How to install Signal Messaging App on Ubuntu 20.04

The Signal messenger is a popular and secure person to person internet messaging that is used for both web and phone-based applications communications globally. Signal has well known due to the privacy it provides along with several custom encryption techniques. This security feature helps in keeping a close eye on the chats ensuring the privacy of the user. Today, the end-to-end encrypted protocols have become the most important feature in any messaging application, and Signal is no other exception. The application uses this protocol and does not share its application’s data with any other existing app. The most important thing I would like to tell is that it is also supported by Linux platforms. These all features discussed make this application a top choice of today’s users.

In this tutorial, I will show you how to install the Signal messaging application on Ubuntu 20.04 Desktop.

Installation of Signal Messaging App

Method # 01: Installation using snap

Open up the terminal window using the Alt+Ctl+T shortcut. Once opened, use the snap package to install the Signal Message app. Snap is supported by almost all Linux distributions and is usually installed at the time of the Linux platform-based OS installation in your systems. Snap is simple to use and easily updated. Enter the following command in the terminal window of your system to install Signal:

$ sudo snap install signal-desktop

Install Signal messenger via snap

The system may also ask for the password of the user. Enter the password against the provided field. The snap download will begin.

Signal Message app installation

Method # 02: Installation using apt

The second method we will be using to install Signal is via apt package. Firstly, we will be needing to install the official key for software signing using:

$ wget -O- https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt/keys.asc | sudo apt-key add -

Download repository key

The updates will begin similar to the one shown below:

Downloading GPG-key

Let’s add the official repository using the command:

$ echo “deb [arch=amd64] https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt xenial main” | sudo tee -a /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-xenial.list

Add Signal Ubuntu repository

When you press the <enter> key from the keyboard, you will see the following output:

Repository added

Now, let’s update the packages list using:

$ sudo apt update

Update packages

The next step is to install Signal App in your system using:

$ sudo apt install signal-desktop

Install signal-desktop

Method # 03: Installation using GUI

The third method, we will be using to install Signal is via GUI. Let’s access the Ubuntu Software to install the Signal App. Go to the search bar and type.

Ubuntu Software Installer

Once opened, type the Signal Desktop keyword in the search bar. Click on the Signal Desktop option available.

Select Signal Desktop app

Now, click on the Install button available under the Signal Desktop to begin the installation.

Install Signal Messenger

The installation will begin quite similar to the one displayed below:

Installing Software

Accessing the Signal Application

To access the installed application, type Signal in the search bar. You will see Signal in the available options.

Signal Icon

Click on it to make use of the application.

Removing the Signal Application

To remove the application, click on the Remove button in the GUI available under the available Ubuntu Software list.

Remove App

The following modal will appear confirming the user’s selection. Select the Remove option to begin the process of uninstalling the Signal app.

Continue with software removal

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we went through the methods of installation of the Signal Messaging App on the Ubuntu 20.04 system. Here, we covered three possible methods for Signal installation and users can opt for any method as per their preference. The first two methods are terminal-based methods, whereas the third method is GUI based. We also discussed the method of removing the installed Signal application from the Ubuntu 20.04 system.