Installation of Ubuntu

Before the installation of Ubuntu you should make sure there is enough space for Ubuntu on your Hard Disk and You should have backed up all your data.With those preparations complete, you’re ready to install Ubuntu.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Boot from the CD-ROM

With your computer booted up, insert the Ubuntu disc into the CD/DVD-ROM drive. Close the

tray, and then reboot your computer.

Ubuntu is installed by booting the installation program from CD-ROM. Therefore, the first

step is to ensure your computer’s BIOS is set to boot from the CD-ROM drive. How this is

achieved depends on your particular computer, but it’s always done via the BIOS setup program.

Most PCs let you enter BIOS setup by pressing the Delete key just after the computer is first

booted, although some use another key or key combination. Review the information displayed

on your particular screen at boot time for more information.

When the BIOS menu appears, look for an option such as Boot and select it (you can usually

navigate the BIOS menu by using the cursor keys and select options by pressing Enter). On the

new menu, look for a separate entry such as Boot Device Priority or perhaps Boot Sequence.

Ensure that the entry for the CD-ROM is at the top of the list, as shown in Figure 5-1. Arrange

the list so that it’s followed by the floppy drive and then your main hard disk (which will probably

be identified as IDE-0 or First Hard Disk). You can usually press the F1 key for help on how the

menu-selection system works.

Once you’ve made the changes, be sure to select the Exit Saving Changes option on the

main BIOS setup menu. Your PC will then reset and boot from the Ubuntu CD-ROM, and you’ll

be greeted by the Ubuntu welcome screen, as shown in Figure 5-2. Press Enter to start the

installation program.

■Note In most cases, you can simply hit Enter once the Ubuntu welcome screen is displayed. This will start

the installation program and get the ball rolling. However, by hitting the F2 key, and then the F1 key (the function

keys run along the top of the keyboard), you can view a number of troubleshooting options. It’s extremely

unlikely you’ll need to make use of these, but they’re worth bearing in mind for future reference.

Step 2: Select Your Language

One of the design goals of Ubuntu is to be usable by just about anyone in the world. Ubuntu

supports a massive list of languages, and the first step in the installation routine is to select one.

It offers many eastern and western European languages, as well as

Asian languages. The default is English.

This will be your first experience with Ubuntu’s keyboard-based navigation system, and

it’s a good example of how easy it is to use. Just use the up and down arrow keys to highlight

whichever language you want to select, and then press the Enter key.

Step 3: Confirm Your Keyboard Layout

Next, you’ll be asked to confirm the keyboard layout you’ll be using. This should correspond to

your language and locale settings, and will be automatically selected, so you can just hit Enter.

If, for whatever reason, you don’t know what keyboard layout you’re using, you can opt to

discover it. Use the cursor keys to highlight “Find your layout by pressing some keys.” This will

take you through a quiz during which the installation program uses a process of logical deduction

to discover your keyboard layout.

Alternatively, if you think your choice is correct, you might want to test it by selecting the

“Test your keyboard” option. If you find the keyboard doesn’t work as expected, choose the

option to discover its layout.

Step 4: Wait During Hardware and Networking Autodiscovery

Next, you can sit back for a few moments while Ubuntu probes your hardware and configures

everything to ensure that installation progresses smoothly.

Ubuntu will also attempt to configure your network connection at this stage. It may fail in

this attempt, reporting an error relating to something called DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration

Protocol), but this isn’t a problem. Just press Enter in the error dialog box, and then use the

cursor keys to highlight “Do not configure the network at this time” (being offline won’t hinder

installation in any way).

Step 5: Set a Hostname

Following autodiscovery, you’ll be asked to set a hostname for the computer, a slightly archaic

requirement. The hostname is the name under which your computer is identified in

networking environments, as well as at the command line. (Part 4 of this book describes how to

use the command line.)

Although the hostname is essential to how Linux works, it’s not something you need worry

about. You can enter your own name or go with the default choice of ubuntu—it’s up to you!

Once you’ve made your choice, simply press Enter to move on.

Step 6: Partition the Disk

Partitioning the disk is one of the most important steps during installation although, unfortunately,

it’s one that’s also couched in difficult terminology. Ubuntu does its best to make

partitioning easy.

You have four main options when it comes to disk partitioning: install on a hard disk that

also contains Windows, install on a second hard disk, delete an existing Windows partition, or

use free space that already exists on your hard disk.

