Disclaimer: Many links to external sites, such as youtube and other online guides, will be used. These were not created by the creators of this guide.
This is part 1 of a 5 part series going through the installation and application of Linux and the robotic operating system(ROS). These documents were created by Toluwani Soboyejo, Abdu-Allah Awad and Jessica Paterson. If you find mistakes in the documents please let us know so changes can be made.
You may notice that this series of guides are being hosted on GitHub. GitHub is a web-based version-control and collaboration platform for software developers. This allows us to create a space for all of the necessary documents, images and information while giving you (our readers) quick and easy access to all of that information (for free).
Key functions:
- You will notice that there is a series of 3 parrallel lines in the top left corner of the box this document is in. Press this to easily navigate through the document to the sections you need.
- if you are on a computer simply click on the clipboard to the right of the code box, after hovering over it, to copy the contents. This will be handy in the next parts of this guide.
- other than the above there isn't much more that can be explained simply in this document, so instead here are 3 links that will help you understand and use GitHub easily. It is not necessary to go through these to understand the guide, but the links are here to give you a better understanding of Git and GitHub if you need it.
- Firstly, Github's "Github guide". This will give a good idea of what Github is about, and how to use it.
- Microsoft intro to Git This is a guide for git made by microsoft.
- Git youtube tutorial This video has timestamps and a basic overview of the main aspects of Git to know.
In this guide we will be going through how to install and run Linux Ubuntu 18.04 in 3 ways.
- Via dual boot on your Personal computer(PC) - this is where you would install the Linux operating system(OS), such that it runs the Linux OS as well as your own OS. You can switch between the operating systems at reboot.
- Via full installation on your PC - this is where you would install the Linux OS as the only operating system running on your PC. Warning: this will wipe out all exiting OS, programs, files etc...
- Via a virtual machine(VM) running on your PC - here you would download VM software that emulates the Linux environment. You can also download VM's that have both Linux and the Robotic operating system(ROS) installed.
On the surface this may seem like an easy task but there are a lot of issues that you may face along the way. We will highlight some of the issues we encountered and offer solutions, so you dont have to go through the stress that unknown errors bring. Further help will be provided at the end of this guide to make using the installed linux an easy process. p.s. Ubuntu 18.04 is required to run ROS melodic, So be careful not to install the shiny new version of Ubuntu as you will have issues running ROS melodic.
It is advisable to make backup copies of all of your important files before proceeding with the download and installation of Linux OS. This could be done by creating a system restore point (search google for instructions) or by saving important files onto a USB, Google drive, or another form of your choosing.
To use either of these methods you will need:
- Your PC.
- A USB stick with a minimum storage of 4 GB (Check on USB or through PC).
- A bootable software, we personally recommend Rufus - follow this Rufus install link and select the latest stable version to download.
To use the USB as a medium to install linux, the USB must first be made bootable. This process is described below. Warning: The contents of your USB will be deleted, so make sure it is empty or you have a backup of it's content.
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Download Ubuntu 18.04 desktop image by clicking the following link: http://releases.ubuntu.com/18.04/ and selecting the appropriate desktop version for your PC. This will download a .iso file onto your PC.
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Plug in your USB drive and open the Rufus software
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Make sure that the following is selected for each section:
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Under Device, select your USB drive.
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Under Boot selection select and navigate to the .iso Ubuntu desktop image that you downloaded in step 1.
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Under Partition scheme select MBR.
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Under Target system select BIOS or UEFI.
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Click start and wait until the process is complete. You may get a prompt informing you that the disk image is an 'iso hybrid' and a recommendation to install it as a .iso image - choose the .iso image option. Rufus may also give you a prompt seeking permission to download further files - click agree/yes.
Once completed, you will have a bootable USB drive that you can use to run and install Linux.
To install the Linux operating system, you will need to have the USB drive plugged in while booting up the PC. You will also need to know which key to press to enter the Boot Menu. Once the computer has begun to start up you will need to click that key like your life depends on it.
These keys are usually either F1, F2, F10, F12 or Del. If you don't know the key you may be able to find out by googling BIOS key for [input your computer model]. Or just try each of the ones we mentioned at least once.
If your PC isn't taking you to the Boot Menu even though you are pressing the correct keys - this could be due to your PC starting up too quickly. Here are a few methods to get around this:
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Firstly, the easiest method is to click restart (on the desktop start menu) while holding the shift key. This will take you to a menu entitled Choose an option where you will need to press Troubleshoot > Advanced options > UEFI Firmware Settings and proceed to restart. This will automatically reboot the system into the BIOS/ UEFI. This is the first tip described in this video: https://youtu.be/yPLvBo5UCv0 - thankfully u only need to watch the first minute.
