Chapter 5: Installing Linux

Hardware specifications

Host software requirements

Installing VirtualBox

Install VirtualBox on a Linux host

Install VirtualBox on a Windows host

Creating the VM

VirtualBox Manager

Configuring the virtual network

Preparing disk space

Windows

Linux

Download the ISO image

You can download the latest Fedora Xfce ISO image from the official Fedora website.

Creating the VM

  • Click the “New” button
  • Name the VM, e.g. “StudentVM1”
  • Choose your VM storage as the “Machine folder”
  • Select “Linux” as the type
  • Select “Fedora (64-bit)” as the version
  • Set memory size to at least 4096 MB
  • Click “Create”
  • Set virtual disk size to 60 GB
  • Click “Create”
  • Click “Settings”
  • Select “System”
  • On “Processor” tab, set CPUs to 2
  • Select “Display”
  • Set video memory to 128 MB
  • Select “Storage”
  • Increase the “Controller: SATA” port count to 5
  • Select “Network”
  • Select “Adapter 1”
  • Set “Attached to” to “NAT Network”
  • Click “Advanced”
  • Click the “OK” button

Boot the Fedora live image

Installing Fedora

Start the installation

Set the hostname

Hard drive partitioning

We’ll start by adding the BIOS boot partition which is required for the boot manager to work. The size of this partition is 1 MB.

Next, we’ll add the boot partition that will contain the boot manager and the kernel. The size of this partition is 2 GB.

About swap space

Types of memory

Swap

Types of Linux swap

Thrashing

What is the right amount of swap space?

Finish partitioning

Begin the installation

Set the root password

Create the student user

Finishing the installation

Exit the installer

Shut down the live system

Reconfigure the VM

Create a snapshot

First boot

What to do if the experiments don’t work

Chapter summary

Exercises

Summary