Trying to figure out how to install GRV on Ubuntu 20.04 for software development? Here’s everything you need to know.
A version control tool is essential for any software development activity on Linux OS. They help in keeping track of the various files used in development. With it, you can track a file, see its history and provenance records, and create branches to alternate versions.
The related files are grouped in a version-controlling system and named a repository. The GRV software is a git repository viewer with several interesting features for searching and analyzing the repository. You can also customize the interface in GRV.
This article will discuss the various approaches to installing GRV software. We will also discuss the methods to uninstall that may be required in case the software malfunctions or an alternative to GRV is available to the end user.
What is Git Repository Viewer?
Git Repository Viewer (GRV) is a terminal-based interface. It can be used for viewing the repositories of the git version controlling tool. You can perform the following actions of GRV:
- It comprises a lightweight and easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI). This interface can be used for the analysis of git repositories available on your system.
- You can view, search and filter the refs, commits, and diffs using a query language.
- You can create a custom theme and configure and customize the behavior and style. For instance, custom tabs and splits can be created.
- It has support for a mouse, and you can view the commit graph.
- You can monitor the file system to identify the changes in the repository, and the user interface can be updated accordingly.
- By default, Vi-like key bindings are supported. However, custom key bindings can be created.
Below is a snapshot of GRV. We will now discuss the various approaches for installing the git repository viewer on Ubuntu. In Linux, the GRV comes pre-compiled and can be installed very quickly, as outlined in the next section.

How to Install GRV on Ubuntu 22.04
As discussed, the GRV binary has been provided by the developer. Follow the steps below for installation.
Update the system
The first step is to update the whole system. Open your Terminal and type the following command:
$sudo apt update
Then upgrade the system using the following command:
$sudo apt upgrade
Download the GRV binary
In the next step, we will download the GRV binary. Use the following wget
command to download:
$wget -O grv https://github.com/rgburke/grv/releases/download/v0.3.2/grv_v0.3.2_linux64
Change the permission
After downloading the binary, we are required to change the permission and assign the executable permission to GRV. For this purpose, type the following command:
$chmod +x ./grv
Verifying the installation
After the installation, you can verify it by checking the current version of the software as follows:
$grv –version
You should see the following output:
RV - Git Repository Viewer v0.3.2-0-g13658da (compiled with go1.11.5 at 2022-12-15 22:05:45 GMT)
Using GRV after installation
Now, you can use the GRV binary using the following command:
$./grv --repoFilePath /path/to/repo
Uninstallation of GRV
If you have installed the GRV using the binary, you can uninstall it easily by deleting it from the system. For this purpose, type the following command on your Terminal:
$rm grv
The above command will remove GRV from your system.
Using snap for installation of GRV
Besides using the binary file to use GRV, you can also use the snap to install GRV. Snap are applications available in Linux distributions along with all the dependencies such that they can run on various Linux platforms. To install the GRV using snap, follow the steps below.
Install snap
Snap is pre-installed on almost all Linux distributions. In case snap is not installed on your system, you can install it by the following command:
$sudo apt update
The above command will update your system. Then, install snap using the following command:
$sudo apt install snapd
Open the Terminal
Go to the system menu and select the Terminal to open it in a new window.
Install GRV
After opening the Terminal, type the following command:
$sudo snap install grv
The above command will install the GRV software. You can then use it with the help of the following command:
$grv --repoFilePath /path/to/repo
Uninstallation of GRV
If you have uninstalled the GRV from the snap, you can uninstall it with the help of the following simple command:
$sudo snap remove grv
This will uninstall the GRV from your system.
In this article, we have discussed the installation of the Git Repository Viewer (GRV). And we found out that it is a Terminal-based application with a range of valuable features. We also went over these features, and then we talked about the various approaches for the installation of GRV.
GRV can be installed by downloading it as a binary. Alternatively, you can also install it via snap. Lastly, we also covered how to uninstall GRV. For further details about this topic, feel free to check this link.
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