How to install Linux Mint 20 from USB

Linux Mint 20 (Codename Ulyana) is the latest LTS release of Linux Mint desktop. Linux Mint 20 is an elegant and easy to use desktop that is arrived with more developments and new features to make the desktop experience more comfortable. we will explain how to install Linux Mint 20 from the USB drive.

Consider the following basic requirements before installing Mint.

• The system should have at least 1 GB RAM (2GB recommended)
• The system should have at least 20 GB Disk space
• The system should have a stable power source or battery
• You will require a bootable Linux Mint 20 USB drive

Installing Linux Mint 20 from USB

Follow the below steps to install Linux Mint 20 from a USB drive.

Step1: Download Linux Mint 20 ISO

You will need to download Linux Mint 20 setup from its official website. Open Linux Mint official website and download the iso file.

https://www.linuxmint.com/download.php

Click any one link which you want to install as shown below. I click on Cinnamon.

After clicking on the link below page will show. Here you can see information bout the OS.

Now, Click on your appropriate location from the download mirrors list and it will start downloading of ISO.

Step2: Create a bootable USB drive

For creating a bootable Linux Mint 20 USB drive, you will require a USB drive of least 4GB space. You can create a bootable USB on any running system.

Create a bootable USB in Windows OS

If you have Windows OS, you can easily create a bootable using the Rufus utility. Follow the below steps to create a bootable USB drive in the Window system.

1. Plug-in the USB drive to your system.
2. Download Rufus installer from https://rufus.ie/ website and run it.
3. From the Device field in the Rufus window, select the USB drive.
4. To the right of the Boot selection field, click the SELECT button to browse the Linux Mint 20 .iso file.
5. Select the GPT or MBR as a partition scheme.
6. Leave other fields as default and click the START button to write Linux Mint ISO to the USB drive.

When the following dialog appears, make sure the Write in ISO image mode is selected and click OK.

Now Rufus will start writing the Linux Mint ISO to the USB drive. This process will take a while, after which the bootable Linux Mint 20 USB drive will be ready to use.

Create a bootable USB in Linux OS

If you have a Linux system, you can easily create a bootable USB using the below steps.

First plug-in the USB drive to your system. Now, We need to install UNetbiitin in our system. Open the given link https://unetbootin.github.io in the new tab and click on Download (Linux) option as shown in the below image.

Now click on option as per your configuration and it will start the downloading.

Now, we will go to the directory using the below commands when UNetbootin is located.

$ cd Downloads/

Use ls to list out all files in the current directory.

Use the below command for giving permission to file.

$ sudo chmod +x ./unetbootin-linux-*

Before using UNetbootin we need to download p7zip. Using the below command we will install p7zip.

$ sudo apt-get install p7zip-full

After installing the p7zip use the below command to run UNetbootin.

$ sudo ./unetbootin-linux-*

After executing the above command the blow image will show.

Now, you will boot a USB using two ways, 1. Distribution, 2. Diskimage.

Distribution: Let UNetbootin fetch the Select Linux Distribution files from the internet to put on your USB.

    1. Select a Linux Distribution

    2. Select a specific Version

    3. Make sure the correct USB Drive is detected and click OK.

Diskimage: Browse to an ISO and have UNetbootin copy its contents to your USB.

    1. Browse to the ISO Image you would like UNetbootin to put on USB

    2. Make sure the correct USB Drive is detected and Click OK

Once the UNetbootin installer has completed, click Reboot Now.

Step3: Configure the system to boot from the USB drive

Some systems boot from the bootable USB drive automatically. However, if it does not boot automatically, you will need to go into the BIOS to tell the system to boot from it first. Restart your system and enter into BIOS mode (based on your machine, press Del, F2, F10, or F12 key to enter into BIOS mode). BIOS menu varies for different systems. In the BIOS menu, look for something like Boot menu, Boot order, or Boot device, etc. Then modify the boot sequence to boot from USB disk. Once done, reboot the system.

Step4: Install Linux Mint 20

Now the system will boot from the USB drive, and you will see the following screen. Select the first option and press Enter.

Now your live session of Mint will be started. On the desktop, you will see the “Install Linux Mint” CD icon. Click on it to start installing Linux Mint on your system.

Following installation wizard will appear. Choose your preferred language and click the Continue button.

Now select the keyboard layout and click the Continue button.

If you have an internet connection, you can install multimedia codecs right now. Check the box Install multimedia codecs and click the Continue button.

Next, in the Installation type window, select the Erase disk and install Linux Mint radio button. It will erase the entire disk, and all your files or programs will be deleted from the disk. Then click the Install Now button.

Now the following dialog will appear asking if you want to write the changes to the disks. Click the Continue button.

If you want to manage the partitions or specify which partitions to use, select Something else.

Linux mint requires one partition to be mounted on the root/directory.

The Linux mint operating system (without additional software or personal data) takes roughly 15GB, so give this partition a decent size (100GB or more).

ext4 is recommended. It is the most popular Linux filesystem.

Also create a swap partition. This partition is used for hibernation and as a safety buffer in case your computer runs out of RAM. Give this partition size equal to the amount of RAM in your computer.

Now in the following window, select the location and click the Continue button.

Now provide the user login details. In the first field, provide your name. Based on this name, the system will automatically suggest the computer’s name and a username. You can also change these names based on your preferences. Then enter a password and confirm it by re-entering it.

You can choose to Log in automatically; however, with this option, anyone else can easily log in to your system and access files and data.

If you want to protect the system, you should enable the password on login by selecting the Require my password to log in. With this option selected, you can also encrypt your Home folder by checking the Encrypt my home folder box.

Once you are done with the login configurations, click the Continue button.

Your name can be your real name, but it doesn't have to be. It is only used locally, in the screensaver and on the login screen.

Your username is what you log in as, and your hostname is the name of your computer on the network.

To prevent bug only use lowecase character, with no punctuation or accentuation.

To protect your personal data against local attacks (people around you, or in case your computer gets stolen), tick Encrypt my home folder.

Choose strong password.

Once the installation is finished, you will see the following dialog. Click the Restart Now button to apply the changes you have configured in previous steps. Also, remove the bootable USB drive from your system.

After the system is restarted, you will see the following Welcome window.

Now enjoy Linux mint 20.