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So you’ve finally installed Linux and you’re ready to make it your go-to operating system (or at least explore it to find out if it’s a worthy replacement). You might find the OS to look pretty easy to use out of the gate. Depending on the desktop environment you’ve chosen (such as GNOME, Plasma, Budgie, Pantheon, Cinnamon, etc.), it probably has all the bits and pieces you’re used to.
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So, what are the first post-install steps you should take with Linux? I have a list I run through before diving in too far. This list should make using Linux even easier than it already is.
Let’s check out that list.
1. Update the system
Very often, there will be updates available after the installation. This is the first thing I always do. You might find a new kernel to install, security patches, or software updates. This should be considered a regular task (I do it daily). If the desktop doesn’t automatically prompt me to install updates, I’ll open the GUI app store or do it through the command line. No matter how you accomplish this task, place it at the top of your to-do list so it’s always the first thing you do after installing the OS.
2. Install the applications you need
This is self-explanatory. But here’s my pro tip for keeping track of the apps you use: I keep a list of all the apps I use on Google Keep, so I always have access to them. I don’t want to spend time trying to remember all of the apps I use, only to find out later that I forgot one. Sure, they’re easy to install but it’s always good to have that list at the ready.
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Even better, if you install your apps via the command line, you can create a list of the required commands in Google Keep, and then just copy-paste them. For example, you could have a single command to install all of apps you get from the standard repository, like this:
sudo apt-get install gimp libreoffice chromium geary virtualbox mattermost audacity vlc -y
You could then have a command to install all of the snap packages you need like this:
sudo snap install spotify slack trello-desktop
You can do the same thing with Flatpak apps, dnf, pacman, zypper, etc.
3. Permanently mount drives
With every desktop computer I use, there are always multiple external drives attached to the machine. Some of those drives are external and some are added inside the case. It doesn’t matter where those drives live, just that I always have access to them. This can be a bit tricky, depending on your distribution of choice, but if you’re using either GNOME or Plasma, you can take care of this with a GUI.
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For example, in GNOME, you open Disks, select the drive to be automatically mounted, and make sure “Mount at system startup” is checked. You might also want to create a specific mount point for the drive, so you always know where it is.
4. Install a dock
If the desktop environment I’ve chosen (such as GNOME) doesn’t include a dock, I’ll install one. I much prefer a dock over a standard desktop panel because I have better control over the look and feel. For GNOME, you can always install the Dash To Dock extension, which works great. You could also install Plank, Cairo Dock, Latte, or KSmoothDock.
My personal favorite is Cairo because it has so many options for configuration. Many of these docks can be used, regardless of what distribution you’ve chosen. Do keep in mind, however, that some distributions (such as elementaryOS) already include a dock and you might not want to double up.
5. Install media codecs
This can be a bit challenging, depending on your distribution and the codecs you need. However, if you don’t install them (or your distribution doesn’t install them for you), you might not be able to play the media you want. On Ubuntu (and Ubuntu-based distributions), you can simply install the ubuntu-restricted-extras package (from the Multiverse repository). In Fedora-based distributions, the codecs are found in the RPMfusion repository.
6. Enable universal package managers
This is another must for me. There are apps I depend on from both Snap and Flatpak, so I make sure both universal package managers are installed on my distribution. Every distribution can use Flatpak but not all support Snaps. One of my deciding factors for distribution choice is if it supports both. If you’re on a distribution that includes Snap but not Flatpak, you can install Flatpak with a command like:
sudo apt-get install flatpak -y
For Snap, the command would be:
sudo apt-get install snapd -y
7. Set up a backup
Next, I always set up a backup of specific drives. It doesn’t matter what backup you use (such as Deja Dup, rsync, Pika Backup, etc), only that you make it happen. I typically only back up specific directories (such as Documents and/or Public) because those are where I store the fires/directories that need to be backed up.
Also: My top 5 user-friendly GUI backup tools for the Linux desktop
8. Create a network share
Because I access files from all machines on my network, I share the ~/Public directory on my desktop. Depending on your distribution of choice, this could be as simple as right-clicking the directory and sharing it from either Network Share or Properties (here’s how from different GUIs). If your distribution doesn’t include such a feature, you’ll need to set up Samba from the command line. You can also set up guest access to that directory.
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Either way, if you need to share a directory to your network for either authenticated users or guests, Samba is the way to go. And if you find your desktop’s file manager doesn’t include the ability to create a share, make sure to check and see if there’s an available extension. For example, the GNOME Files file manager (aka “Nautilus”) has the nautilus-share extension, which can be installed with:
sudo apt-get install nautilus-share -y
9. Lock it down
Some Linux distributions ship with the firewall disabled. I always recommend enabling it immediately. Depending on your distribution, this could be quite simple. For example, in Ubuntu, the command to enable the firewall is:
Once you’ve done that, no traffic can get into your desktop unless you explicitly allow it with UFW. For example, you could allow SSH traffic through like this:
10. Install the SSH server
Because I always need to be able to access my desktop remotely, I install the OpenSSH daemon, which makes this possible. For example, on Ubuntu-based distributions, the command for this is:
sudo apt-get install openssh-server -y
Once I’ve done that, I might also configure the desktop machine to use a static IP address, so I don’t have to worry about the address changing on me. If you go with a dynamic address it can change on you, which means you’d have to find out the new address before you can make the connection. Keep it static and you’ll always know how to SSH to that machine.
Also: 5 tips for securing SSH on your Linux server or desktop
And those are the first things I always do after installing Linux. All of the above shouldn’t take you more than five or ten minutes and, once finished, you’re ready to take on anything.
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