How to Install Rocky Linux 8.5 (Step by Step Guide With Screenshots)

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Install Rocky Linux 8.5
Install Rocky Linux 8.5

Rocky Linux, is a brand new Linux distribution from the Rocky Linux community, led by Gregory Kurtzer, founder of the CentOS project. This distribution came up in the news after the CentOS announcement to abandon CentOS 8 stable release.

Rocky Linux community has announced the general availability of Rocky Linux 8.5, an open-source enterprise operating system derived from the source of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.5.

The community also offers a conversion tool to migrate from CentOS 8 to Rocky Linux 8. You can definitely try the conversion tool if you feel Rocky Linux is your system’s operating system.

Save your time by downloading Rocky Linux 8.5 VirtualBox/VMware images to try it out before installing it on the system.

New Features

READ: Rocky Linux 8 Release Notes

Supported Architectures

Rocky Linux provides installation media for the following architectures.

  • AMD and Intel 64-bit architectures
  • The 64-bit ARM architecture

System Requirements

At least 2 GB RAM is required to install Rocky Linux 8.5.

Download Rocky Linux 8

Click the below link to download the Rocky Linux 8.5.

Download Rocky Linux 8.5

Choose the Rocky Linux DVD ISO image for the installation.

Install Rocky Linux 8

The installation of Rocky Linux 8 is very similar to the installation of CentOS 8. So, you would not find any difficulty getting the Rocky Linux 8 ready for testing.

Boot the DVD and select Install Rocky Linux 8.5 from the boot menu.

Install Rocky Linux 8
Install Rocky Linux 8

Select the language for Rocky Linux 8 installation and then click Continue.

Select Language
Select Language

The installation summary page will welcome you with few warning messages, and you will need to clear those warnings by performing the recommended actions.

  • Localization
  • Software
  • System
  • User Settings
Installation Summary
Installation Summary

Localization

  • Keyboard
  • Language Support
  • Time & Date

Keyboard

Choose the keyboard layout that is right for you. The keyboard that tops the list will be the default layout.

Keyboard Layout
Keyboard Layout

Language Support

We have already set up Language Support.

Time & Date

Click on time and date to change the Time, Date, and Timezone.

Time and Date
Time and Date

Software

  • Installation Source
  • Software Selection

Installation Source

Leave the installation source to be Local Media.

Software Selection

Software Installation lets you choose packages you want to install along with the OS installation.

There are five predefined installation types available to prepare your system for specific requirements.

  • Server with GUI
  • Server
  • Minimal Install
  • Workstation
  • Custom Operating System (Need to choose software manually)
  • Virtualization Host

Please choose the suitable one for your installation (I chose Server with GUI) and then click on Done.

Installation Type
Installation Type

System

  • Installation Destination
  • Kdump
  • Network & Host Name
  • Security Policy
  • System Purpose

Installation Destination

Click on Installation Destination to set up partitions for the installation.

Here, I will do the custom partition to suit the below requirements (512 GB Hard disk).

You can partition your system as per your need.

Standard Partition:

/boot: 1 GB (xfs) [for BIOS System]

/boot/efi: 1 GB (vfat) [Additional FS for UEFI System]

LVM:

/home: 450 GB (xfs)

swap: 4 GB

/ (root): 56 GB (xfs) [Remaining]

Custom Partitioning
Custom Partitioning

Make sure LVM is selected, and then click the + (plus) sign to create a new partition.

LVM Partitioning Scheme
LVM Partitioning Scheme

/boot: 1 GB (xfs) [for BIOS System] 

Boot Partition
Boot Partition

/boot/efi: 1 GB (vfat) [Additional FS for UEFI System]

EFI Partition
EFI Partition

/home: 450 GB (xfs)

Home Partition
Home Partition

swap: 4 GB

SWAP Partition
SWAP Partition

/ (root): 56 GB (xfs) [Remaining]

Root Partition
Root Partition

If you are okay with the partitioning, click Done.

Partition Summary
Partition Summary

Click Accept Changes to create required partitions.

Accept Changes
Accept Changes

KDUMP

Keep the KDUMP enabled.

Network & Host Name

Click on the Network and Host Name to configure IP Address and set the hostname for your system.

Type the hostname in the Host Name field and then click Apply.

Set Host Name
Set Host Name

Then, click Configure to set up an IP Address for your system.

Configure IP Address
Configure IP Address

Enable the network connection by turning it on.

Enable Network
Enable Network

User Settings

  • Root Password (Optional)
  • User Creation

Root Password (Optional)

Set the root password. This user is the most privileged account on the system. So, set a solid password.

Set Root Password
Set Root Password

User Creation

Create a user. Ensure you have checked to Make this user administrator.

Create New User
Create New User

By now, you should not see any warnings in the Installation summary.

Click Begin Installation to start the installation of Rocky Linux 8.

Begin Rocky Linux 8 Installation
Begin Rocky Linux 8 Installation

Wait for the installation to finish.

Installation In Progress
Installation In Progress

Once Rocky Linux 8 installation is completed, go ahead and reboot the system.

Installation Completed
Installation Completed

Rocky Linux 8.5 boot menu will be something like below.

Rocky Linux 8 Menu
Rocky Linux 8 Menu

On a successful reboot, you will get a post-installation setup screen.

You will get a login screen if you have chosen to do the minimal installation. If you want, you could install GNOME desktop packages to have a graphical desktop environment.

Post Installation

Click on License Information.

Post Installation
Post Installation

Select I accept the license agreement on the license agreement screen and click Done.

Accept License
Accept License

Choose the user and log in with the password.

Rocky Linux 8 Login Screen
Rocky Linux 8 Login Screen
Login to system
Login to system

Perform the remaining steps as per your requirement.

Welcome Screen
Welcome Screen
Keyboard Layout
Keyboard Layout
Privacy
Privacy
Connect Online Accounts
Connect Online Accounts
Start Using Rocky Linux
Start Using Rocky Linux

Finally, you will get Getting Started with Rocky Linux 8.

Getting Started
Getting Started

Conclusion

That’s All. I hope you learned how to install Rocky Linux 8.

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