Offline Package & Docker Installer for Ubuntu

A simple toolkit for installing software on Ubuntu systems without internet access. Download packages and Docker images on an online machine, transfer via USB, and install on your air-gapped system.

Quick Start

On your online machine:

chmod +x offline_download.sh
./offline_download.sh
# Follow prompts to download packages or Docker images

On your offline machine:

chmod +x offline_install.sh
sudo ./offline_install.sh
# Select which bundle(s) to install

Overview

This toolkit solves a common problem: installing software on systems that have no internet access.

How It Works

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                           WORKFLOW DIAGRAM                              │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                         │
│   ONLINE MACHINE                         OFFLINE MACHINE                │
│   ──────────────                         ───────────────                │
│                                                                         │
│   1. Run offline_download.sh             4. Run offline_install.sh      │
│          │                                       │                      │
│          ▼                                       ▼                      │
│   2. Downloads packages          ───►    5. Installs packages           │
│      or Docker images           USB         or loads Docker images      │
│          │                      drive            │                      │
│          ▼                                       ▼                      │
│   3. Creates setup_* folder              6. Software ready to use!      │
│                                                                         │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

What's Included

Script	Purpose
`offline_download.sh`	Downloads `.deb` packages with all dependencies, or saves Docker images to `.tar` archives
`offline_install.sh`	Installs the downloaded packages and loads Docker images on the target system

Use Cases

Air-gapped networks: Secure environments with no external connectivity
Remote deployments: Field installations where internet is unavailable
Embedded systems: Headless devices requiring offline setup
Controlled environments: Systems where direct internet access is restricted
Batch deployments: Prepare once, deploy to multiple offline machines

Requirements

Online Machine (where you download)

Requirement	Notes
Ubuntu/Debian system	Uses apt package management
`apt-rdepends`	Required - Install with `sudo apt install apt-rdepends`
`wget`	Optional but recommended for fallback downloads
`docker`	Only needed if downloading Docker images
Internet access	To download packages/images
Removable storage	USB drive or similar for transfer

Offline Machine (where you install)

Requirement	Notes
Ubuntu/Debian system	Same or compatible version as online machine
`dpkg` and `apt-get`	Pre-installed on Ubuntu
`docker`	Only needed if loading Docker images
`sudo` access	Required for installation

Important: The offline machine should run the same Ubuntu version (or compatible) as the online machine to ensure package compatibility.

Step-by-Step Guide

Downloading .deb Packages

Prepare your online machine

First, ensure you have apt-rdepends installed:
```
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install apt-rdepends
```
Copy scripts to your USB drive

Copy both scripts to your USB drive's root directory.

Run the download script

cd /media/your-usb-drive
chmod +x offline_download.sh
./offline_download.sh

Select option 1 for .deb packages
Enter package names when prompted
- Space-separated: nginx curl vim
- Or comma-separated: nginx, curl, vim
Review the dependency list and confirm

The script shows all packages that will be downloaded (including dependencies).
Wait for download to complete

A folder named setup_<packages> will be created containing all .deb files.

Downloading Docker Images

Ensure Docker is running on your online machine
```
docker info
```
Run the download script
```
./offline_download.sh
```
Select option 2 for Docker images
Enter image names when prompted

Examples:
- nginx:latest
- postgres:15 redis:7
- myregistry.com/myapp:v1.2.3
Wait for pull and save

A folder named setup_docker_<images> will be created containing a .tar archive.

Installing on Offline Machine

Connect USB drive to the offline machine
Navigate to the USB drive
```
cd /media/your-usb-drive
```
Run the install script as root
```
sudo ./offline_install.sh
```

Select bundles to install

The script displays all available setup_* folders:

Available setup bundles to install/load:
  1) nginx_curl
  2) docker_postgres_redis
  a) Install/Load ALL bundles

Enter numbers to process (e.g. 1 2), or 'a' for all:

Wait for installation

The script will:
- Install all .deb files with dpkg
- Load all Docker images with docker load
- Attempt to fix any dependency issues

Examples

Example 1: Installing nginx on an Offline Server

On online machine:

$ ./offline_download.sh

What would you like to download?
   1) .deb packages only
   2) Docker images only
Enter choice [1-2]: 1

Enter package names (space- or comma-separated): nginx

Updating apt cache...
Resolving dependencies...

Will attempt to download these packages:
   • nginx
   • libnginx-mod-http-geoip2
   • nginx-common
   • nginx-core
   ... (additional dependencies)

Proceed? [y/N] y

Downloading .deb packages...
Download complete!
   Files are in: /media/usb/setup_nginx

On offline machine:

$ sudo ./offline_install.sh

Available setup bundles to install/load:
  1) nginx

Enter numbers to process (e.g. 1 2), or 'a' for all: 1

Processing bundle: nginx
   Installing .deb packages...
Fixing package dependencies (offline-safe)...
All done!

$ nginx -v
nginx version: nginx/1.24.0

Example 2: Multiple Docker Images

On online machine:

$ ./offline_download.sh

Enter choice [1-2]: 2

Enter Docker image names: postgres:15-alpine redis:7-alpine

Pulling Docker images...
   • postgres:15-alpine
   • redis:7-alpine
Saving all images into: docker_images_postgres_15-alpine_redis_7-alpine.tar
Download complete!

