Ian Murdoch Archives | Ricmedia PC Help

Debian Linux, aka The Universal Operating System, is a Linux distribution created by Ian Murdoch in 1993 that has since become one of the most widely deployed Linux distro’s in the world, and for good reason. Debian has a massive repository of 50,000+ software packages, supports a range of CPU architectures including x86, x64, ARM, mips, PowerPC, and has become extremely popular in web server environments using the standard LAMP stack. Debian is also the engine behind more well-known Linux distro’s like Ubuntu, Knoppix and 126 others.

Today I will show you how to download and install Debian, just follow the steps below and remember that further below, there is a slide show with all the screenshots for each step.

Download and Burn Debian

Before we download Debian, you need to figure out if your target machine is x86 or x64 architecture, if you’re unsure, download the x86 (i386) version, otherwise download the x64 version if your hardware supports it because it will perform far better. Also, please remember that by installing Debian you will lose all data on the target machine’s hard drive, that includes personal files, music, video, everything unless you have previously backed up to an external device. Once you’re sure you’ve backed up your data (if necessary) follow the steps below:

Download via BitTorrent
If you don’t already have a BitTorrent client, download qBittorrent and install
We’ll only need to download the first CD/DVD as Debian will download any other software as it installs
For server installations (no desktop), download either i368 (x86) or amd64 (x64)
- For x64, choose the CD-1 .torrent file, ie debian-X.X.X-amd64-xfce-CD-1.iso.torrent
- For x86, choose the CD-1 .torrent file, ie debian-X.X.X-i386-xfce-CD-1.iso.torrent
For full desktop installations, download either i386 (x86) or amd64 (x64)
- For x64, choose the DVD-1 .torrent file, ie debian-X.X.X-amd64-DVD-1.iso.torrent
- For x86, choose the DVD-1 .torrent file, ie debian-X.X.X-i386-DVD-1.iso.torrent
Take note of the download location (most of the time it will default to your Downloads folder)
You will need a disc image burner app to burn the ISO to CD/DVD, I recommend Free ISO Burner, IMGBurn or ISO Recorder
Open your burner app and burn the ISO image to a blank CD or DVD (see instructions here)

Install Debian

Now it’s time to install Debian on your target machine.

Turn the target machine on and insert the CD/DVD, then reboot
Hit the F12 key to bring up the boot menu and choose your DVD drive, or enter BIOS to set boot options
Debian will boot into the main menu screen, you can now follow the screenshots and captions below:

Configure your keyboard (most of you should leave this at default American English)

Debian will now load components... — Debian will now load components…

Choose a Hostname for your machine, best to make it descriptive so you can recognize it on your network

Choose a network name, this can be anything you like, ie. debian.network or deb.net

Enter a name for the main user, most likely your own first name

Best to leave the suggestion the Debian provides

Enter a strong password for your new user account

Choose your state or province to setup the clock

Leave at the default Guided - Use entire disk option — Leave at the default Guided – Use entire disk option

Leave at the default highlighted option sda

Leave at default All files in one partition option

Select Finish partitioning and write changes to disk option

Select Yes to the Write changes to disk? question

Debian will now install the base system, which should take about 5 to 15 minutes

Select No to the Scan another CD or DVD? question

Select Yes to the Use a network mirror? question

Now select a mirror, if you're unsure, select the first result — Now select a mirror, if you’re unsure, select the first result

Debian will now download apt package manager files

This option is entirely optional, if you want to send anonymous stats then select Yes otherwise select No

I suggest you select only Debian desktop environment and Standard system utilities and leave all other options unchecked

Debian will now download required software packages and install them

It maye take some time to install software depending on your Internet connection speed and machine hardware

Select Yes to Install the GRUB boot loader option

Select /dev/sda/ for Device for boot loader installation question

Debian will now install the GRUB boot loader

Installation is now complte, remove the disc from your DVD drive and click Continue to reboot

The first Debian bootup screen, jst leave at default and Debian will continue to boot after 5 seconds

Enter your user password (not root password)

Summary

So now you should now how to install Debian, congrats! If you ran into any trouble, just leave a comment and I’ll answer you asap.

Debian really is the Universal Operating System and is by far my favorite Linux distro. Linux is funny like that, the different flavors tend to suit different personality types (I’m not a big fan of Fedora type distro’s). I have used Debian for so many projects and it’s incredibly versatile, runs solid as a rock. Hope you enjoyed the guide.

Cheers, Richie