Ubuntu Installation Guide

Table of Contents

Installing Ubuntu 13.04 “Raring Ringtail” For i386

1. Welcome to Ubuntu

1.1. What is Ubuntu?

1.1.1. Sponsorship by Canonical

1.2. What is Debian?

1.2.1. Ubuntu and Debian

1.3. What is GNU/Linux?

1.4. Getting Ubuntu

1.5. Getting the Newest Version of This Document

1.6. Organization of This Document

1.7. About Copyrights and Software Licenses

2. System Requirements

2.1. Supported Hardware

2.1.1. Supported Architectures

2.1.2. CPU, Main Boards, and Video Support

2.1.3. Laptops

2.1.4. Multiple Processors

2.1.5. Graphics Card Support

2.1.6. Network Connectivity Hardware

2.1.7. Braille Displays

2.1.8. Hardware Speech Synthesis

2.1.9. Peripherals and Other Hardware

2.2. Devices Requiring Firmware

2.3. Purchasing Hardware Specifically for GNU/Linux

2.3.1. Avoid Proprietary or Closed Hardware

2.3.2. Windows-specific Hardware

2.4. Installation Media

2.4.1. CD-ROM/DVD-ROM

2.4.2. Hard Disk

2.4.3. USB Memory Stick

2.4.4. Network

2.4.5. Un*x or GNU system

2.4.6. Supported Storage Systems

2.5. Memory and Disk Space Requirements

3. Before Installing Ubuntu

3.1. Overview of the Installation Process

3.2. Back Up Your Existing Data!

3.3. Information You Will Need

3.3.1. Documentation

3.3.2. Finding Sources of Hardware Information

3.3.3. Hardware Compatibility

3.3.4. Network Settings

3.4. Meeting Minimum Hardware Requirements

3.5. Pre-Partitioning for Multi-Boot Systems

3.5.1. Partitioning From DOS or Windows

3.6. Pre-Installation Hardware and Operating System Setup

3.6.1. Invoking the BIOS Set-Up Menu

3.6.2. Boot Device Selection

3.6.3. Miscellaneous BIOS Settings

3.6.4. Hardware Issues to Watch Out For

4. Obtaining System Installation Media

4.1. Official Ubuntu CD-ROMs

4.2. Downloading Files from Ubuntu Mirrors

4.2.1. Where to Find Installation Images

4.3. Preparing Files for USB Memory Stick Booting

4.3.1. Copying the files — the easy way

4.3.2. Copying the files — the flexible way

4.3.3. Booting the USB stick

4.4. Preparing Files for Hard Disk Booting

4.4.1. Hard disk installer booting using LILO or GRUB

4.5. Preparing Files for TFTP Net Booting

4.5.1. Setting up a DHCP server

4.5.2. Setting up a BOOTP server

4.5.3. Enabling the TFTP Server

4.5.4. Move TFTP Images Into Place

4.6. Automatic Installation

4.6.1. Automatic Installation Using the Ubuntu Installer

4.6.2. Automatic Installation Using Kickstart

5. Booting the Installation System

5.1. Booting the Installer on Intel x86

5.1.1. Booting from a CD-ROM

5.1.2. Booting from Linux Using LILO or GRUB

5.1.3. Booting from USB Memory Stick

5.1.4. Booting with TFTP

5.1.5. The Boot Screen

5.2. Accessibility

5.2.1. USB Braille Displays

5.2.2. Serial Braille Displays

5.2.3. Hardware Speech Synthesis

5.2.4. Board Devices

5.2.5. High-Contrast Theme

5.3. Boot Parameters

5.3.1. Ubuntu Installer Parameters

5.4. Troubleshooting the Installation Process

5.4.1. CD-ROM Reliability

5.4.2. Boot Configuration

5.4.3. Common Intel x86 Installation Problems

5.4.4. Interpreting the Kernel Startup Messages

5.4.5. Reporting Installation Problems

5.4.6. Submitting Installation Reports

6. Using the Ubuntu Installer

6.1. How the Installer Works

6.2. Components Introduction

6.3. Using Individual Components

