Arch Linux

Preparation of installation image

Note

Linux systems can be installed almost anywhere: on a desktop, laptop, USB drive, or even a phone (if the distribution supports it). The installation process is roughly the same, but some differences matter. For example, when installing Arch Linux as a second system, you may need to manually configure efibootmgr. Dual boot setup also differs between BIOS and UEFI.

What you need:

• A USB flash drive
• The system ISO file
• A program to write the ISO image
• A machine where Arch will be installed

This guide assumes Arch will be the primary operating system.

First, download the system image from the official Arch Linux website using your preferred method. We recommend using a torrent client.

You can write the image with tools like:

• Rufus
• Balena Etcher
• UltraISO

In this example, we use Rufus. After downloading the image, open Rufus and configure:

• Device: Select your USB flash drive.
• Boot selection: Choose Disk or ISO image and select the Arch Linux ISO path.
• Partition scheme: Select MBR.
• File system: Select FAT32.
• Cluster size: Leave as default.

Danger

All files on the USB drive will be erased.

Click Start. In the pop-up window, select the option that mentions ISO.

After the process is complete, connect the USB flash drive to the target machine. Enter BIOS and disable Secure Boot (you can enable it again after installation). Boot from USB, choose Arch Linux install medium, and wait for the system to load.

Installation

Setting up a wireless network

If you are connected via wired Ethernet, test connectivity:

ping archlinux.org

If you get a response, networking works. If not, required services may not have started. Try restarting or re-creating the installer image.

For Wi-Fi, use iwctl:

iwctl

Then run:

1. List available wireless devices:

   device list

Identify your wireless interface (for example, wlan0).

2. Scan for networks:

   station wlan0 scan

3. Show available networks:

   station wlan0 get-networks

4. Connect to a network:

   station wlan0 connect {network}

Enter the password if prompted.

5. Check status:

   station wlan0 show

Then confirm connectivity:

ping archlinux.org

Disk partitioning

Two common partitioning utilities are:

• fdisk
• cfdisk

This guide uses fdisk.

First, identify your disk.

Danger

Disconnect unnecessary disks to reduce risk of selecting the wrong disk.

List disks:

fdisk -l

Configure your target disk (example):

fdisk /dev/nvme0n1

Create three partitions:

Partition	Size	Type
boot	1G	EFI system
swap	8G	Linux swap
root	Remaining space	Linux filesystem

Press p to list current partitions.

Press n to create a new partition. Keep default partition number and first sector, then set last sector to +1G for boot.

Repeat for swap (for example +4G to +8G) and use the remaining space for root.

Danger

SWAP is recommended if your machine has less than 8 GB of RAM.

After creating partitions, press w to write changes.

Archinstall

Now run:

archinstall

You should see the installer menu.

Suggested settings:

Locale

Select your preferred locale (for example en_US or ru_RU).

Note

Press ? to search quickly.

Disk configuration

• Select Manual Partitioning.
• Select your disk (for example nvme0n1).
• For the 1G partition: assign mountpoint /boot, mark for format, set filesystem to fat32.
• For the root partition: assign mountpoint /, mark for format, set filesystem to ext4.
• Select Confirm and exit.

Bootloader

• Select GRUB.

Hostname

Enter your system name (you can keep archlinux).

Root password

Set and confirm a root password.

User account

• Add username and password.
• Confirm superuser privileges (sudo) with Yes.

Profile

• Select Type.
• Select Desktop.
• Choose KDE Plasma.
• Choose sddm.

You can keep graphics driver as default (All) unless you need a specific one.

Network configuration

• Choose Use NetworkManager.

Additional packages

Add useful tools, for example:

nano firefox btop

Timezone

Choose your timezone.

Note

Press ? to search quickly.

Audio

Select pipewire.

Install

• Select Install.
• Confirm Yes and wait.
• When asked to continue setup in chroot, select Yes.

GRUB configuration

Check if Arch boot entry exists:

efibootmgr

Install GRUB to EFI:

grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --recheck

If successful, you should see Installation finished. No errors reported.

Re-check boot entries:

efibootmgr

Reboot:

reboot

Dual-boot

If you need to add a Windows boot entry, become root first:

sudo su

Install os-prober:

pacman -S os-prober

Edit GRUB defaults:

nano /etc/default/grub

Uncomment or set:

/etc/default/grub

GRUB_SAVEDEFAULT=true
GRUB_DISABLE_SUBMENU=y
GRUB_DISABLE_OS_PROBER=false

Save and exit (Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter).

Check for Windows Boot Manager:

os-prober

Generate GRUB config:

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

If there are no errors, reboot:

reboot

Linux goodies

Application	Description
Blue Screen of Life	Menu styled like the Windows Blue Screen of Death, but family-friendly
Arch Linux Gangster Edition Plymouth theme	Windows XP boot screen styled as gangster
macOS Boot Splash Style	Apple-style minimal boot splash
Plymouth Themes	A pack of multiple boot animations