Installation

Getting an Installation Disc

Choosing Your Ark

Looking at the main ArkLinux website, you probably noticed references to several different downloads of ArkLinux, and you may be wondering, "Which version of Ark do I choose? Should I go with 2008.1, dockyard, or dockyard-devel?" Well, that's tough to say, but we can give you the options available:

• 2008.1 is our latest "Official" release, and has significant improvements over previous releases (2007.1, and before). While it is a bit outdated (we are working hard on a newer release), we cans ay with confidence that it supports AHCI SATA drives where our previous releases did not. If you want, you can easily upgrade from 2007.1 to 2008.1 (see our Upgrading to 2008.1 Without A CD page for details).
• Dockyard-devel is for beta testers only, it is a development version and can sometimes be unstable; it is even more unstable than normal right now because of Ark's transitioning from KDE3 to KDE4. It's highly likely there are many bugs right now so unless you're a developer or a beta tester, it is not recommended for daily use at the moment.
• We are keeping several of our older releases around for historic reasons. If you would like to explore the past of Ark Linux, feel free to download one of these. However, due to these not supporting all of the latest hardware, they may not work on newer computers. We definitely recommend using a newer release if you do not need an older release.

If you are new to Ark and wish to check it out, also available is:

• LiveCD is a special version of ArkLinux, based on 2007.1 (we will make a new LiveCD with our next release), that allows you try out ArkLinux without needing to install on your computer. Just leave the CD in and use it! Just keep in mind it will run slowly, as all data comes from reading the CD. If you enjoy Ark, please download an installer from the options above.

All of these versions come as a single file, called a CD Image, or a ISO File (because the filename ends in .iso). When you click download, it will download this ISO file. Note that these files are the size of a CD, about 700 MB, so be prepared to let it download for a while, depending on your internet connection speed.

When the download finishes, you should use the MD5Sum listed on the download page to verify that it downloaded correctly. Basically, a MD5Sum is a long alpha-numeric string of text that is generated by examining a file. The MD5Sum, in theory, will be unique to each file, and can change if one mistake is made during download. Some CD burning programs can verify the MD5Sum for you, but most will not. If you use Windows, you can download MD5Summer, a program that will allow you to select the ISO, paste in the MD5Sum on the download page, and compare the two. Keep in mind that calculating the MD5Sum can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes depending on your computer, but it can help ensure you aren't about to use a bad ISO.

Burning the CD Image

Once you choose a version of Ark, and have downloaded the ISO, you must write (or burn) this image to a CD for use. You may burn this file with any program that can write an ISO image to a CD. If you are using Windows, here is a short list of options:

• ImgBurn (Good for low RAM systems)
• CDBurnerXP Pro
• ISO Recorder

You cannot simply copy this file to a disc, though. The ISO file is like a ZIP file that acts like a digital version of a CD, so it must be burned in a special manner. This is easy to do though, as the programs above have special options called something like "Burn CD Image To Disc...". You must choose this option or you will not get a working CD! Also, make sure you use the option to "Verify" the CD; this will make it go back through and check for mistakes during the burning process. If you are having trouble with verifying, go to whoever made your program for help. If it is burning correctly but you still have problems, check for help in the Forums or Live Support.

