Setting Up

Chapter 6 — First Boot & Essential Setup

Linux is installed and you're logged in. Before you start using it day-to-day, there are a handful of tasks worth doing immediately — updating the system, checking that all hardware is working, and configuring a few basic settings. None of this is complicated, and most of it takes only a few minutes. Think of this as the "out of the box" setup you do with any new computer.

1. Run the First Update

The ISO you installed from was built weeks or months ago. Security patches and bug fixes have accumulated since then. The first thing to do on any new Linux install is update everything.

Ubuntu / Linux Mint — graphical method

A notification usually appears shortly after first login offering to install updates. If not, open the Update Manager (search for it, or find it in the taskbar/system tray). Click Install Updates and enter your password when prompted. This may take 5–15 minutes depending on how much has changed since the ISO was built.

Ubuntu / Linux Mint — terminal method

• sudo — runs the command with administrator privileges (you'll be asked for your password)
• apt update — fetches the latest list of available packages from the repositories
• apt upgrade — downloads and installs all available updates
• -y — automatically answers "yes" to any confirmation prompts

Fedora — terminal method

2. Install Additional Drivers

Even if you ticked the "third-party software" option during installation, Ubuntu and Mint have a dedicated tool for managing proprietary drivers — worth checking after the first update.

Ubuntu / Linux Mint — Additional Drivers tool

• 1
  Open Software & Updates (search for it) and click the Additional Drivers tab. On Mint it may be listed directly as "Driver Manager" in the application menu.
• 2
  The tool scans your hardware and lists any devices that have proprietary drivers available. Common examples:

  • NVIDIA graphics — select the recommended driver (highest version number without "open" or "server" in the name for general desktop use)
  • Broadcom WiFi — select the listed driver if your WiFi isn't working
  • AMD graphics — usually no action needed; open-source driver is built in
• 3
  Click Apply Changes and wait for the driver to install. Restart when prompted — driver changes require a reboot to take effect.

Fedora — RPM Fusion and NVIDIA

Fedora doesn't ship proprietary drivers by default. To get NVIDIA drivers, first enable RPM Fusion (a third-party repository):

3. Locale and Timezone

You set these during installation, but it's worth verifying they're correct — especially if your clock is showing the wrong time.

Graphical — Ubuntu / Mint

Open Settings → Region & Language to check your locale (language and date/number formats). Open Settings → Date & Time to verify the timezone and confirm that "Automatic Date & Time" (NTP sync) is turned on.

Terminal — check current settings

Terminal — change timezone

Dual-boot clock problem

If you dual-boot with Windows, you may notice that the clock is wrong after switching between the two OSes. This happens because Windows stores the hardware clock in local time, while Linux stores it in UTC. The fix is to tell Linux to also use local time:

4. Display Resolution and Scaling

Linux should detect your monitor's native resolution automatically. If the display looks blurry, text appears too large, or the resolution doesn't match your monitor's specification, fix it here.

Graphical — Ubuntu (GNOME)

Open Settings → Displays. You'll see your monitor(s) listed with the current resolution. Click on the resolution dropdown and select the highest available option — this is your monitor's native resolution. For 4K monitors on a laptop, also look at the Scale setting — 200% is usually correct for a 4K laptop display.

Graphical — Linux Mint (Cinnamon)

Open System Settings → Display. Select your monitor and choose the correct resolution. Mint also has a "Use system font size" option under Display if text appears too small.

Terminal — list available resolutions and change

HiDPI / 4K monitors

On GNOME (Ubuntu, Fedora), fractional scaling (e.g., 125%, 150%) can be enabled via:

Then return to Settings → Displays where fractional scale options will now appear.

5. Setting the Hostname

The hostname is the name your computer uses to identify itself on the network and in the terminal prompt. You set it during installation, but you can change it at any time.

Check current hostname

Change the hostname

The change takes effect at the next login (open a new terminal to see it in the prompt).

6. Creating Additional User Accounts

If other people will use the machine, each person should have their own account. Linux user accounts are completely separate — each has their own home folder, settings, and files.

Graphical — Ubuntu

• 1
  Open Settings → Users.
• 2
  Click Unlock in the top-right and enter your password.
• 3
  Click Add User. Choose the account type:

  • Standard — can use the computer normally, can't install system-wide software or change system settings. Suitable for children or guests.
  • Administrator — has sudo access; can install software and change system settings. Use for other trusted adults who share the machine.
• 4
  Enter the full name and username, set a password, and click Add.

Graphical — Linux Mint

Open System Settings → Users and Groups. Click Add, enter the details, and set the account type.

Terminal method (all distros)

7. Changing the GRUB Default OS (Dual-Boot)

If you dual-boot and find yourself always choosing Windows from the GRUB menu, you can change the default. GRUB's configuration is in /etc/default/grub.

Look for the line:

0 means the first entry in the boot menu (usually Ubuntu/Linux). To change it, either replace 0 with the number of the entry you want (counting from 0), or use saved to remember the last choice:

After editing, save the file (Ctrl+O, then Ctrl+X to exit nano) and update GRUB to apply the change:

8. First-Boot Checklist

• Run system updates — Software Updater / Update Manager, or sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
• Restart after updates if a new kernel was installed
• Check Additional Drivers — install NVIDIA or Broadcom drivers if listed
• Verify display resolution — Settings → Displays; set to native resolution
• Check timezone and clock — Settings → Date & Time; NTP sync on
• Fix dual-boot clock if time is wrong after switching from Windows — sudo timedatectl set-local-rtc 1
• Set hostname — sudo hostnamectl set-hostname your-name if you want to change it
• Create additional user accounts if others will use the machine
• Set GRUB default if you prefer Windows to be the default boot option
• Install multimedia codecs if you didn't during installation (see below)

Installing multimedia codecs (if missed during install)

If you didn't tick the third-party software option during installation, add codec support now:

9. Distro-Specific Notes

Chapter Summary