Installing Debian Etch

So you've decided that you want to try Debian? This how-to guide covers the installation of the latest version of Debian Linux, 4.0 Etch.

This guide also covers setting up a dual-boot system with Windows and Linux, however, it doesn't describe the process of shrinking a Windows partition to make room for Linux. If you have Windows installed on the entire hard drive and wish to install Linux alongside Windows, please follow Preparing a hard drive for dual-boot with Windows and Linux.

System requirements

If you plan on installing Debian on your computer, you should first ensure that it meets up to Debian's requirements. Debian's installation manual says the following:

Install Type	RAM (minimal)	RAM (recommended)	Hard Drive
No desktop	64 megabytes	256 megabytes	1 gigabyte
With Desktop	64 megabytes	512 megabytes	5 gigabyte

Even the "minimal RAM" that is shown here is not the actual lowest you can go. However, for optimal operating it is recommended that you do not go below the limits in this table.

Obtaining Debian

There are several different ways of installing Debian, two of which are covered here:

Installing Debian from a set of CDs/DVDs
Installing Debian from a NetInstall CD, and downloading packages when needed

The first option will appeal to those who either need to install everything offline, or do not possess the network bandwidth required to retrieve the various packages needed for a full Debian installation. And if you have no way of downloading anything at all, simply buying the DVD set may be a more attractive option. The NetInstall, however, has a considerable advantage over the others in that it's a rather small download compared to the 21 CD set that is required for a full Debian install. And while you must wait a while downloading the packages during the installation process, you only download the packages you actually need. One thing you should keep in mind if you're considering a NetInstall, however, is your network hardware. While Debian supports nearly all Ethernet cards, a much smaller percentage of wireless cards is supported. If you plan on doing a NetInstall over a wireless connection, test it first under Debian before attempting the entire installation.

As for actually obtaining Debian CDs or DVDs, visit the Getting Debian page.

Burning Debian

Once you're finished downloading the ISO disk image(s) of Debian, you'll need to burn them to disk. An important thing to remember for Linux newbies is that you don't want to simply burn the file to the CD or DVD. You must, repeat, must use a special ISO burning program that will burn the contents of the image onto the disk.

InfraRecorder is one such utility for Windows that will do the job, and it's completely free. To burn the image within InfraRecorder, simply insert a blank CD/DVD into your drive, and from the menu bar choose Actions->Burn Image:

In the window that pops up, choose the Debian image you wish to use, click "Open", and in the dialog that follows, hit "OK".

On a Mac, you can use the built-in Disk Utility to do ISO burning. Open it from Applications/Utilities/Disk Utility. Insert a blank CD/DVD into the drive, choose to open with "Disk Utility" if a dialog pops up. Next, drag the ISO image onto the sidebar of the application, select it, and from the toolbar hit "burn".

Booting Debian

In most cases, inserting the first Debian CD/DVD into the computer and restarting will be sufficient to get the Debian installation up and running. However, if you've got one of those computers that isn't quite behaving like you expected, you may have to go into the BIOS settings to configure it to boot properly. Unfortunately this cannot be covered here, as every BIOS interface is different, making exact instructions impossible. The main thing is to look for "Boot order" or something of that sort, and make sure that your CD drive is indeed above the hard disk(s) in the list.

Once you get it booted, it should look like the following:

In most cases, hitting "Enter" or "Return" should be enough to get the Debian Installer started.

The installation process

The first thing you'll notice about the Debian installer is that it's entirely text-based, which is not a bad thing at all. Navigating within it is fairly simple:

The arrow keys change the selection within whatever is currently focused
Use the Tab key to move the focus to different things
The spacebar selects/deselects items
The Enter key will usually confirm your choice or activate a button

Now that you know how to navigate, choose your language and hit Enter:

Next, choose your country:

Now select your keymap:

The installer will now chug away for a little bit while it detects your hardware. When it's finished, you'll be asked to give a hostname for the machine. If you're not planning to turn this into a server, it doesn't really matter, and you can always change it later.

It will now ask for a domain name. This is usually your network name. Again, if you don't have a complex network, you probably don't need this.

And now the partitioner starts up. This guide recommends doing a manual partition setup; you have much better control over your system's overall performance and less chance of the installer wiping out something you want to keep.

When you select manual partition setup, you will be presented with your partition table:

This guide creates three, separate partitions: a boot partition which is 50 megabytes, a swap partition which is 512 megabytes, and a root partition using the remaining space.

