working correctly or even being able to launch.

sudo systemctl enable --now snapd.apparmor

Next, some packages come in classic, so you must create a symlink to enable classic snap support.

sudo ln -s /var/lib/snapd/snap /snap

When installing Snap for the first time, it is advised to install the core files to avoid conflicting issues.

sudo snap install core

Next, verify the Snapd service is running by using the systemctl command:

systemctl status snapd

Example:

Install a Package

Now that Snap is installed, you can quickly test installing a package, which can be anything; however, for the tutorial, the Discord application will be the example.

sudo snap install discord

Update Packages

For the future, to update Discord and any other packages installed by Snap, run the following command:

sudo snap refresh

Remove Packages

If you no longer need to have Discord installed, remove it using the Snap remove command.

sudo snap remove discord

Install Snap-Store – Snap GUI

After installing Snapd on your system, Desktop users can install the Snapcraft store, which uses a graphical UI that can be more appealing and make it easier to search for packages. This is entirely optional, but if you want to install it, run the following command:

sudo snap install snap-store

With the installation complete, you can run Snap Store in a few different ways.

First, while you are in your terminal, you can use the following command:

snap run snap-store

Most desktop users would use the following path to open.

Taskbar > All Applications > Snap Store.

Example:

Once open the first time and on cache updates, it may take a minute or two for the latest packages to be pulled from Snapcrafts server. Once done, you can begin searching and installing packages from Snap using the GUI.

Example:

How to Remove Snapcraft – Snapd & Snap-Store

Removing Snap from your system is an easy process. This will also remove all packages during the installation.

sudo pacman -Rs snapd

This will remove Snap and any additional packages installed and dependencies. For example, if you installed Snap Store and did not remove it prior, this package and any others installed by Snap fully.

Example:

As you can see above, you do not need to go through and remove each package before removing Snapd, and it will do it for you, the tutorial installed Discord, for example, but that is now automatically removed.

Comments and Conclusion

Overall, snaps are a great way to manage software on Linux systems. I recommend using them if you’re looking for an easy way to install software from multiple upstream sources or manage different versions of the same software.

The biggest issue is it is maintained and owned by Canonical. Given the nature of Ubuntu’s reputation amongst some other Linux distributions and communities, and other technical parts, Snap will never be as popular as Flatpaks, for example, as an alternative installation third-party package manager.