Installing Ubuntu Server

Boot from your USB drive

If you are installing Ubuntu Server on a physical machine, insert the bootable USB drive into the USB port of your system. If you are installing Ubuntu Server on a virtual machine, attach the Ubuntu Server ISO image to the virtual machine.

• Power on your system and press the appropriate key to access the boot menu. THe key to access the boot menu varies depending on the manufacturer of your system. Common keys include F2, F12, ESC, or DEL. For more details, on how to boot from a USB drive, please refer to our guides on bootable USB drives, listed in the prerequisites section.

Install Ubuntu Server

1. Power on the virtual machine and select Try or Install Ubuntu Server from the boot menu.

2. Select your preferred language and press Enter.

3. Select your preferred keyboard layout and press Enter.

4. On the Choose the base for the installation screen, select Ubuntu Server and press Ender.

5. If you wish to configure a static IP address, which is highly recommended for servers, use the arrow keys or tab to navigate to the interface you wish to configure. The interface name will be displayed in the format enp0s3 or ens3. Select the interface and press Enter, from there select Edit IPv4 and press Enter one more time.

   • From the dropdown menu, select Maual. Enter the IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and Name servers. Once you have entered the required information, use your arrow keys or tab to select Save at the bottom of the windows and press Enter. Next, select Done and press Ender.

6. This guide will not cover proxy configuration, or archive mirror configuration therefore, on this and the next page, select Done and press Ender.

7. On the Guideed storage configuration screen, leave the default option Use an entire disk selected. If you have multiple disks, you can select the disk you wish to use for the installation, from the dropdown menu. Once you have selected the disk, select Done and press Enter.

8. The Storage configuration screen will display a summary of the changes that will be made to the disk. For more advanced storage configurations, please refer to the official Ubuntu Server documentation (opens in a new tab). Select Done and press Enter. Next, select Continue and press Enter.

9. On the Profile configuration screen, enter your name, server name, username, and password. These details will be used to create the first user account on the system. Once you have entered the required information, select Done and press Enter.

10. Skip the Upgrade to Ubuntu Pro screen. Select Done and press Enter.

11. If you wish to use the OpenSSH server, select Install OpenSSH server using you spacebar. You may also import SSH keys from GitHub or Launchpad. Once you have made your selection, select Done and press Enter.

12. On the Featured server snaps screen, you can select additional snaps to install. We will not be selecting any additional snaps for this guide. Select Done and press Enter.

13. The system will now begin installing. Once the installation is complete, select Reboot Now and press Enter. The system will reboot.

14. Once the system has rebooted, you will be prompted to log in. Enter the username and password you created during the installation process.