A slight problem exists with the design of the Master Boot Record, which is what holds the partition table: it can only hold 4 primary partitions. To get around this limitation partitions known as "extended partitions" are created. These can be thought of as partitions which hold other partitions within them. Partitions created within an extended partition are known as "logical partitions", and there is no limit to the number of partitions one may have within an extended partition. In short, if you currently have or are planning to have more than one operating system installed on your hard drive, you should create these Linux partitions as logical partitions.

Every partition table is different, but the important thing is that you have enough free disk space. If you don't, you'll either have to delete partition(s) or shrink them down with a special partition utility. In this example we are deleting the Windows partition to make room for Linux. To delete a partition, select it with the arrow keys and hit Enter. From the menu that comes up, select "Delete the partition" and hit Enter.

Now it should show more free space:

Here is where you begin creating partitions. Select the free space and hit Enter. A menu should pop up:

Choose "Create a new partition" and hit Enter again. Here is where some explanation is needed. First, create the boot partition, so enter "50 MB" in the text box:

You will now be asked for the type, which was explained earlier:

Then you must choose whether you want it at the beginning or end of the drive. It doesn't really matter, but putting all at the front of the drive makes a bit more sense.

Finally, you'll be presented with the Partition Settings screen. You will want to change the "Use as:" to the Ext2 file system. Ext3 is the default file system, however, it is really Ext2 with journaling capabilities, something which isn't really necessary or useful for a boot partition. You'll want to set the mount point to /boot, and lastly set the bootable flag to on. When you've done this, it should look like this:

Now hit "Done setting up the partition". You should see the boot partition listed in the partition table now. Select the free space again, and create another partition in the same manner, however, it should be around 512 megabytes. When you reach the "Partition settings" screen, set "Use as" to swap area:

And then hit "Done setting up the partition". The last partition to create, of course, it the root partition. Unless you need to save some unpartitioned space on the hard drive, let it take up any remaining space. It should have an Ext3 journaling file system, and its "Mount point" should be set to /. The defaults usually provide this, so your Partition settings should look like the following:

Your completed partition table should now look something similar to this (don't worry if the partitions aren't in the same order; it doesn't really matter):

To actually do the changes you've set up, hit "Finish partitioning and write changes to disk". You will get a screen looking like this:

Hit "Yes", and wait while it formats your partitions. You will then be asked to configure your time zone.

After completing this, it will ask for a root password. Enter it:

And confirm it:

Now you will create a regular user account. Enter your name:

You will be asked for a username. Make sure it's all undercase, as noted in the dialog box.

Enter a password for the user.

Confirm it.

The installer will then proceed to installing the base system. Once it's done this, you will be asked if you want to use a network mirror. If you're using a NetInstall CD, it is very critical that you choose yes!

If you choose yes, you'll be asked to pick a country that's close to you for fast downloading.

Then you need to pick a server that's within the country you chose.

Enter any proxy information (if necessary).

Decide if you want to let the developers know which packages you're using.

Now you get to decide which software "collections" you want to install. The standard system should be installed, as well as the desktop environment, if you're planning on using a GUI. The "laptop" collection comes with some useful utilities for monitoring disk and battery usage. And of course, if you're planning on setting up a server, you'll see that the packages are very self-explanatory.

You'll have to wait as the installer extracts packages and copies them to your hard drive. This process takes far longer on the NetInstall CD than with a set of Debian CDs/DVDs, because when you're doing a net installation, everything has to be downloaded from the Internet.

Midway through the installation, you will be asked to configure X. Go down the list of screen resolutions, hitting the space bar to select every resolution that your monitor can use.

Hit "continue", and the installation will resume. When it's done, it will bring up the GRUB boot loader installation screen, asking whether you wish to install it to the master boot record (MBR).

In nearly all circumstances you should install GRUB to the MBR, especially if you're setting up the system for dual-boot with Windows. The GRUB installer automatically detects other operating systems installed on the drive, and When it starts up at boot, it gives you a choice of booting any of the operating systems installed on your hard drive.

Once the installation of GRUB is finished, the Debian install is complete.

As suggested, remove any Debian installation media from the drives. Hit "continue", and your system will reboot. Upon booting the newly-installed system, you should get a GRUB menu that looks like this, give or take a few entries:

Choosing Debian will bring up a blur of onscreen text, and (hopefully) the login window.