[ruby] How do I specify local .gem files in my Gemfile?

I have a couple of gem files which I install via gem install xx.gem. Can I tell Bundler to use them? Or do I have to specify the source path?

Seems bundler can't use .gem files out of the box. Pointing the :path to a directory containing .gem files doesn't work. Some people suggested to setup a local gem server (geminabox, stickler) for that purpose.

However, what I found to be much simpler is to use a local gem "server" from file system: Just put your .gem files in a local directory, then use "gem generate_index" to make it a Gem repository

mkdir repo
mkdir repo/gems
cp *.gem repo/gems
cd repo
gem generate_index

Finally point bundler to this location by adding the following line to your Gemfile

source "file://path/to/repo"

If you update the gems in the repository, make sure to regenerate the index.

Adding .gem to vendor/cache seems to work. No options required in Gemfile.

By default Bundler will check your system first and if it can't find a gem it will use the sources specified in your Gemfile.

You can force bundler to use the gems you deploy using "bundle package" and "bundle install --local"

On your development machine:

bundle install

(Installs required gems and makes Gemfile.lock)

bundle package

(Caches the gems in vendor/cache)

On the server:

bundle install --local

(--local means "use the gems from vendor/cache")

I found it easiest to run my own gem server using geminabox

See these simple instructions.

I would unpack your gem in the application vendor folder

gem unpack your.gem --target /path_to_app/vendor/gems/

Then add the path on the Gemfile to link unpacked gem.

gem 'your', '2.0.1', :path => 'vendor/gems/your'