Install Zetboo on Linux

Zetboo for Linux is a single file, Zetboo.AppImage. It works on Ubuntu, Debian, Linux Mint, Fedora and most other distributions, with nothing to install and no administrator password.

A single file125 MB, keep it wherever you like.
No passwordNothing is installed in the system: you just allow the file to open.
Your accountSame rooms, same friends as on the website and your phone.

Before you start

You need a 64-bit computer (almost all of them since 2010) and an Internet connection: the app opens zetboo.com in its own window, without an address bar.

Safe

Only download Zetboo.AppImage from this page (zetboo.com). The file never asks for your password: if it does, it isn't ours.

1Download

Download Zetboo.AppImage

The file goes to your “Downloads” folder.

2Allow it to open

For security, Linux won't open a downloaded program until you have allowed it. You only need to do this once.

Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian (GNOME desktop)
  1. Open “Files”, then the “Downloads” folder.
  2. Right-click Zetboo.AppImage, then “Properties”.
  3. Turn on “Executable as Program”.
Linux Mint (Cinnamon), Xfce
  1. Right-click Zetboo.AppImage, then “Properties”.
  2. “Permissions” tab: tick “Allow executing file as program”.
KDE Plasma (Kubuntu, KDE neon…)
  1. In Dolphin, right-click Zetboo.AppImage, then “Properties”.
  2. “Permissions” tab: tick “Is executable”.
With a terminal
Terminal
cd "$(xdg-user-dir DOWNLOAD)"
chmod +x Zetboo.AppImage

3Open Zetboo

Double-click Zetboo.AppImage. The Zetboo window opens: log in as on the website. You stay logged in next time.

Nothing happens? See “Common problems” below.

To find Zetboo like your other applications, with its icon. Copy these lines, paste them into a terminal (Ctrl + Alt + T) and press Enter. They download Zetboo into an “Applications” folder in your home folder, allow it to open and create the shortcut: you don't need steps 1 to 3. No password is asked.

Terminal: add Zetboo to the menu
mkdir -p ~/Applications ~/.local/share/applications ~/.local/share/icons
wget -O ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage https://zetboo.com/telecharger/Zetboo.AppImage \
  || curl -fL -o ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage https://zetboo.com/telecharger/Zetboo.AppImage
chmod +x ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage
wget -qO ~/.local/share/icons/zetboo.png https://zetboo.com/images/icone-512.png \
  || curl -fsSL -o ~/.local/share/icons/zetboo.png https://zetboo.com/images/icone-512.png
cat > ~/.local/share/applications/zetboo.desktop <<EOF
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=Zetboo
Comment=Chat
Exec=$HOME/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage %U
Icon=$HOME/.local/share/icons/zetboo.png
Terminal=false
Categories=Network;Chat;InstantMessaging;
EOF
update-desktop-database ~/.local/share/applications 2>/dev/null
head -c 4 ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage 2>/dev/null | grep -q ELF && echo "OK : Zetboo est dans le menu" || echo "ERREUR : le téléchargement a échoué, réessayez"

When “OK” appears, Zetboo is in the applications menu (Internet or Network section). If “ERREUR” (error) appears, check your Internet connection and try again. On some desktops, Zetboo shows up after you log out and back in.

Good to know

The file is stored in the “Applications” folder of your home folder. Don't move it, or the shortcut won't find it.

5Pin Zetboo to the bar

GNOME (Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian)

Press the Super key (the Windows key), type “Zetboo”, right-click the icon, then “Pin to Dash” (or “Add to Favorites”).

KDE Plasma

Open the menu, search for “Zetboo”, right-click, then “Pin to Task Manager”. “Add to Desktop” also puts an icon on the desktop.

Linux Mint (Cinnamon)

Menu, search for “Zetboo”, right-click, then “Add to panel” or “Add to desktop”.

Xfce

Applications menu, Internet section: right-click Zetboo, then “Add to Panel” or “Add to Desktop”.

Common problems

Nothing happens when I double-click

First check step 2. If the file is allowed, a small component that AppImages use, FUSE, is often missing. To see the exact message, start Zetboo from a terminal:

Terminal
"$(xdg-user-dir DOWNLOAD)/Zetboo.AppImage"

After step 4, the file is in ~/Applications: type ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage instead.

If the message mentions “libfuse.so.2” or “FUSE”, install it once (your password is asked here: this is the system, not Zetboo):

Ubuntu 24.04 and newer, Debian 13
Terminal
sudo apt install libfuse2t64
Ubuntu 22.04, Linux Mint 21, Debian 12
Terminal
sudo apt install libfuse2
Fedora
Terminal
sudo dnf install fuse-libs

The message mentions “sandbox”

On some recent versions of Ubuntu, a system protection stops the app from starting. Open it like this:

Terminal
~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage --no-sandbox

If that works, add “--no-sandbox” at the end of the “Exec=” line of the shortcut (file ~/.local/share/applications/zetboo.desktop). And tell us with “Report a problem”: we will fix the app.

Zetboo doesn't appear in the menu

Log out of your session and log back in. If nothing changes, check that the step 4 command did show “OK”.

Update

Zetboo's content updates by itself: it's the website. The file itself rarely changes (security). To replace it, paste this command:

Terminal
wget -O ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage https://zetboo.com/telecharger/Zetboo.AppImage \
  || curl -fL -o ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage https://zetboo.com/telecharger/Zetboo.AppImage
chmod +x ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage

The shortcut and your login stay.

Uninstall

Terminal
rm -f ~/Applications/Zetboo.AppImage ~/.local/share/applications/zetboo.desktop ~/.local/share/icons/zetboo.png
rm -rf ~/.config/Zetboo

The last line also deletes the login kept by the app. Your Zetboo account, friends and messages are not affected.

A question, a problem? Report a problem