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Ian Shields (ishields@us.ibm.com)
Senior programmer, IBM
01 Apr 2002

This article highlights the key requirements and steps for getting Red Hat Linux 7.2 installed and configured on your workstation or laptop. With our suggested installation, you can explore Linux and get comfortable with it. This article is intentionally brief. For detailed information, please refer to the online Red Hat Linux Installation Guide (see the Resources in this article) or to the Red Hat Linux documentation on your installation CD.

The recommended machine configuration is at least a 500 MHz Pentium II® machine with at least 5 GB of available disk space and 512 MB of RAM. To install Linux on a workstation or laptop running Windows, start with step 1. Or to install Linux on a workstation or laptop with no operating system on it, skip to step 2.

1. To install Linux on a machine with another operating system in place, you will need a dual boot environment and approximately 5 GB of free disk space.

   If you have less than 5 GB available, you will need to install an additional drive or carve the space out of your existing drive using a free utility such as FIPS or a commercial product such as PartitionMagic. (The FIPS utility does not work with NTFS-formatted drives.) Repartitioning a drive involves some risk, so be sure to back up your data before repartitioning. For more info on these utilities, as well as tips on partition planning and setting up a dual boot environment, see Resources.

   If you're already familiar with Linux or if you have only a small amount of disk space available, you may wish to customize your installation to install fewer features. For example, you may wish to install either the GNOME or KDE desktop, rather than both (step 8).

2. Make sure that your machine is capable of booting from a CD. If your machine is not capable of booting from CD, please refer to the section on alternative boot methods in the Red Hat Linux Installation Guide (see Resources). You may have to set startup options in your BIOS to enable booting from the CD drive.
   
   
3. Boot your Linux distribution CD. Press Enter to install or upgrade your Linux system in graphical mode. Select your language, keyboard, and mouse type. For install type, choose Workstation if you are on a desktop machine or Laptop if you are on a laptop.
   
   
4. For partitioning, choose the option to have the installer automatically partitioned for you. You can edit the choices before the installation continues. When the partition table is displayed, you will see entries for three Linux partitions: a small /boot partition, a large / (or root) partition, and a swap partition that should be about twice the size of your installed memory. If you have a large amount of free space on your disk, you might want to reduce the / partition size to about 5 GB. The /boot partition may not be required if your BIOS can handle booting from any partition on your hard drive.
   
   
5. Choose your boot loader. For a dual boot system we strongly recommend that you do not install a Linux boot loader in the master boot record (MBR). You'll be able to create a boot diskette from which to boot a new Linux system. When you are comfortable with Linux and with dual boot systems, you can come back and install a boot loader to eliminate the need for booting from diskette.
   
   
6. Proceed through network and firewall configuration. If you are already behind an adequate firewall, select "no firewall" to make it easier to configure other services such as file sharing. Otherwise, you will need to remember your firewall when configuring services that communicate outside your system. Select the additional languages you would like to support and select your time zone.
   
   
7. Choose a root password. We suggest that you create a user account at this time (use the root account only for system administration tasks). Both user names and passwords are case sensitive. It is common in UNIX and Linux systems to use lowercase user names.
   
   
8. We suggest that you install both the GNOME and KDE desktops. As a developer you'll also want the software development packages. We'll leave the choice of games and entertainment up to you. If you are experienced, you can choose individual packages at this point. If you do decide to install individual packages, please see the article "Installing prerequisite Linux packages" for additional packages you will need to install. For our purposes, it's easier to simply choose the package groups.
   
   
9. Make sure that your graphics configuration matches what the Linux install has detected, and correct it if necessary. The software installation will now commence. Expect this process to take 15 to 30 minutes depending on the speed of your system.
   
   
10. When the package install completes, you'll see an option to create a boot diskette. We strongly recommend that you do this even if you have installed a boot loader in the MBR.
    
    
11. Choose your monitor type and choose a default desktop, either GNOME or KDE. You will be able to switch later and see which you prefer. We suggest using the graphical login rather than the text login.
    
    
12. When the installation is complete, the installation process will shut down, eject the CD from the drive, and reboot your system. If you did not install a boot loader in the master boot record you will need to boot from diskette. The first time you boot Linux, you may see a prompt to verify information about hardware such as sound cards.
    
    
13. At the login prompt, log in using the user account you created in Step 7, and explore your system. If you did not install the additional prerequisite packages in step 8 above, please see the article "Installing prerequisite Linux packages" before installing the IBM trial software.

Congratulations! Red Hat Linux is now installed, configured, and ready for your use. You'll find additional resources for using Red Hat Linux and IBM middleware to develop Linux apps at the Speed-start your Linux app training and tech support page.

Resources

• Participate in the discussion forum on this article. (You can also click Discuss at the top or bottom of the article to access the forum.)
  
  
• Get details on installing Red Hat Linux in the online Red Hat Linux Installation Guide or the Red Hat Linux documentation on your installation CD.
  
  
• For partitioning software, check out FIPS, a free utility, or PartitionMagic, a commercial product.
  
  
• For introductory tips on setting up a dual boot environment, read Operating system flexibility: Setting up a multi-boot machine with Linux and other operating system (developerWorks, December 2000).
  
  
• For advice on partition planning, see Partition planning tips: How to keep things organized on disk (developerWorks, May 2000).
  
  
• To add prerequisite Linux packages that are typically not installed during most standard Linux installations, see "Installing prerequisite Linux packages".
  
  
• For help in doing tasks in Linux, review the "Basic tasks for new Linux developers".
  
  
• To learn how to use the vi editor to edit in Linux, take the tutorial "vi intro -- the cheat sheet method" (developerWorks, December 2000).
  
  
• To develop your proficiency in using the Emacs editor to edit in Linux, take the "Living in Emacs" tutorial (developerWorks, July 2002).
  
  
• Return to Speed-start your Linux app for additional training and tech support resources.
  
  
• Find more Linux articles in the developerWorks Linux zone.
  

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