Since its inception and release, the Ubuntu Software Center has made life easier for those who want to install their favourite software without the hassle of using the Terminal or building things from source. It served as a landmark moment for Ubuntu, allowing users to also search for software and packages quickly and automatically take care of the dependencies along the way. The Software Center was a departure from older tools like Synaptic, which while it worked perfectly, had less polish and a less user-friendly look.
It seldom happens, but there are times when there are some errors with the Software Center that cause it to fail. It can be frustrating, especially for users who are new to the distribution. So what should you do? Here are some the causes and the fixes for when the Ubuntu Software Center is not working.
Software Center Not Loading
Sometimes the Ubuntu Software Center fails to load. If you see a message such as “Unable to download from …” then it usually means that it cannot read the local cache because it doesn’t exist. To resolve this you need to open the Terminal and enter:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt get upgrade
You can chain these commands using the && syntax. If the above doesn’t work, then you may need to reinstall Gnome-Software.
sudo apt autoremove gnome-software && sudo apt install gnome-software
You can also try the following:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get dist-upgrade -f
This should pull down the latest version of Ubuntu which should fix the issue. For example, there was a bug within the initial release of 16.04 that caused the Software Center to fail when loading.
Corrupted Cache
This is slightly trickier to deal with and different to the above. Essentially, something has gone wrong with the cached packages, and the Software Center cannot read them. Go back to the Terminal and enter:
sudo apt clean
Now the cache will be completely clear allowing you to enter:
sudo apt updateThis will pull a clean package list to your machine and should allow you to install software via the search.
No Images or Software
As you search for software, there are occasions where there is nothing loading. The same problem can display when there are no images within the Editors Picks section. This is not helpful to the newbie or older user who perhaps only knows their favourite software by the icon or image.
To fix this, you need to head back to the Terminal and type the following:
killall gnome-softwareThis kills the software running within the Software Center.
Next, you need to remove the gnome file software location “~/.local/share/gnome-software.” Do this by entering the following in the Terminal:
sudo rm -rf ~/.local/share/gnome-software
If this seems scary, or you are afraid it will ruin your installation, you can opt to avoid deletion by moving it to another location. The Software Center will work fine either way. Just launch it as you would normally from the applications menu or the launcher if you have added it as a favourite.
Crashing
This is a bit of an unusual problem, but sometimes the Software Center crashes when entering categories. Usually this can be resolved by running the update commands as shown earlier in the article or by reinstalling as before.
sudo apt install --reinstall software-center
This resolves some of the common problems that can happen with the Software Center. What have you encountered, and do you have any fixes that would help others? Let us know in the comments section below.