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Arch Linux Installation Guide

for Laptop "Cera"

by Paul Moffat - 211021

Guide Notes (230304)

This is a web-adaption of the original guide I created in 2021 using Microsoft Word which I then printed to hardcopy for personal reference.
This was created to support a new installation of Arch Linux for a new laptop computer (Cera) that replaced my previous PC (Serena) after it was stolen.
The laptop came pre-installed with Windows 10 Home, only supported one internal storage device, so effectively this installation of Arch Linux was to replace Windows on this computer.
The existing drivers and installation software found within root folders on C:\ were backed up (in the event I needed to reinstall Windows 10) and then Windows 10 prepared otherwise to be discarded.
After having my PC stolen along with all its external hardware including all the external storage/backup devices (which were completely open & unprotected), I decided to research and utilise disk encryption within this installation of Arch Linux. This was the first time I had ever used disk encryption on any core installation of any operating system.
With the above in mind and after a period of research I decided to utilise LVM virtual partitions with LUKS encryption.
I also realised the error in my judgement with how I had decided to utilise the Swap Partition in my previous installation of Arch. Creating an oversized swap partition that wasted gigabytes of harddisk space in the guise of "future-proofing" the system was in hindsight a terrible idea on my part. Because of the various and high storage capacity of the devices in my PC it didn't really cause any immediate storage availability issues, but this laptop only had one 1TB SSD so disk space in this circumstance was a valuable resource I had to be careful with.
With the above in mind I decided to change my tack and start utilising a small initial 2GB swap file that could be increased in size as/if required. The fact this swap file could be resized quite easily provided the future-proofing I wanted but in a more efficient manner. I'll admit that up until this install I was a bit hesitant to use swap files as I had always used swap partitions for all my past linux installs. It is what I knew, it had worked so I was a bit resistant to the change, despite the various online recommendations I had read over the years promoting swap files. But hey, I got there in the end :)

Partitions Overview

Partition 1 - EFI

Size 500 MB

Type 1 (EFI System)
Partition 2 - BOOT

Size 500 MB

Type 136 (Linux extended boot)
Partition 3 - SYSTEM

Size All Remaining Free Space

Type 43 (Linux LVM)

Size	500 MB
Type	1 (EFI System)

Size	500 MB
Type	136 (Linux extended boot)

Size	All Remaining Free Space
Type	43 (Linux LVM)

Partition 3 - SYSTEM will be further partitioned into root and home sub-partitions using LVM. No swap partition will be created. A minimal 2 gig swap file will be created which can be resized as required.

Installation Instructions

BIOS

Make sure UEFI is ENABLED in the BIOS before beginning the setup/installation process!

Networking

Initialisation

Initialise DHCP Client	`# dhcpcd`
Verify Available Network Devices	`# ip addr show`

Configure Wifi Access using Internet Wireless Control Utility

Start IWCTL	`# iwctl`
List Available Wireless Network Devices	`device list`
Scan For Available Wireless Access Points	`station <DEVICE> scan`
Get List Of Available Wireless Access Points	`station <DEVICE> get-networks`
Connect To Available Wiress Access Point	`station <DEVICE> connect <SSID>`
Exit IWCTL	`CTRL`+`D`

Verification

Verify Wifi Interface Availability	`# ip addr show`
Verify Internet Connection Availability	`# ping -c 5 8.8.8.8`

Disk Configuration (UEFI with Encryption)

Create Physical Disk Partition Table

Verify Disk Device ID Intended to Install Arch onto	`# fdisk -l`
Configure Device Partitions using fdisk	`# fdisk /dev/<DEVICE>`
Verify Existing Partition Table	`p`
Create New GPT Partition Table	`g`

Create EFI Partition (500 megabytes)

New Partition	`n`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 1	`ENTER`
First Sector - Accept Default	`ENTER`
Last Sector	`+500M`
Remove Existing Type (if asked)	`y`
Create New Type	`t`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 1 (if asked)	`ENTER`
Choose Partition Type "EFI System"	`1`

Create BOOT Partition (500 megabytes)

