Linux is a powerful operating system beloved by coders and capable of breathing life into old Macs. In this feature we look at how to install Linux on a Mac - including how to completely replace.
This in depth guide will take you every step of the way through installing Ubuntu Linux on your Mac, by way of VirtualBox – a free and outstanding program . Using this method you’ll be able to run Ubuntu and OS X at the same time!
The following guide uses Ubuntu 15.04 (“Vivid Vervet”), but the steps and screenshots are nearly identical for Ubuntu 14.04 (and 14.04.02, “Trusty Tahr”) – the previous LTS release, and Ubuntu Kylin 16.04.2 LTS – the current LTS. Whether you’re installing 14.04, 15.04 or 16.04, you’ll have no trouble following along.
Using this method to install Ubuntu not only allows you to run it and OS X at the same time, you can really try out Ubuntu – and if you don’t like it – very easily get rid of it. Plus, it will not affect the files in OS X itself at all. None of the data on your Mac is at risk of being deleted or altered. The entire process is actually quite straightforward – and all of the software involved is free – so why not give it a shot :)
- Before you get started, there are a few things that should be noted up front.
- Depending on the speed of your Internet connection, it might take a while to download Ubuntu. During the actual installation process, based on the version of Ubuntu you opt to install – you may have to spend some time downloading updates as well
- The installation time is about 20 minutes, depending on the speed of your Mac, amount of memory etc. You may want to make yourself a cup of coffee or tea before you start
- Running both Ubuntu and OS X at the same time will “slow down” your Mac. The more memory you have, the faster your CPU and/or hard drive is – the less you’ll notice it
Let’s get started!
- First up, head over to the Ubuntu download page and download the 64-bit version of Ubuntu. From that page you’ll be able to download either “Ubuntu 14.04.2 LTS” or Ubuntu 15.04 (to download 15.04, scroll down a bit). No matter which version you opt to download, select the 64-bit version, and remember – using this guide, you’ll have no trouble installing either version – the steps and screenshots are almost identical. Remember where you saved the file!
- Now you’ll need to download and install VirtualBox. Visit their download page and click the link titled “x86/amd64” next to VirtualBox 4.3.28 for OS X hosts (which is the current stable version). Once the download has completed, open the .dmg file and run the installer. When the very straight forward installation is done, launch VirtualBox from your Applications folder.
- When VirtualBox opens, click the New button.
- Give your “virtual machine” a name (something descriptive is good, but it doesn’t matter). Make sure the Type: is set to Linux and the Version: is Ubuntu (64 bit). Then click the Continue button.
- Now you’re going to decide how much memory (RAM) you’re going to allocate to Ubuntu when it’s running, and how much to leave for OS X. As illustrated in the screenshot below, my total RAM is 4GB, so I allocated half of it to Ubuntu, and the other half to OS X. The more memory you give to Ubuntu, the faster it will run. The drawback is that OS X will have less to use while Ubuntu is running. At a minimum, give Ubuntu at 1GB (1024MB) of RAM. When you’ve decided how much memory (RAM) to give Ubuntu, click the Continue button.
- On the Hard drive screen, select Create a virtual hard drive now and then click Create.
- Now select VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image) and click Continue
- Select Dynamically allocated and yep – you guessed it – click Continue
- Give the “VirtualBox Disk Image” a name (again, doesn’t really matter, but descriptive is always helpful). Use the “slider” to determine the size you want to make the “hard drive” for Ubuntu. At a minimum, you’ll want to select 6GB – and that will not allow for you to install many programs, let alone store files etc. Keep in mind that because you selected “Dynamically allocated” in the previous step, that does not mean that VirtualBox is going to take up that space right away. It means that as Ubuntu needs more space, it will allow the “hard drive” to increase up to whatever size you set at this step.
As illustrated in the screenshot below, I opted to give Ubuntu 8GB. That’s enough for the installation and to install quite a few programs. Since I won’t be “storing” many files in Ubuntu (movies, pictures, music etc) – 8GB will suit my needs. Plus, I have a small hard drive on my MacBook Air. If you have a big hard drive, you might as well allocate more rather than less, again – the space won’t be used until it’s needed. After you’ve made your selection, click Create.
- Almost time to install Ubuntu! Click the Start button.
- Right away you’ll be prompted to locate a file. Click the “folder” icon next to menu that says Empty (see screenshot below).
- Navigate to the Ubuntu .iso file that you downloaded all the way back in step #1. Select it, and click Open
- Now click Start
- As Ubuntu boots for the very first time, VirtualBox will ‘pop up’ little messages explaining how the keyboard and mouse will work with your new ‘virtual machine’. Read them, then click the little X to close them.
- Finally! Click Install Ubuntu
- Ubuntu will run a quick test to ensure your computer is capable of running on it. Once it’s passed those tests, make sure to place a check in both of the boxes – Download updates while installing and Install this third-party software – then click the Continue button.
- Select Erase disk and install Ubuntu. NOTE: this is not going to ‘wipe out’ or erase any data in OS X. None. It is safe to click Install Now, so do just that.
- Click Continue
- When prompted, select your Time Zone and then click Continue
- Select the keyboard layout and language you want, then – yep – Continue
- Fill in each field with the required information. When you’re done, Continue
- Now it’s time to sit back and relax with that cup of coffee or tea. This may take a bit.
- Yay! It’s done! Click Restart Now
- If Ubuntu doesn’t start loading, and you’re left at a screen with what looks a bit like gibberish, have no fear. Click the OS X “Close” button (the red one in the upper left corner).