Sharing a Hard Disk with Windows

If you’re thinking of installing Ubuntu on a hard disk that has Windows on it, Ubuntu can shrink

the Windows partition to make space (provided you have enough free space.

Simply select the top option in the menu, which should read something like “Resize IDE1

master, partition #1 (hda1) and use freed space,” as shown in Figure 5-5 (what you see may vary

slightly from this).

Figure 5-5(what you see may vary slightly from this)

Following this, you’ll be prompted to type in a new size for the Windows partition. Ubuntu

will tell you the minimum and maximum sizes for this partition. On my test PC, I was told the

minimum size was 1.4GB and the maximum was 30GB. In other words, the Windows partition

had around 1.4GB of data, and I couldn’t shrink it beyond this.

You have two main considerations here: you must shrink the partition to have enough

space for Ubuntu but also maintain enough space to allow Windows to function correctly.

Although you might choose to shrink the Windows partition to its minimum size, bear in mind

that Windows needs a little spare space to write temp and system files, not to mention files for

the users, such as Word documents. At the very least, you should allow around 500MB to 1GB

on top of the minimum Windows partition size recommended by Ubuntu.

A handy hint is that you can simply type 50%. This will split the free space in half, giving

50% to Ubuntu and leaving Windows with 50%. A neat and easy compromise!

Throughout the procedure, bear in mind that Ubuntu needs around 2GB to be able to

function correctly, so you should create at least this much free space.

After the resizing, the automatic partitioning tool will take over. This automatically creates

the partitions necessary for Ubuntu. You’ll see a warning about writing changes to your disk, as

well as a warning about how data may be destroyed. If you wish, you can highlight the Go Back

option to check the choices, but in nearly all cases, the default choices made by Ubuntu are

correct, so you can simply highlight Yes and hit Enter.

Deleting the Windows Partition

Deleting the Windows partition on your main disk will remove all the data from your hard disk,

including the Windows operating system (if it’s installed). Ubuntu will then take over the entire

hard disk. If you’re happy with this choice, simply use the cursor keys to select the “Erase entire

disk: IDE1 master (hda)” choice.

■Caution Be careful not to select the option marked “Erase entire disk and use LVM.” This is an option for

a different kind of Ubuntu setup used by experts.

Following this, you’ll be asked to confirm the partitioning choices. The default options will

be fine in most cases, so simply highlight Yes and hit Enter.

Installing on a Separate Hard Disk

Installing Ubuntu on a hard disk you’ve added especially for this purpose is very similar to

installing it on the primary hard disk.

Beneath the menu option for erasing the disk should be a second similar option, along the

lines of “Erase entire disk: IDE1 slave (hdb),” followed by the name and model of the second

drive. You should select this option.

■Caution Make sure that you select to install Ubuntu on the “slave” drive. Do not select the option relating

to the master drive! Doing so will erase all the data on your primary disk, including your current Windows

installation.

Once the choice has been made, the automatic partitioning tool will step in, and you can

simply select Yes. Then press Enter to continue with the installation.

Using Existing Free Space

If you’re an advanced user who has already freed space on your hard disk using a third-party

partitioning tool, or if you deliberately set up Windows using a partition size that didn’t take up

the entire hard disk, you can simply select the “Use largest continuous free space” option.

Ubuntu will then automatically partition your hard disk, and all you need to do is confirm

that you want to write the changes to disk.

Step 7: Wait During Automated Package Copying

The next stage is the automated copying from the CD-ROM of packages, as shown in Figure 5-6.

Initially, these are copied to your hard disk. Later, they will be installed and set up.

■Note Packages are single files that contain the individual program files and data. They’re analogous to Windows program installation files.

Unlike some varieties of Linux, Ubuntu doesn’t ask you to make any choices regarding

which software you want to install. It takes a “one size fits all” approach, which means that

every installation of Ubuntu is exactly the same straight out of the box. However, you can add

or remove programs very easily once the system is up and running.

Don’t worry about the names of the packages as they flash by on the screen. Some might

seem quite strange, complicated, or even irrelevant. The way Linux works means that some

software packages rely on other software packages, so often software that will never be used

directly is installed.