New Partition	`n`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 2	`ENTER`
First Sector - Accept Default	`ENTER`
Last Sector	`+500M`
Remove Existing Type (if asked)	`y`
Create New Type	`t`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 2	`ENTER`
Choose Partition Type "Linux extended boot"	`136`

Create System (LVM) Physical Partition (all remaining free space)

New Partition	`n`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 2	`ENTER`
First Sector - Accept Default	`ENTER`
Last Sector	`ENTER`
Remove Existing Type (if asked)	`y`
Create New Type	`t`
Partition Number - Accept Default of 3	`ENTER`
Choose Partition Type "Linux LVM"	`43`

Finalise Physical Partition Table

Verify the Partition Table	`p`
Write the Partition Table (save)	`w`
Quit fdisk (if required)	`q`
Verify Changes to Disk	`# fdisk -l`

Format Startup Physical Partitions

Format EFI Partition	`# mkfs.fat -F32 /dev/<device>1`
Format BOOT Partition	`# mkfs.ext4 /dev/<device>2`

Configure LVM Partition

Encrypt LVM Physical Partition	`# cryptsetup luksFormat /dev/<device>3`
IGNORE Warning	"Warning: Locking Directory ... is missing!"
Open LVM Physical Partition	`# cryptsetup open --type luks /dev/<device>3 lvm`
Create Physical Volume	`# pvcreate --dataalignment 1m /dev/mapper/lvm`
Create Volume Group	`# vgcreate vg0 /dev/mapper/lvm`
Create Root Logical Volume	`# lvcreate -L 50GB vg0 -n lv_root`
Create Home Logical Volume	`# lvcreate -l 100%FREE vg0 -n lv_home`
Activate LVM Kernel Module	`# modprobe dm_mod`
Scan Volume Groups	`# vgscan`
Activate Volume Groups	`# vgchange -ay`

Format LVM Logical Partitions

Format ROOT Partition	`# mkfs.ext4 /dev/vg0/lv_root`
Format HOME Partition	`# mkfs.ext4 /dev/vg0/lv_home`

Prepare System Drive

Mount ROOT Partition	`# mount /dev/vg0/lv_root /mnt`
Create HOME Directory	`# mkdir /mnt/home`
Create BOOT Directory	`# mkdir /mnt/boot`
Create ETC Directory	`# mkdir /mnt/etc`
Mount HOME Partition	`# mount /dev/vg0/lv_home /mnt/home`
Mount BOOT Partition	`# mount /dev/<device>2 /mnt/boot`
Create EFI Directory	`# mkdir /mnt/boot/EFI`
Mount EFI Partition	`# mount /dev/<device>1 /mnt/boot/EFI`
Generate File System Table	`# genfstab -U -p /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab`
Verify File System Table	`# cat /mnt/etc/fstab`
Backup File System Table	`# cp /mnt/etc/fstab /mnt/etc/fstab.bak`

Install Arch Linux

Install OS Foundation

Install Base Packages	`# pacstrap -i /mnt base`
Transfer to Arch Installation	`# arch-chroot /mnt`

Configure Package Mirrors

Install Reflector Mirror Script	`# pacman -Sy reflector`
Set 10 Fastest NZ Mirrors	`# reflector --verbose --latest 10 --country 'New Zealand' --sort rate --save /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist`
Verify Mirror List	`# cat /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist`

Install System Packages

Install Kernel & Headers	`# pacman -S linux linux-lts linux-headers linux-lts-headers`
Install Linux Firmware	`# pacman -S linux-firmware`
Install CPU Firmware Microcode	`# pacman -S amd-ucode`
Install LVM Support Package	`# pacman -S lvm2`
Install Boot Packages	`# pacman -S dosfstools efibootmgr grub mtools os-prober`
Install Networking Packages	`# pacman -S dialog netctl networkmanager openssh wireless_tools wpa_supplicant`
Install SUDO (if required)	`# pacman -S sudo`

Install Utility Packages

Install Base Development Packages	`# pacman -S base-devel`
Install Console Text Editors	`# pacman -S emacs micro nano vim`

