gem_package resource

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Use the gem_package resource to manage gem packages that are only included in recipes. When a gem is installed from a local file, it must be added to the node using the remote_file or cookbook_file resources.

Syntax

The full syntax for all of the properties that are available to the gem_package resource is:

gem_package 'name' do
  clear_sources               true, false
  gem_binary                  String
  include_default_source      true, false
  options                     String, Hash, Array
  package_name                String
  source                      String, Array
  timeout                     String, Integer
  version                     String
  action                      Symbol # defaults to :install if not specified
end

where:

• gem_package is the resource.
• name is the name given to the resource block.
• action identifies which steps Chef Infra Client will take to bring the node into the desired state.
• clear_sources, gem_binary, include_default_source, options, package_name, source, timeout, and version are the properties available to this resource.

Actions

The gem_package resource has the following actions:

:install

Default. Install a package. If a version is specified, install the specified version of the package.

:nothing

This resource block does not act unless notified by another resource to take action. Once notified, this resource block either runs immediately or is queued up to run at the end of a Chef Infra Client run.

:purge

Purge a package. This action typically removes the configuration files as well as the package.

:reconfig

Reconfigure a package. This action requires a response file.

:remove

Remove a package.

:upgrade

Install a package and/or ensure that a package is the latest version.

Properties

The gem_package resource has the following properties:

clear_sources

Ruby Type: true, false | Default Value: false

Set to true to download a gem from the path specified by the source property (and not from RubyGems).

gem_binary

Ruby Type: String

The path of a gem binary to use for the installation. By default, the same version of Ruby that is used by Chef Infra Client will be used.

include_default_source

Ruby Type: true, false

Set to false to not include Chef::Config[:rubygems_url] in the sources.

New in Chef Client 13.0

options

Ruby Type: String, Hash, Array

Options for the gem install, either a Hash or a String. When a hash is given, the options are passed to Gem::DependencyInstaller.new, and the gem will be installed via the gems API. When a String is given, the gem will be installed by shelling out to the gem command. Using a Hash of options with an explicit gem_binary will result in undefined behavior.

package_name

Ruby Type: String

An optional property to set the package name if it differs from the resource block’s name.

source

Ruby Type: String, Array

Optional. The URL, or list of URLs, at which the gem package is located. This list is added to the source configured in Chef::Config[:rubygems_url] (see also include_default_source) to construct the complete list of rubygems sources. Users in an ‘airgapped’ environment should set Chef::Config[:rubygems_url] to their local RubyGems mirror.

timeout

Ruby Type: String, Integer

The amount of time (in seconds) to wait before timing out.

version

Ruby Type: String

The version of a package to be installed or upgraded.

Examples

The following examples demonstrate various approaches for using the gem_package resource in recipes:

The following examples demonstrate various approaches for using the gem_package resource in recipes:

Install a gem file from the local file system

gem_package 'loofah' do
  source '/tmp/loofah-2.7.0.gem'
  action :install
end

Use the ignore_failure common attribute

gem_package 'syntax' do
  action :install
  ignore_failure true
end