6.3.1. Setting up Ubuntu Installer and Hardware Configuration

6.3.2. Partitioning and Mount Point Selection

6.3.3. Installing the Base System

6.3.4. Setting Up Users And Passwords

6.3.5. Installing Additional Software

6.3.6. Making Your System Bootable

6.3.7. Finishing the Installation

6.3.8. Miscellaneous

6.4. Loading Missing Firmware

6.4.1. Preparing a medium

6.4.2. Firmware and the Installed System

7. Booting Into Your New Ubuntu System

7.1. The Moment of Truth

7.2. Mounting encrypted volumes

7.2.1. dm-crypt

7.2.2. loop-AES

7.2.3. Troubleshooting

7.3. Log In

8. Next Steps and Where to Go From Here

8.1. Shutting down the system

8.2. If You Are New to Unix

8.3. Orienting Yourself to Ubuntu

8.3.1. Ubuntu Packaging System

8.3.2. Application Version Management

8.3.3. Cron Job Management

8.4. Further Reading and Information

8.5. Setting Up Your System To Use E-Mail

8.5.1. Default E-Mail Configuration

8.5.2. Sending E-Mails Outside The System

8.5.3. Configuring the Exim4 Mail Transport Agent

8.6. Compiling a New Kernel

8.6.1. Kernel Image Management

8.7. Recovering a Broken System

A. Installation Howto

A.1. Booting the installer

A.1.1. CDROM

A.1.2. USB memory stick

A.1.3. Booting from network

A.2. Installation

A.3. And finally…

B. Automating the installation using preseeding

B.1. Introduction

B.1.1. Preseeding methods

B.1.2. Limitations

B.2. Using preseeding

B.2.1. Loading the preconfiguration file

B.2.2. Using boot parameters to preseed questions

B.2.3. Auto mode

B.2.4. Aliases useful with preseeding

B.2.5. Using a DHCP server to specify preconfiguration files

B.3. Creating a preconfiguration file

B.4. Contents of the preconfiguration file (for raring)

B.4.1. Localization

B.4.2. Network configuration

B.4.3. Network console

B.4.4. Mirror settings

B.4.5. Clock and time zone setup

B.4.6. Partitioning

B.4.7. Base system installation

B.4.8. Account setup

B.4.9. Apt setup

B.4.10. Package selection

B.4.11. Boot loader installation

B.4.12. Finishing up the installation

B.4.13. X configuration

B.4.14. Preseeding other packages

B.5. Advanced options

B.5.1. Running custom commands during the installation

B.5.2. Using preseeding to change default values

B.5.3. Chainloading preconfiguration files

C. Partitioning for Ubuntu

C.1. Deciding on Ubuntu Partitions and Sizes

C.2. The Directory Tree

C.3. Recommended Partitioning Scheme

C.4. Device Names in Linux

C.5. Ubuntu Partitioning Programs

C.5.1. Partitioning for Intel x86

D. Random Bits

D.1. Linux Devices

D.1.1. Setting Up Your Mouse

D.2. Disk Space Needed for Tasks

D.3. Disk Space Needed

D.4. Installing Ubuntu from a Unix/Linux System

D.4.1. Getting Started

D.4.2. Install debootstrap

D.4.3. Run debootstrap

D.4.4. Configure The Base System

D.4.5. Install a Kernel

D.4.6. Set up the Boot Loader

D.4.7. Finishing touches

D.4.8. Create a User

D.4.9. Install the Ubuntu Desktop

D.5. Installing Ubuntu over Parallel Line IP (PLIP)

D.5.1. Requirements

D.5.2. Setting up source

D.5.3. Installing target

D.6. Installing Ubuntu using PPP over Ethernet (PPPoE)

D.7. The Graphical Installer

D.7.1. Using the graphical installer

E. Administrivia

E.1. About This Document

E.2. Contributing to This Document

E.3. Major Contributions

E.4. Trademark Acknowledgement

F. GNU General Public License