- Select Power off the machine and click OK. You’ll be left back at the window illustrated in step #10. Just click the Start button again.
- And you’ll boot into Ubuntu! Enter your password when prompted.
- Welcome to the Ubuntu Desktop! At this point you should be connected to the Internet and completely ready to go – have fun!
Update: Rufus New version arrived. Pete Batard/Akeo released a new version of Rufus i.e. Rufus 3.5 with new features, updates and enhancements. Get the Rufus download link at bottom of this post to download Rufus 3.5 version.
Download Rufus 3.5 Free ISO Software
Reliable USB Formatting Utility i.e. RUFUS 3.5 is a free and open source utility program allows you to make a bootable USB for Windows, Linux and other operating systems. Rufus bootable USB tool works well with all versions of different operating systems like Windows, Mac, Fedora and Linux. The latest version of Rufus free ISO Software unveiled with good features and a better interface.
Rufus software is truly fast and two times faster than the Windows 7 USB download tool, UNetbootin or Universal USB Installer while making a Windows 7 bootable USB from ISO file. It is also faster while creating a Linux bootable USB from an ISO file.
Tests performed by users indicate that the procedure of making a bootable ISO image on a USB flash drives carries about 30% less time than Rufus alternatives.
Rufus does not need installation and is quite easy to start. When you run Rufus, It detects your USB flash drive automatically. If you want to create a bootable USB Drive; Download Rufus utility and Run it. Now select your USB drive you need to use and partition option – it’s worth mentioning that Rufus also works with a bootable UEFI drive, MBR Partition scheme and GPT boot.
If you want more configurations, Rufus allows you to set configurations like the file system, Partition Scheme, cluster size, quick format etc. Additionally, this software also adds certain advanced format options that assist your drive to work well with older desktops.
Key Features of Rufus 3.5 Free Download
Following are the key features of Rufus free download.
- Rufus Format USB flash drives, pen drives and supports commonly used NTFS, FAT, FAT32, exFAT, ReFS and UDF file system.
- Available as free Rufus executable and portable software.
- Rufus portable is Ready to use. No installation required but creates some registry keys in the registry.
- Rufus is Available in 39 different languages with an easy and user-friendly interface.
- The advanced option in Rufus includes a check device for bad blocks and can calculate MD5, SHA-1 and SHA-256 checksums of the ISO file.
- Rufus is Two times faster than UNetbootin USB bootable software, Universal USB Installer and Microsoft’s official Windows USB/DVD Download Tool.
- Rufus Supports DOS bootable USB drives and also creates UEFI or BIOS bootable USB drive as well as UEFI bootable NTFS
- You can create bootable drives from ISO files of Windows, Linux and Fedora etc. by using Rufus.
Install Windows 10 by Using Bootable USB Drive
Installation of an operating system from a USB drive is fast as compared to from a DVD. If you’re planning to install an operating system like Windows 10 ISO or Linux from an image file, there is a need to create a bootable USB drive.
There are many programs like built-in Command Prompt, Microsoft’s official Windows USB/DVD Download Tool etc. available to create a USB drive but these programs are slow and not working well while creating windows 10 ISO file bootable.
So this time around, I tried another fast and high profile USB bootable software, Rufus.
How to use Rufus for Linux?
Download Rufus 3.5 and open the program. Now by using a user-friendly interface of Rufus for Linux, select the desired USB flash drive, partition scheme, file system and cluster size. You can even do more configurations if you required.
What type of files does Rufus Support?
Rufus works well with standard and compressed .iso files of the Windows operating system and Linux distributions. Additionally, it runs smoothly with a number of raw disk image files. It also supports GRUB boot loader.
Is Rufus Portable Version available?
Yes, Rufus 3.5 portable is also available. It saves and transfers the user’s specific settings when transferring from one device to another.
Can I Make a VHD Drive for Use With Rufus?
This tool is often used along with Windows Virtual Disk Drives in both the VHD and VHDX versions. Individuals who are working with Windows 7 or later can make VHD drives quickly for many different kinds of applications.
Linux Operating System Download Iso
Why can’t I find my USB drive in Rufus?
For many who are dealing with an error while trying to use their USB flash drives should download the latest version of Rufus and enable the List USB Hard Drives option in the advanced options panel. Moreover, remember that Rufus doesn’t support non-flash drives.
Linux Download Free For Mac
Windows 10 reports that Download Rufus ISO to Bootable USB Windows Includes Virus and malware.
Rufus is trusted and totally free from viruses. However, people who want to discredit our work reported it to windows 10 defenders which transform results in false positives. Download Rufus 3 .1 with new timestamps to fix it. If anyone still identifies a problem in Rufus ISO to bootable USB Windows should contact the Rufus official developer.
Does Rufus application Modify Windows registry?
Yeah, Rufus requires to modify registry keys to save certain types of data. If you’re using Rufus portable then it will temporarily create registry keys. Rufus really needs it to examine the software functionality and check for new updates.
What is the Rufus Bootable Supported File Systems?
Rufus bootable facilitates file systems like FAT, FAT32, NTFS, exFAT and UDF.
What are the functions performed by Rufus Format options?
Rufus format option can check device for bad blocks/ sectors. You can
Quick format your USB flash drive with Rufus portable and executable tool. You can also make extended label and image files – to help the display of worldwide labels and the making of autorun.inf.
What Is Linux
Download Rufus for Windows and Mac
How To Download File From Linux Machine
Download Latest release of Rufus 3.5 USB bootable software by press the download button. Rufus is fast and simple to make USB drive bootable for Windows 10. For more free and open source USB bootable software and applications keep visiting winwares.