Gem

Ruby package manager for installing and managing Ruby libraries - Essential commands and usage patterns.

Overview

Gem is a package manager used for ruby package manager for installing and managing ruby libraries. This cheat sheet covers the most commonly used commands and workflows.

Platform Support: Cross-platform Category: Development

Installation

Linux/Ubuntu

# Package manager installation
sudo apt update
sudo apt install gem

# Alternative installation methods
wget -O gem https://github.com/example/gem/releases/latest
chmod +x gem
sudo mv gem /usr/local/bin/

macOS

# Homebrew installation
brew install gem

# Manual installation
curl -L -o gem https://github.com/example/gem/releases/latest
chmod +x gem
sudo mv gem /usr/local/bin/

Windows

# Chocolatey installation
choco install gem

# Scoop installation
scoop install gem

# Manual installation
# Download from official website and add to PATH

Basic Commands

Command	Description
`gem --help`	Display help information
`gem --version`	Show version information
`gem init`	Initialize gem in current directory
`gem status`	Check current status
`gem list`	List available options/items

Common Operations

Basic Usage

# Start gem
gem start

# Stop gem
gem stop

# Restart gem
gem restart

# Check status
gem status

Configuration

# View configuration
gem config show

# Set configuration option
gem config set <key> <value>

# Reset configuration
gem config reset

Advanced Operations

# Verbose output
gem -v <command>

# Debug mode
gem --debug <command>

# Dry run (preview changes)
gem --dry-run <command>

# Force operation
gem --force <command>

File Operations

Command	Description
`gem create <file>`	Create new file
`gem read <file>`	Read file contents
`gem update <file>`	Update existing file
`gem delete <file>`	Delete file
`gem copy <src> <dst>`	Copy file
`gem move <src> <dst>`	Move file

Network Operations

# Connect to remote host
gem connect <host>:<port>

# Listen on port
gem listen --port <port>

# Send data
gem send --data "<data>" --target <host>

# Receive data
gem receive --port <port>

Security Features

Authentication

# Login with credentials
gem login --user <username>

# Logout
gem logout

# Change password
gem passwd

# Generate API key
gem generate-key

Encryption

# Encrypt file
gem encrypt <file>

# Decrypt file
gem decrypt <file>

# Generate certificate
gem cert generate

# Verify signature
gem verify <file>

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: Command not found

# Check if installed
which gem

# Reinstall if necessary
sudo apt reinstall gem

Issue: Permission denied

# Run with sudo
sudo gem <command>

# Fix permissions
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/gem

Issue: Configuration errors

# Reset configuration
gem config reset

# Validate configuration
gem config validate

Debug Commands

Command	Description
`gem --debug`	Enable debug output
`gem --verbose`	Verbose logging
`gem test`	Run self-tests
`gem doctor`	Check system health

Best Practices

Security

Always verify checksums when downloading
Use strong authentication methods
Regularly update to latest version
Follow principle of least privilege

Performance

Use appropriate buffer sizes
Monitor resource usage
Optimize configuration for your use case
Regular maintenance and cleanup

Maintenance

# Update gem
gem update

# Clean temporary files
gem clean

# Backup configuration
gem backup --config

# Restore from backup
gem restore --config <backup-file>

Integration

Scripting

#!/bin/bash
# Example script using gem

# Check if gem is available
if ! command -v gem &> /dev/null; then
    echo "gem is not installed"
    exit 1
fi

# Run gem with error handling
if gem <command>; then
    echo "Success"
else
    echo "Failed"
    exit 1
fi

API Integration

# Python example
import subprocess
import json

def run_gem(command):
    try:
        result = subprocess.run(['gem'] + command.split(),
                              capture_output=True, text=True)
        return result.stdout
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: \\\\{e\\\\}")
        return None

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
`GEM_CONFIG`	Configuration file path	`~/.gem/config`
`GEM_HOME`	Home directory	`~/.gem`
`GEM_LOG_LEVEL`	Logging level	`INFO`
`GEM_TIMEOUT`	Operation timeout	`30s`

Configuration File

# ~/.gem/config.yaml
version: "1.0"
settings:
  debug: false
  timeout: 30
  log_level: "INFO"

network:
  host: "localhost"
  port: 8080
  ssl: true

security:
  auth_required: true
  encryption: "AES256"

Examples

Basic Workflow

# 1. Initialize
gem init

# 2. Configure
gem config set host example.com

# 3. Connect
gem connect

# 4. Perform operations
gem list
gem create example

# 5. Cleanup
gem disconnect

Advanced Workflow

# Automated deployment
gem deploy \
  --config production.yaml \
  --environment prod \
  --verbose \
  --timeout 300

# Monitoring
gem monitor \
  --interval 60 \
  --alert-threshold 80 \
  --log-file monitor.log

Resources

Official Documentation

Community

Tutorials

Last updated: 2025-07-05