On offline machine:

$ sudo ./offline_install.sh

Available setup bundles to install/load:
  1) docker_postgres_15-alpine_redis_7-alpine

Enter numbers to process: 1

Processing bundle: docker_postgres_15-alpine_redis_7-alpine
   Loading Docker images...
     ↪ docker load -i docker_images_postgres_15-alpine_redis_7-alpine.tar
All done!

$ docker images
REPOSITORY   TAG          IMAGE ID       CREATED       SIZE
postgres     15-alpine    abc123...      2 days ago    240MB
redis        7-alpine     def456...      3 days ago    30MB

Example 3: Combined Package and Image Deployment

If you need both packages and Docker images, run the download script twice:

# First run - download packages
./offline_download.sh    # Choose option 1, enter "docker.io containerd"

# Second run - download images
./offline_download.sh    # Choose option 2, enter "nginx:alpine"

Your USB will contain:

/media/usb/
├── setup_docker.io_containerd/
│   ├── docker.io_*.deb
│   ├── containerd_*.deb
│   └── ... (dependencies)
├── setup_docker_nginx_alpine/
│   └── docker_images_nginx_alpine.tar
├── offline_download.sh
└── offline_install.sh

Troubleshooting

"apt-rdepends not found"

Problem: The download script requires apt-rdepends to resolve dependencies.

Solution:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install apt-rdepends

"Permission denied" connecting to Docker

Problem: Docker daemon requires elevated privileges.

Solutions:

Add your user to the docker group:

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
# Log out and back in

Or the script will automatically use sudo for Docker commands.

Virtual package has no candidate

Problem: Some packages are "virtual" (meta-packages that don't exist on their own).

Solution: The script automatically finds real package providers. If a package is still skipped, manually identify and request the actual package name:

apt-cache showpkg <virtual-package-name>
# Look for "Reverse Provides" to find real packages

Dependencies still broken after installation

Problem: Some dependencies might be missing from the bundle.

Solutions:

Ensure both machines run the same Ubuntu version
Re-run the download with any missing packages added
Check the output for "skipped" packages and download those separately

Docker images fail to load

Problem: The .tar file might be corrupted or incomplete.

Solutions:

Verify the file size matches between machines
Re-download the images
Ensure Docker daemon is running: sudo systemctl start docker

"No setup_* directories found"

Problem: The install script can't find any bundles.

Solution:

Ensure you're running the script from the USB drive root
Check that download completed successfully
Verify folder names start with setup_

FAQ

Q: Can I download packages for a different Ubuntu version?

A: The downloaded packages are specific to your Ubuntu version and architecture. For best results, run the download script on a machine with the same Ubuntu version as your target.

Q: How much space do I need on my USB drive?

A: It depends on the packages. A simple tool like curl needs ~5MB with dependencies. Large applications like Docker can need 500MB+. Check available space before downloading.

Q: Can I update packages on an offline machine?

A: Yes! Re-run the download script on your online machine to get the latest versions, then transfer and re-install.

Q: Does this work with private Docker registries?

A: Yes, as long as you're logged into the registry on your online machine (docker login), you can pull and save private images.

Q: Can I use this for Debian (not Ubuntu)?

A: Yes, these scripts should work on any Debian-based system that uses apt and dpkg.

Q: What if some packages fail to download?

A: The script continues with remaining packages. Review the output for errors and retry failed packages separately if needed.

Limitations

Architecture-specific: Packages are downloaded for your current CPU architecture (amd64, arm64, etc.)
Version-specific: Best results when online and offline machines run the same OS version
No automatic updates: You must manually re-download to get newer package versions
Single-mode downloads: Each run downloads either packages OR Docker images, not both simultaneously
Ubuntu/Debian only: Designed for apt-based systems

Tips & Best Practices

Test on a similar system first - Before deploying to production, test the bundle on a non-critical machine with the same OS version.
Keep bundles organized - Use descriptive package names. The folder name will reflect what you downloaded.
Verify downloads - Check that all expected files are present before transferring to the offline machine.
Document what you download - Keep a record of package names and versions for future reference.
Use the same Ubuntu version - Package compatibility is best when both machines run identical Ubuntu versions.

License

MIT License - Feel free to use, modify, and distribute these scripts.

Contributing

Found a bug or have a suggestion? Open an issue or submit a pull request on GitHub.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 7 Commits
README.md		README.md
offline_download.sh		offline_download.sh
offline_install.sh		offline_install.sh

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Offline Package & Docker Installer for Ubuntu

Quick Start

Table of Contents

Overview

How It Works

What's Included

Use Cases

Requirements

Online Machine (where you download)

Offline Machine (where you install)

Step-by-Step Guide

Downloading .deb Packages

Downloading Docker Images

Installing on Offline Machine

Examples

Example 1: Installing nginx on an Offline Server

Example 2: Multiple Docker Images

Example 3: Combined Package and Image Deployment

Troubleshooting

"apt-rdepends not found"

"Permission denied" connecting to Docker

Virtual package has no candidate

Dependencies still broken after installation

Docker images fail to load

"No setup_* directories found"

FAQ

Limitations

Tips & Best Practices

License

Contributing

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