The Installation Process

Once we have our CD, we need to make sure your computer is set to boot from a CD. Since each computer is different, I can't give specific instructions for your computer. The most I can do is tell you to hit the setup key when you first turn on the computer (this is usually either F1, F2, DEL (or Delete), or ESC (or Escape) depending on your computer). Some computer will display instructions on how to enter setup, so watch for them. When you manage to boot into the installer CD, this is the first thing you'll see:
File:Installation1.png
This should be the first screen you'll see. Nothing special here, we can usually just press the Enter or Return key at this point to proceed to the actual installer, or just wait several seconds and it will assume that you don't want to do anything here and will proceed automatically to the installer. There are, however, several options we can try here:
swap=512
This sets the swap partition size to any size in megabytes that you specify during install. The swap partition is like virtual RAM. Macintosh user may relate this to Virtual Memory while Windows users might relate this to a Pagefile. If you don't specify any number here, it will go for several options by default: If you have more than 768MB of RAM, the swap will be 128MB. If you have less than 256MB RAM, the swap partition will be 512MB minus how much RAM you have. Note: As of the 2008 release, if you have 1GB of RAM or more, the swap partition will be 256MB by default, and if you have less than 1GB RAM, the swap partion by default will be 1GB minus your amount of RAM.
cpu=i586
This is used to specify what kind of CPU you will be using. Although this is generally unnecessary (the installer can detect your CPU on it's own), it can be useful if you plan to stick your hard disk in a different computer after installing. Possible options are: i586 i686 athlon pentium2 pentium3 pentium4
acpi=off
Most newer computers come with a feature called ACPI-a feature that is used for power management and low level interupt routing (there is no need to worry if you don't know what this means). For older computers, however, this either does not work right (for example, it will enter power management mode at the wrong time, may hang at certain points, certain services may not work correctly, or hardware may not work correctly (despite the correct driver being installed)) or does not come on the computer. Specifying acpi=off will optimize the installer for an older computer.
apm=off
APM (Advanced Power Management) does the same thing as above for older computers. However, depending on when your computer was made, it may have both on it. Sometimes turning this off will allow the correct ACPI features to work.
nousb
On some older computers, the generic USB drivers that come with Ark do not work. If this is the case (maybe you're having trouble using your USB mouse in the installer and need to switch to a PS/2 or serial mouse), nousb will cause the installer not to load the USB drivers.
vga16
On some older video cards, the generic vesa video card driver does not work. Specifying vga16 will cause the graphics to not look so good, but should work on older video cards. This is only needed on really old video cards, the vesa driver should work if your computer was made after Y2K.
fs=jfs
This specifies a different Filesystem and is only useful for power users. In short, a Filesystem is how your computer stores files on your hard disk. The default if you don't specify this option is jfs because of it's speed (though not as fast as others), security, stability, self-maintenance, and journaling ability (journaling means that it keeps track of where each file is in a journal, practically eliminating the need to defragment). Possible options are, ext3, jfs, xfs, and reiserfs
When you are done entering the desired options (if any at all), press the Enter or Return key. The next thing of importance that we should see is:
800px
Basically, you use the left button on your mouse (or touchpad) to select your desired language, keyboard layout, and time zone. Then, click Continue. We should next see some possible install options:
800px
There are four possible options here:
System Install
This will erase ALL data on your hard disk, so back up any important files first! This is, however, probably the easiest way to install Ark because it requires the fewest mouse clicks. Make sure your hard disk is at least 3GB big! Also, make sure to remove any flash drives or floppy disks as the data on these will be erased!
Express Install
This is only possible if you have unpartitioned free space (that is, a part of your hard disk not formatted or devoted to another Operation System). It will format any unpartitioned space for use with Ark. Make sure you have at least 3GB of unpartitioned space! It should also configure your GRUB(the boot loader, basically what displays a list of installed operating systems when you turn on your computer) to display other installed operating systems
Parallel Install
This is only possible if you've got Microsoft Windows installed on a FAT (File Allocation Tables) partition. It will be able to shrink down a FAT partition and configure GRUB (the boot loader, basically what displays a list of installed operating systems when you turn on your computer) to display all installed operating systems. Make sure to shrink your FAT partition down enough that you have at least 3GB of available hard disk space!
Expert Mode
This is only recommended for people who have experience with programs like Partition Magic and QtParted. It allows you to modify your hard disk's partition layout. Please make sure to include swap space as specified in the swap= option and a partition at least 3GB big!
On my computer, I selected a System install. This is the next screen I saw:
800px
It is formatting my hard disk for Ark. Afterward, it will start installing Ark onto the computer:
800px
It may pause for a moment before, during, or after the install. This is normal. It just means that it is processing some information before continuing. While you're waiting, you can play Tetrix (a Tetris clone):
800px
When it's done installing, it will let you know with an on-screen notification:
800px
If you would like to continue with your game of Tetrix, click OK (note that you will have to manually turn off the computer or push the reset button when you're finished). If you're done with Tetrix (or do not wish to finish your current game), click I'm Done, and the computer will reboot into your newly installed Ark system (Note: There is a glitch in the current installer that cause I'm Done to not reboot the computer, so you will have to manually restart the computer)!

After you click I'm Done or shut off the computer/push the reset button and the computer reboots, please remove the CD immediately or your computer will reboot into the installer. If you accidentally leave the CD in too long, simply shut off the computer and turn it back on, making sure to remove the CD the second time around.