How to install Ubuntu on low memory systems

How to install Ubuntu on low memory systems (Pentium III and earlier machines, with 32-192 MB RAM).

Installing Ubuntu on any system requires at least 32Mb of memory: The text-based installer included with the alternate (install) CDs needs that much space to run reliably. Smaller memory configurations run into problems, and while not impossible, it can be very difficult to complete an installation with less than the minimum RAM requirement.

There is no practical speed requirement, although a slower processor will take more time to finish installing. Some Pentium machines will take hours to complete, simply because the CPU takes longer to finish. As a general benchmark, a 75Mhz machine finishes a command-line installation of Ubuntu 7.04 in about four hours, and a 120Mhz machine finishes in perhaps an hour less than that. 200Mhz and faster machines will see a still stronger improvement.

If you do decide to install Ubuntu on a legacy machine, be patient. There will come times when you think the machine has stopped or is hung, when in fact it's still moving, albeit at a very slow rate.

Disk space on an absolutely minimal installation can be reduced to as little as 500Mb. A fresh and clean server installation of Ubuntu 7.04 generally takes only 300Mb, although there will be minor variations on account of hardware differences.

Depending on the hardware requirements, you can expect a sparse Ubuntu system to boot to a graphical desktop on anywhere from 19Mb to 54Mb. That requirement will fluctuate with the system demands, and increase while the system is active. Swap space is crucial to low-memory machines, so don't be stingy when setting up your system.

These instructions assume you will have a working Internet connection and access to the universe and multiverse repositories. Configuring your hardware is not included on this page.

Install an Ubuntu Server

The server version of Ubuntu is a sparse command-line system, without any graphical elements. It's a text-only version of what lies underneath all the pretty visual elements. It's also the starting point for a minimal installation.

Ubuntu 6.06

To install a base system, boot from the alternate (install) CD and choose "Install a server."

Ubuntu 6.10 or 7.04

To install a base system, boot from the alternate (install) CD and choose "Install a command-line system."

Adding Repositories

Once the server install is complete, you will probably want to edit your sources.list file.

sudo nano /etc/apt/sources.list

Uncomment all official repositories by removing # at the beginning of the line. Do not uncomment the narrative portions of that file; in other words, where you see a double hash mark (##) leave those lines alone.

Now return to the command line and type:

sudo aptitude update

It's probably also a good idea to upgrade your system at this point.

sudo aptitude upgrade

Now you should be ready to install a window manager and some programs.

Preparing for Graphical Environment

The absolute minimum for any graphical environment is X.org

Edgy (6.10) and Feisty (7.04):

sudo aptitude install xorg

Dapper (6.06):

sudo aptitude install x-window-system-core

This package gives you the framework for an X session, complete with a variety of drivers and configuration files. Installing xorg (or x-window-system-core) also triggers the self-configuration sequence, so when it finishes, your hardware should be ready to use, barring any errors or incompatibilities.

It's important to note that installing xorg or x-window-system-core really doesn't leave you with much. You can start X at this point with this command

startx

but without a window manager and some software, you probably won't get much done.

Adding a Window Manager

There are many lightweight window managers that will give you better access to your system through the X layer. Each one has its own way of managing the desktop, and its own way of configuring themes and menus.

Openbox

Openbox is one of the lightest, fastest window managers available, but can take some time to configure and set up. It has its origins in Blackbox, but newer versions are complete rewrites of the Blackbox code.

sudo aptitude install openbox obconf openbox-themes

These packages and their dependencies will allow you to build and configure an Openbox system, along with a choice of themes and some configuration options.

Note: Edgy (Ubuntu 6.10) users should note a small discrepancy in obconf that might prevent it from running. You can correct that with these commands ...

cd /usr/lib
sudo ln libobparser.so.0.4.0 libobparser.so.1
sudo ln libobrender.so.0.4.0 libobrender.so.1
sudo ldconfig -X

Entering obconf in an X terminal window should now trigger the obconf dialogue.

IceWM

IceWM has a very strong following as a good, clean, fast window manager that resembles a conventional "desktop" in many ways. Among many of its perks are themes that resemble the Windows XP desktop theme -- which may be appealing to you.

sudo aptitude install icewm iceconf icepref iceme icewm-themes

When finished, you will have a number of configuration and menu options. You can start IceWM with the startx command.

Fluxbox

Fluxbox is a beautiful, highly configurable desktop system that is easy on system resources without compromising on graphical appeal. Fluxbox is the default window manager for a number of Linux distributions, probably most notable among them being Damn Small Linux.

sudo aptitude install fluxbox fluxconf

Once installed, you can start Fluxbox with the startfluxbox command. Remember, if you enjoy working with Fluxbox, you should consider Fluxbuntu as an option.

FVWM-Crystal

FVWM-Crystal is a complete set of configuration scripts which sit atop of FVWM. FVWM-Crystal has support for integrated access to music players, terminal emulators and system monitors. It boasts some of the finest eye candy available to low-end machines, and is a snap to install.

For more information about building an FVWM-Crystal desktop, check out the FVWM-Crystal page.

XFCE

XFCE is heavier than any of the systems mentioned so far, but has some added functions as a result. You can try XFCE alone if you like, but if you're keen on an XFCE installation, look into Xubuntu as an option.