Step 8: Set the Time Zone

Depending on your location, the next step may be to set the time zone for your locality, as

shown in Figure 5-7. For example, users in eastern United States will choose Eastern Standard

Time. This setting also allows Ubuntu to update your system clock to take into account Daylight

Saving Time (or similar schemes used throughout the world).

Depending on your location, you may have an option to use GMT/UTC. If you’re dualbooting

with Windows, you should decline this option because it can cause your PC’s clock to

be set incorrectly. If Linux is the only operating system on your PC, you should choose GMT.

Step 9: Set Your Real Name, Username, and Password

Next, enter your real name and your username, as shown in Figure 5-8. The real name is how

you’ll be formally identified on the system to anyone who uses the system. The standard practice

is to use your full name, including first and last names, separated by a space.

The username is how the computer itself will identify you. It’s what you’ll use to log in to

the system, for example. This needs to be unique (two users on the same computer cannot

have the same username), and there are rules about which characters you can use.

The username should be one word without any spaces in it. You can choose any username

consisting of uppercase and lowercase letters, but try to avoid symbols and punctuation, because

these can create problems later on. Additionally, the username cannot begin with an uppercase

letter, although you can use uppercase in the rest of the username.

The simplest procedure for choosing a username is to use your own first name, typed

entirely in lowercase letters. For example, when I installed Ubuntu, I typed my real name as

Keir Thomas and chose keir as my username.

Following this, you’ll be asked to enter a password. Here, the rules are the inverse of those for

your username. A good password contains numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, punctuation

marks, and anything else you can get in there! This helps make your password almost

impossible for someone else to guess, and thus makes your system more secure. (If you want to

be really secure, create a password that’s ten or more characters long.) You’ll need to enter the

password twice; the second time confirms that you didn’t make a typo the first time around.

Step 10: Install the GRUB Boot Loader

If Windows is also installed on the same hard disk as Ubuntu, you’ll be asked if you want to install

the GRUB boot loader onto the PC’s master boot record, as shown in Figure 5-9. The GRUB boot

loader is the menu that will appear when you first boot, from which you’ll be able to choose either

Ubuntu or Windows. It’s pretty essential, so you should select Yes. Then hit Enter.

Step 11: Reboot for the Second Installation Phase

Following a little more copying and installing, Ubuntu will reboot and begin the second phase

of installation, as shown in Figure 5-10. You should make sure that the installation CD is no

longer in the CD-ROM drive, and then press Enter. Note that you are now finished with the

installation CD.

Step 12: Wait During Package Installation

Following the reboot of your PC, you will see lots of complicated-looking text scrolling down

your screen. Don’t worry—this is just the standard Linux boot procedure.

Soon after this, the graphical boot process will start, and you’ll see the Ubuntu logo in the

middle of the screen with a progress bar showing how far along it is. Beneath this a list of boot

items will slowly appear as Ubuntu starts up. Again, don’t worry if some of these read “Failed”

instead of “OK.” Error messages when Linux is booting aren’t necessarily bad things, as they

are with Windows! Often, they’re just telling you something that you might want to take note of

but that you can otherwise ignore.

After the boot process has finished, package installation will start. This will take anywhere

between 15 and 30 minutes, during which time you’ll see a progress bar on screen, as shown in

Figure 5-11.

Step 13: Configure Your Monitor

Toward the end of the package installation, you may be asked to set the resolutions for your

monitor, as shown in Figure 5-12, although this depends on your hardware setup. In many

instances, Ubuntu will choose the correct settings and not bother you.

If you are prompted for this information, you’ll need to choose not only the main day-today

resolution, but also any other resolutions that you might want to use occasionally, such as

lower resolutions.

You should consult your monitor’s manual to find out its optimal resolution, although

Ubuntu will make a guess that’s probably correct. Generally speaking, most 15- and 17-inch

traditional CRT monitors run at 1024×768 resolution, while 17-inch LCD screens will most

likely run at 1280×1024. If you have a 15-inch or 14-inch LCD screen, it will most likely run at

1024×768. Most modern notebook screens also tend to run at 1024×768.

Use the cursor keys to highlight the relevant option and, if it’s not already selected (there

isn’t an asterisk there), press the spacebar to select it. Note that the list will scroll when you

reach the bottom. When you’re finished, use the Tab key to select OK, and then hit Enter.

Following this, package installation will continue for a bit longer.

Step 14: Boot for the First Time

When installation has finished, the system will boot straight into the Ubuntu login screen