Index:Install Gentoo Linux

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This article is part of the HOWTO series.
Installation • Kernel & Hardware • Networks • Portage • Software • System • X Server • Gaming • Non-x86 • Emulators • Misc

Image:Gentoo_tux.png

Base Install

  1. What is Gentoo?
  2. About
  3. Preparation
  4. Partitioning
  5. Configuring
  6. Stage Progression
  7. Kernel
  8. Bootloader
  9. Test
  10. Converting from or to a non-Gentoo distribution
  11. Troubleshooting
  12. Maintaining

Configuration

Base Extras

Server

Desktop

Other Articles

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Contents

[edit] Introduction

This guide is meant to serve as a user-contributed Gentoo Handbook. Since Gentoo changes faster than the official Gentoo Handbook is updated this is a great place to find and add up-to-date information on installing and configuring Gentoo for a generic audience.

This tutorial should leave the reader with both a current and stable, yet reasonably optimized, Gentoo Linux installation. A lot of initial research has gone into this, hopefully it will continue to be a source of current information. To create this document, it took filing many bug reports, visiting forums, and experiencing issues - again, hopefully, so that the reader won't have to experience these things (or at least not without a quick'n'dirty fix for the issues).

If this guide isn't the most complete and comprehensive guide you've yet to come across, by all means please add something!

If, however, you find it to be too bloated or wordy, consolidate it.

[edit] Why yet another Gentoo Install Guide?

Of the several guides on how to install Gentoo, most of them don't get you from the LiveCD to a working desktop. The guide delves has little tips and tricks throughout as well as complete sections that help you configure many of the "after-market" options left out from official guide.

This also touches on many best practice methods of doing certain operations which are touched on in several other guides, but not necessarily put together in one nice neat package.

[edit] A More Complete Guide

Here are just a few examples of howtos which are integrated into this installation guide:

  • LVM2 - Logical Volume Manager for dynamically (live) resizeable filesystems
  • Postfix local mail delivery for system messages from cron and other daemons
  • fbsplash / gensplash bootup splash screen
  • better automatic hardware detection
  • DynDNS - free Dynamic DNS for domain names (ie yourname.is-a-geek.net) on dynamic IP addresses
  • Setting up basic office hardware (Printers, scanners, etc)
  • Much much more.

[edit] Is Gentoo for me?

Gentoo is really fun and cutting edge, but it isn't for the faint of heart. If you're looking for a quick'n'easy distro then you're in the wrong place.

Let's take a short test:

  1. Do you have a lot of free time on your hands?
  2. Do you want to have bleeding-edge technology at your fingertips?
  3. Do you have a strong interest in learning about the internals of Linux?
  4. Do you want a package management system so good that Microsoft is after it?
  5. Do you want to develop problem solving skills that will enable you to work on any Linux system?
  6. Is it acceptable if, on occasion, updating your system breaks core functionality such as graphical login capability? (Note that this rarely ever happens to the average gentoo user, but rather only those that tinker - which is a hefty portion)
  7. Are you AWESOME?!

If you answered Yes to most of these questions Gentoo is probably the best choice of Linux distribution for you.

If you answered No to a few of them or have a bad experience with Gentoo but would still like to use Linux I would recommend that you try Ubuntu Linux.

[edit] Requirements

You can run Gentoo on a PC with 8MB of RAM and no hard drive if you really want to (you'd have to build it on another PC though), but for a reasonable desktop system you will need a fairly fast PC,

For Example:

  • Athlon XP at 1300 MHZ
  • 256 MB RAM
  • 15 GB Hard Disk
  • DSL / Cable / T1 (Broadband) Internet connection.

[edit] Soon to be Current?

Here are some technologies that have not yet made it into this guide, but should in the near future. Keep an eye out.

[edit] See Also

[edit] Installation

[edit] Backup

[edit] Kernel

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