Repository for Linux packages

[mhalano]

When will be available a repository for DEB and RPM Zoom's packages? It's hard to keep an eye on the updates and download and install manually. I would like if my system find the updates during the regular update.

[Arps]

Hello!

As you mentioned, this is not currently available.  

At this time, all feature requests are managed within our https://zoom.us/feed submission form. We encourage you to submit this idea there, where the information will reach the relevant product team for review.

Hope that helps and please make sure to mark the solution as accepted if this information is what you needed.

Thanks! Rick

[dmbreakey]

Seconded; it's wonderful that Zoom even offers proper packages, but the fact that I have to be reminded by the client to do this is frustrating to the extreme, since literally every other resource is automatically managed at the system level, without any mandatory interaction needed by me except that which I have already chosen to do.

All this does is remind me why I stopped using Windows in the first place; it was irritating to have to run a dozen different apps, wasting system resources, just to handle "automatic" updates of the non-Microsoft stuff.

And I don't know about an RPM/Yum repo, but setting up an APT repo is pretty easy; I'm certain anyone who has the skills to build a *.deb package file can certainly handle setting up the repo to go with it.

[mwlphelps]

Yes, this is critical for maintaining large numbers of systems. I have already submitted an entry in the online for, but I'm adding my voice here too.

[Danathar]

It should be possible to write a shell script that will create a local repository, download the latest client, put it in the local repository (I'm using apt, but you could do an RPM repository), and then upgrade or install as needed. 

Why we should have to do this IDK, Zoom should be providing their own SNAP, Appimage, repository or flatpak..or something.

[pierof]

2 years+ and this is still not available? Official instructions say "download the deb and install it manually". This is not how you do things in Linux.

[kna]

Here is a GitHub repository for creating an RPM repository: https://github.com/mheffner/zoom-rpm-repo

[MikeKachar]

Zoom Support;

This topic/thread was initially created on 11/19/2021 (2.5 years ago!) - what can we [users] do to try to push this along? One would think, if there's someone that is already creating various Linux installation packages for the Zoom application, that it would just be a small addition to also create a repository (aka repo) that users could add to their config that would keep their application up-to-date.

I installed Zoom onto my Debian-based Linux system using my package manager (apt), which my application is currently up-to-date based on what my package manager has available (v5.14.5.2430), however that version was initially released on 04/18/2023 (per Zoom's Release Notes for Linux), which is now over one [1] year old. I'm not sure which [yet], but either Zoom needs to update the package being used by the repo of my flavor of Linux, or my repo needs to update the package available from their end. I will find this out.

In the interim, it would be so much more helpful if a Zoom repo were to just exist - then users could download & perform the install themselves, add the repo to their sources.list, and everything would stay up-to-date. If I were to install the currently available version (v6.0.2.4680), then it definitely wouldn't get updated, unless I manually did it again (myself), AND the install would sit next to my current installation, done thru my package manager. I could remove that, but it's only a temporary fix, and TBH I am hoping that my package manager gets word about the latest version and gets it in there for a future update.

Anyways, if someone could please advise who I/we would need to bring this issue to attention to, or where [else] I/we could post this request, I know I'd be grateful.

TIA!

--Mike--

[abstrmkth]

It's frustrating that this doesn't exist already, both for end users and for centralised system administration.

[dmbreakey]

The entire Linux ecosystem is designed around certain assumptions, and one of those assumptions which, frankly, is one of the things that makes Linux generally superior to both Windows and Mac, is the existence of a standardized, yet also decentralized software update mechanism (decentralized in the sense that each vendor can provide their own repo, instead of needing to upstream into another).

Zoom is one of the very few companies I've seen that offers support for Linux that doesn't also provide a repository that makes it easier for their users to automatically manage updates. The lack of this is frankly a bit of a black eye to what is otherwise a pretty good product and overall experience. Why not correct this trivial oversight?

What's the concern? Bandwidth usage? My understanding is that, when refreshing a repo, only the repo metadata is redownloaded, and even then, I don't believe it's downloaded at all if the remote repo indicates the modification date is unchanged from what the client already has recorded. And even then, Linux repos support mirroring functionality, so partner with various mirror sites, surely?

[intchanter]

Just out of curiosity, have you made the switch to the Zoom 6 client yet? I've found it to be a pretty terrible experience so far, and am considering looking for the last-of-the-line Zoom 5 client to wait it out until I'm forced to update. I think I read somewhere that will be when it's 9 months old.

[dmbreakey]

Can't say I've really had a problem with Zoom 6. So far, anyway (still running 6.0.0).

Sure, it's a little clunky in places, compared to the older one. But it looks to me like they're trying to bring it into feature-parity with the Windows version (whether that's actually good, I haven't figured out yet). Overall I won't claim to be happy with it, but it also doesn't really get in my way anymore (yes, to begin with it was overly annoying, but they seem to have addressed those issues).

One complaint I absolutely do have, though, is a complete lack of release notes. It's prompting me to update to the latest (6.1.11), and when I click through to read the "What's new" link, it's just basically blank. I do not like that. I want to know why I'm upgrading, before I do so.

As for whether you'll even be able to use the older version? I don't think so--I'm not certain (it's been 2-3 months now, and 6.x has worked well enough for me) but I seem to recall pretty much being forced to upgrade already.

[intchanter]

https://support.zoom.com/hc/en/article?id=zm_kb&sysparm_article=KB0068973 has the release notes for the Linux client, and seems to be kept up to date. I do wish it were linked from the What's New, but at least I know where to find it after this last round of searching.

[dmbreakey]

Thank you; at least I know where to find it now.

And they've changed the window management in 6.1.11--it now has the app intruding into the window frame.

Sigh. I understand why but I am not a fan. Too many apps don't do it well (Chrome is one of the few that actually seems to have put some thought into it, meaning it at least works well enough). For instance, Chrome still makes it reasonably clear where I can click if I want to move the window, although I won't say it couldn't be improved.

This new 6.1.11 UI, though: there's nothing that obviously makes it clear where I can click to just drag the window around. Something simple like a subtly darker shading--ie: how Chrome does it, mostly--would be nice.

Just another example of the Windows design ethos creeping into everything else. And I suspect Windows itself was "inspired" by the "clean" design of the Mac. Sigh.

[intchanter]

I did find a workaround for the main window, and shared it here: https://community.zoom.com/t5/Zoom-Meetings/Issues-with-v6-1-6-1013-on-Ubuntu-24-04-LTS/m-p/194543#M...

It does require a much larger size than I liked keeping that window, but it was at least possible to get /some/ part of the window that could be used to drag it around.

[dmbreakey]

Thank you. Fortunately, it appears my "stock" window size is big enough already, meaning it's not hard to find a part of the titlebar I can use to drag it around. I'm more annoyed by the lack of clear, even if subtle, visual cues.

I also noticed some of the other issues you raised in that thread. "Use system titlebar" isn't even available for me, which seems to be a bad oversight. While it's been rare, I've had to use that in Chrome, occasionally, to "repair" it.

And I personally cannot stand how they implemented the "Use two monitors" function, but I haven't even tried it in years. Personally I actually prefer to just separate out the subwindows and then arrange them myself.

[intchanter]

There's a new version out as of August 26 that's just listed as "minor bug fixes". It appears that the "use system titlebar" feature now works for me, though disabling it in my testing caused an immediate crash.

One of the organizations I join meetings with appears to require a more recent version of Zoom, so I can't use the last 5.x version there, but I've downloaded it so I can switch back and forth at will, even if it's a bit of a hassle.

How do you do the separate sub-windows? I don't think I've seen that option, and didn't find documentation on it.