> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://itsfoss.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Gear Lever: An Open Source Tool To Manage AppImage Apps on Linux - URL: https://itsfoss.com/news/gear-lever/ - Published: 2024-12-15T06:29:47.000Z - Updated: 2024-12-15T06:29:47.000Z - Description: A nifty tool to help manage AppImage files. - Author: Sourav Rudra - Tags: App of the Week, News, #Import 2025-11-08 21:15 [Using AppImage in Linux](https://itsfoss.com/use-appimage-linux/) is a very convenient *click-to-run* way of using applications, allowing users to execute software without installing. If you didn't know, [AppImage](https://appimage.org/?ref=itsfoss.com) is **a universal packaging format** that was created to provide native binaries for Linux users, similar to what other operating systems like Windows and macOS do have with *.exe* and *.app* files. However, as AppImage files are standalone bundles, **they have to be manually launched each time one wants to use the bundled application**, and that can get tedious if you have many AppImages in your computer. With this App Of The Week, we have Gear Lever, **a utility that makes managing AppImage files easy**, allowing users to add AppImage files to the application launcher of their Linux distribution. ## Gear Lever: A Manager For Your AppImages ![a screenshot of gear lever with the welcome tutorial window open](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_a.png) Gear Lever is **a Python-based app** that is the work of over 20 open source contributors, with [Lorenzo Paderi](https://github.com/mijorus?ref=itsfoss.com) leading them. It is meant to be a no-nonsense app that just focuses on the essentials, allowing users to manage local AppImage files. ### ⭐ Key Features With handy features like file drag/drop support, managing AppImage updates, and opening AppImages from the file manager, here are some highlights: - **Intuitive Interface** - **Supports CLI Apps** - **Offered Under** [**GPL 3.0**](https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html?ref=itsfoss.com) ### πŸ’» User Experience I loaded up the official Flatpak on my Fedora 40 laptop and started testing it out. On the first launch, there was **a welcome tutorial** that I launched to configure Gear Lever. It was quite straightforward, letting me choose a folder where any added AppImage files would be stored (*I went with the default*) and showing me how to set Gear Lever as the default app to handle AppImage files. ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_b.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_c.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_d.png) Gear Lever's onboarding process. Right-clicking on an AppImage file automatically showed me the β€œ*Open With Gear Lever*” option. If it doesn't appear for you, then you can go into the β€œ*Open With…*” menu and get it added. Alternatively, you could simply drag and drop any AppImage files directly into Gear Lever. ![a screenshot of the open with gear lever option in nautilus file manager for an appimage file of kdenlive 24.08.3](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_e-1.png) I used it to add many AppImage files, starting with [Kdenlive](https://kdenlive.org/en/?ref=itsfoss.com) first. As you can see below, before the AppImage could be added, **I was asked to verify the source of the app** before opening it on my system. ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_f.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_g.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_h.png) Adding a new AppImage to Gear Lever. As I had downloaded it from the official website, I didn't have to worry about it, so I clicked on β€œ*Unlock*”, and the interface then let me change the settings for Kdenlive. I immediately added the app to the app launcher of my distro by using the β€œ*Move to the app menu*” button. I could also launch Kdenlive from within Gear Lever by using the β€œ*Launch*” button. ![a screenshot of the app shortcuts created by gear lever on a gnome 46 system, the apps are kdenlive, heroic games launcher, vscodium, and retroarch](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_l.png) The AppImages added using Gear Lever showed up nicely on GNOME's app launcher. Thereafter, I added three more AppImage files: [Heroic Games Launcher](https://heroicgameslauncher.com/?ref=itsfoss.com), [VS Codium](https://vscodium.com/?ref=itsfoss.com), and [RetroArch](https://www.retroarch.com/?ref=itsfoss.com). All four of these apps showed up neatly on the app launcher, **allowing me to sort them into folders** or **pin to dock** if needed. When launched, these apps work as expected, without any hiccups. ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_i.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_j.png) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/12/Gear_Lever_k.png) Gear Lever can handle updates for any added AppImages, and the preferences menu provides useful controls. Gear Lever **provides additional options for any added AppImage entries**, such as seeing the package type, changing the path, adding a command-line argument, configuring updates, and adding environment variables. During my testing, only the entry for VS Codium showed me a helpful β€œ*No updates available*” status after it checked for updates. As for the other apps, I would have to manually add update URLs before Gear Lever could show me the update status for those. **So, wrapping up.** My experience with Gear Lever so far has been wonderful. **Its minimal user interface has made it easy to add new AppImage shortcuts** to the app launcher, and I no longer have to manually go into the folder where AppImage files are stored to launch an app. Going forward, I intend to use this for managing any AppImage apps I keep for long-term use. ## βš™οΈ Installing Gear Lever on Linux You can find the most recent release of Gear Lever on [Flathub](https://flathub.org/apps/it.mijorus.gearlever?ref=itsfoss.com), with the source code being hosted over on [GitHub](https://github.com/mijorus/gearlever?ref=itsfoss.com) that has instructions on how to build from source. You can also contribute to development if you have the relevant skills. [Gear Lever (Flathub)](https://flathub.org/apps/it.mijorus.gearlever?ref=itsfoss.com) **Suggested Read** πŸ“– [App Fleet: Open-Source App to Automate Your Workspace on LinuxAn open-source workspace automation tool. Sounds interesting!![](https://news.itsfoss.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2022/08/android-chrome-192x192.png)It's FOSS NewsSourav Rudra![](https://news.itsfoss.com/content/images/2024/01/appfleet-workspace-automation-tool.png)](https://itsfoss.com/app-fleet/)