Linux Towers

1

Download the Linux Mint ISO

Linux Mint offers three desktop editions: Cinnamon (the flagship, feature-rich), MATE (lightweight, classic), and Xfce (very light, great for old hardware). For most new users, Cinnamon is the recommended choice.

💡 Tip Always download from the official Linux Mint website or a trusted mirror. Verify the ISO checksum after downloading to ensure file integrity.

Navigate to the official download page and choose your edition. The download is approximately 2.1–2.3 GB depending on the edition.

# After downloading, verify the checksum (Linux/macOS):
sha256sum linuxmint-21.3-cinnamon-64bit.iso

# Compare the output with the sha256sum.txt on the website

2

Create a Bootable USB Drive

You'll need a USB drive with at least 4 GB of storage. All data on it will be erased. Use one of these tools to write the ISO image:

Windows

Rufus (recommended) or Etcher

Linux

Etcher, dd command, or Disks app

macOS

Etcher or the dd command

USB Size

Minimum 4 GB required

# Using dd on Linux (replace /dev/sdX with your USB drive):
sudo dd if=linuxmint-21.3-cinnamon-64bit.iso \
         of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress \
         && sync

⚠️ Warning Double-check the target device path with lsblk before running dd. Writing to the wrong device will permanently erase that disk.

3

Boot from the USB and Launch Installer

Restart your computer with the USB drive inserted. Access your BIOS/UEFI boot menu by pressing the appropriate key during startup:

Press F2, F10, F12, or Del during POST (depends on your motherboard manufacturer) to open the boot menu.
Select your USB drive from the boot device list and confirm.
On the GRUB screen that appears, select "Start Linux Mint" to boot into the live environment.
Once on the desktop, double-click the "Install Linux Mint" icon to launch the installer.

ℹ️ Note If Secure Boot prevents booting, disable it temporarily in your UEFI firmware settings. You can re-enable it after installation if needed.

4

Partition Your Drive

The installer will ask how you want to partition your disk. For a fresh install, choose "Erase disk and install Linux Mint". For dual-boot or custom layouts, select "Something else".

Below is a recommended manual partition layout for a 250 GB drive with UEFI:

Mount Point	Filesystem	Size	Purpose
/boot/efi	FAT32	512 MB	EFI System Partition (UEFI boot)
/boot	ext4	1 GB	Bootloader and kernel images
/	ext4	40 GB	Root filesystem (OS + apps)
/home	ext4	190 GB	User files and personal data
swap	swap	8 GB	Virtual memory / hibernation

💡 Tip Keeping /home on a separate partition makes future OS reinstalls much easier — your personal files remain untouched.

5

Complete Installation & First Boot

After choosing your partitions, the installer will copy files to disk. This typically takes 10–20 minutes. Set your timezone, keyboard layout, username, and password when prompted.

Choose your language and keyboard layout.
Set your timezone by clicking on the world map or searching.
Create your username and a strong password. Check "Require password to log in".
Optionally enable full-disk encryption (recommended for laptops).
Wait for file copy to complete, then click Restart Now.
Remove the USB drive when prompted and press Enter.

# After first boot, update your system immediately:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

# Install multimedia codecs:
sudo apt install mint-meta-codecs -y

🎉 Success! Linux Mint is installed. The Welcome Screen will guide you through recommended post-install steps like setting up backups, installing drivers, and configuring the firewall.

Installing Linux Mint: Complete Step-by-Step Guide

Download the Linux Mint ISO

Create a Bootable USB Drive

Boot from the USB and Launch Installer

Partition Your Drive

Complete Installation & First Boot