Install XFCE alone, without Xubuntu, with this command:

sudo aptitude install xfce4

It's worth noting that some Edgy users have difficulty starting XFCE from a minimal install. The normal start command for XFCE -- startxfce4 -- doesn't seem to be properly configured in Edgy.

If you want the entire Xubuntu package, which includes a full suite of software and a lot of improvements, try this command:

sudo aptitude install xubuntu-desktop

That will download quite a large amount of packages; you may want to consider installing Xubuntu fresh, from the installation ISO.

Adding Functionality

Now that the graphical window manager is set up, it's time to add some necessary and recommended packages. These will add additional functionality and make using the system easier. Additionally, adding a graphical package manager will provide an easy method to manage installed applications and packages.

Login managers

GDM is the Ubuntu default for a login manager. You can add it to your system with

sudo aptitude install gdm

It has a reputation of being a heavyweight, and on a system that needs as little bulk as possible, you might find GDM to be a burden. KDM is another manager, but has the same heavy reputation as GDM.

sudo aptitude install kdm

XDM is the login manager for straight X, and while less beautiful than GDM or KDM, it can perform in the same role without fuss.

sudo aptitude install xdm

It's important to note that it's not necessary to use a login manager. If you're willing to log in at the command line and start X manually, you can save yourself a lot of system resources -- and the time it takes to load them. That can be a more appealing option on older machines.

Browsers

Web browsers come in many flavors, and the most prevalent -- Firefox -- can be laggy on low-memory or slow systems. Even the GNU version of Firefox, Iceweasel can be a bit heavy on older machines. In that case, consider Dillo as an alternative.

sudo aptitude install dillo

While not nearly as full-featured as Firefox, Dillo has the advantages of a very small footprint and few resource requirements.

iDesk

Many lightweight desktop systems use iDesk as a way of including customized, clickable icons directly on the desktop. iDesk is maintained in the Ubuntu repositories, and is installable from the command line with

sudo aptitude install idesk

Consult the iDesk wiki for instructions on how to configure and use iDesk. For icon sets, you may wish to search the repositories, or download them from third-party customization sites, such as Gnome-Look.org and similar locations.

File managers

Lightweight systems have a number of options available for graphical file management. Thunar is the default file manager in Xubuntu and many XFCE-based systems; it is installable alone with this command:

sudo aptitude install thunar

XFE is an even lighter file manager, intended to mimic the Windows Explorer interface. It has very few dependencies and is very fast.

sudo aptitude install xfe

ROX-Filer is another file management program, which makes extensive use of drag-and-drop principles. It does appear to have a large number of dependencies however, which means installing it may entail more external packages than you wish.

sudo aptitude install rox-filer

Nautilus is the default file manager for Ubuntu. It requires some more resources, but it has a lot of useful features. It can manage your desktop, show a wallpaper and desktop icons, which are automatically created for new devices (e.g. USB flash drives).

sudo apt-get install nautilus

To use it together with a window manager, execute the following command or add it to your autostart script. For example, use $HOME/.icewm/startup for IceWM.

nautilus --no-default-window &

Some other popular file managers include

• PCManFM;

• Midnight Commander, Tux Commander and Gnome Commander (which all resemble the old Norton Commander interface);

• xffm4-filemanager;

• XVFilemgr;

• and Dolphin, which is a file manager aimed at KDE and Kubuntu.

There are many others. Some are available through the repositories; others will require you to download and install them through another source. Experiment with different file managers to see which ones appeal to you.

Package manager

Add a graphical package manager to install, remove and upgrade software packages and to add repositories without using the command line. Synaptic package manager is the standard and can be installed with this command:

sudo aptitude install synaptic

You can use the package manager to add a word processor, such as Abiword, and other productivity software.

Install an entire lightweight system

Building on the ideas above, here are some complete graphical systems, installable through a single command line. Feel free to mix and match between these options.

Remember: If you are using Dapper or earlier, replace "xorg" with "x-window-system-core"

• IceWM as a window manager, plus GDM, Firefox, Abiword and the Synaptic package manager:

sudo aptitude install gdm xorg xterm icewm menu mozilla-firefox abiword synaptic

• XFCE and Firefox, with Synaptic package manager and KDM as the login manager:

sudo aptitude install kdm xorg xfce4 firefox synaptic

• Fluxbox with Dillo, and XDM as a login manager:

sudo aptitude install fluxbox xorg xdm dillo

• Openbox with no login manager, XFE as the file manager and xfce4-terminal as an X terminal, as well as Openbox themes and the Tango icon set:

sudo aptitude install openbox obconf openbox-themes xfe xfce4-terminal tango-icon-theme-extras xorg

Remember to check the repositories for more ideas on software and applications.

Low Configuration Option

For a minimalistic system that does not require as much configuration, you can install the alternate window managers after installing a full K/X/Ubuntu system, thus preinstalling much of the required software but keeping the speed.

External Links

• FluxBuntu: An Ubuntu variant with Fluxbox as the default window manager. An excellent place to start for a Fluxbox-based system.

• UbuntuLite: An early project to build a stripped-down version of Ubuntu aimed at low-end machines. The project also seems to have stalled.

• Cubuntu is not a graphical system; Cubuntu is a full-featured command line system, suitable for computers that can't handle any of the above options -- such as early Pentium or perhaps even 486-grade machines with as little as 16Mb RAM. And don't be skeptical: Even without a graphic environment, a computer can perform a lot more tasks than you would expect.