Configure Arch Linux

Enable Swap File Support

Create Swap File	`# dd if=/dev/zero of=/swapfile bs=1M count=2048 status=progress`
Change Permissions	`# chmod 600 /swapfile`
Create Swap Space	`# mkswap /swapfile`
Append Swapfile to FSTAB	`# echo '/swapfile none swap sw 0 0' \| tee -a /etc/fstab`
Verify Updated FSTAB	`# cat /etc/fstab`
Test Updated FSTAB	`# mount -a`
Enable Swap Memory	`# swapon -a`
Check Memory for Swap	`# free -m`

Setup Ramdisk Environment

Edit MKINITCPIO Configuration	`# micro /etc/mkinitcpio.conf`
Find the line that begins with	"HOOKS="
Between "block" & "filesystems" add	... `encrypt lvm2` ...
Generate Image for Primary Kernel	`# mkinitcpio -p linux`
Generate Image for LTS Kernel	`# mkinitcpio -p linux-lts`

Setup Locale Configuration

Open Locale-Gen Config	`# micro /etc/locale.gen`
Uncomment-Out Line	`en_NZ.UTF-8 UTF-8`
Set English Language Locale	`# localectl set-locale LANG="en_NZ.UTF-8"`
Set US Style Keymap	`# echo 'KEYMAP=us' > /etc/vconsole.conf`
Generate Locales	`# locale-gen`

Setup Grub

Install Grub onto MBR	`# grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --bootloader-id=grub_uefi --recheck`
Create Locale Folder (if missing)	`# mkdir /boot/grub/locale`
Install English Locale Messages	`# cp /usr/share/locale/en\@quot/LC_MESSAGES/grub.mo /boot/grub/locale/en.mo`
Open Grub Configuration	`# micro /etc/default/grub`
Uncomment Line	`GRUB_ENABLE_CRYPTODISK=y`
Find Line Beginning With	"GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="
At (Above) - Make First Parameter	... `cryptdevice/dev/<device>3:vg0:allow-discards`
Generate Grub Configuration	`# grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg`

Setup Networking Host

Setup Local Host Name # hostnamectl set-hostname Cera

Set Hostname File # echo 'Cera' > /etc/hostname

Verify Hostname File # cat /etc/hostname

Open Hosts File # micro /etc/hosts

Add After Comment Lines

1	`127.0.0.1 localhost`
2	`::1 localhost`
3	`127.0.1.1 Cera.localdomain Cera`

Verify Hostname # hostnamectl

Enable Network Manager Service # systemctl enable NetworkManager

Enable SSH Service # systemctl enable sshd

Setup Timezone

Set System to Use NZ Timezone	`# timedatectl set-timezone "Pacific/Auckland"`
Enable Timezone Sync Service	`# systemctl enable systemd-timesyncd`

Setup User Accounts

Set ROOT Password (VERY IMPORTANT!)	`# passwd`
Create Primary User Account	`# useradd -m -g users <username>`
Configure Primary User Groups	`# usermod -aG wheel,audio,video,optical,storage,power <username>`
Open Sudo Configuration	`# EDITOR=micro visudo`
Uncomment Line	`%wheel ALL=(ALL) ALL`

Install Graphical User Interface (GUI)

Install XORG Server	`# pacman -S xorg-server`
Install X Video Drivers	`# pacman -S xf86-video-amdgpu`
Install NVIDIA Video Drivers	`# pacman -S nvidia nvidia-lts`
Install SDDM Login Manager	`# pacman -S sddm`
Install KDE Plasma (Desktop Environment)	`# pacman -S plasma-desktop`
Install Konsole (Terminal)	`# pacman -S konsole`
Install Dolphin (File Manager)	`# pacman -S dolphin`
Enable SDDM Service	`# systemctl enable sddm.service`

Exit Installation

Exit CHROOT Environment	`# exit`
Unmount EVERYTHING	`# umount -a`
IGNORE Errors	"BUSY"
Remove/Eject	<Installation Media>

Start Arch Linux (New Install)

Reboot Computer	`# reboot`
If Arch Linux Boots Successfully	SHAKE FIST IN GLORIOUS SUCCESS!
Otherwise...	hang head in shameful defeat...