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Alternatively, if u wish to try frantically pressing a key again, you can stop "fast start-up" by navigating to your control panel then selecting Hardware and Sound > Power Options, then press "choose what the power buttons do" (located on the left section of the window), this will take you to the System Settings. Finally, click the Change settings that are currently unavailable, uncheck the Turn on fast start-up and click save changes. This should give you an opportunity to press the relevant keys to enter the Boot Menu.
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If the above two methods have not solved the issue then the PC can be forced to go to the menu described in the first method by turning the PC off completely through holding the power button until loss of power. Then turn on and off again once it begins to load until the computer begins to run a recovery process. usually after repeating the process 3 times. Warning: This is a last resort and it could be done a lot easier by using the first method.
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For those still struggling here is another video to help reach the BIOS: https://youtu.be/IMr5-mEbhTs.
Once you've found yourself at the Boot Menu(in the BIOS) you will either need to move the Boot from USB drive to the top of the list, or select USB drive.
If the install for linux doesn't appear and the computer still runs windows, you can temporarily disable the windows boot manager in the BIOS, then try again.
Once your PC has booted from the USB drive, you will see a purple GNU which you can use to select to boot Ubuntu.
You will be given the option to either run Linux without installation, or to install Linux. Selecting install Linux will take you to the installation guide. You can then pick to install Linux alongside your OS or to erase your disk and install Linux (this will wipe out your current OS along with any files you have such that the only thing is Linux).
Warning: We recommend choosing whether to run linux alongside your OS, or to erase the disk, before picking an option, as it will be extremely difficult to change your mind after the process is done. You have been warned!!
Wi-fi not connecting: you may find that, following installation, Ubuntu doesn't want to connect to the internet. A few solutions to this include:
- Simply restarting the computer - this could work if your Linux recognises other networks but fails to connect to them.
- Connecting the PC to your internet via a wired connection and downloading updates - once connected, open the terminal (by hitting Ctrl+Alt+T) and type into the terminal
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
- reboot the Linux.
- You may encounter an error stating: "unable to acquire the dpkg frontend lock (/var/lib/dpkg/lock-frontend), is another process using it?". If this error depicted comes up there are a few possible options to try, this link goes through each of them: https://itsfoss.com/could-not-get-lock-error/. Though it is likely you will just need to wait a while for background updates to complete.
If preparing a bootable disk and running it on your PC is too much of a hassle, then you could, alternatively, run Linux via a virtualisation on your PC. To do this, you will need to download a virtual machine such as VMware.
Note: if you are unable to use VMWare because you use an IT managed PC/Laptop and have to use VirtualBox, follow the Installing VirtualBox guide in this repo. We strongly recommend not using VirtualBox if you are new to virtual machines and have a choice, as it can be more challenging to correctly set up.
- Download Ubuntu 18.04 desktop image by clicking the following link: http://releases.ubuntu.com/18.04/ and selecting the appropriate desktop version for your PC. This will download a .iso file onto your PC.
- Download VMware Workstation Player from the following link: https://www.vmware.com/uk/products/workstation-player.html p.s. You want to download the suitable one for your current OS. For example the windows VM for a windows OS.
- Run VMware and, once it has loaded, select Create a New Virtual Machine.
- Select Installer disc image file (iso) and browse for the Ubuntu desktop image then click Next.
- Follow the installation guide - you will also be asked to specify the disk size and whether you wish for the virtual disk to be stored as a single file or as multiple files. Here you could just follow the recommended or default settings.
You may find that the virtual disk keeps crashing due to a few issues
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Not enough space on hard drive - remedied by freeing up space on your hard drive
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You have an anti virus software installed that is conflicted with VMware - remedied by changing the anti virus software
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You haven't enabled virtualisation in your Bios settings (common if you have a new computer) - reboot computer and press either the F1, F2, F4 Delete or the Esc keys.
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Too slow? - you may find that navigating the basic Linux interface is slow, this is often due to a lack of available RAM. You can attempt to allocate the VM more RAM by pressing "Edit virtual machine settings" in the VM menu (shown in the first image below). You will then be greeted with a slider (shown in the second image below) that will allow you to change the amount of allocated RAM. However, be aware that the available RAM is limited and other processes on the computer may slow down if too much RAM is allocated to the VM. This issue may also be due to having other processes running in the background, so you can also try closing all other windows and applications to improve speed.
Upon installing Linux it may seem daunting to navigate your way around, but worry not we have provided a few handy tips, directions and advice to get you accustomed to linux as quickly as possible.
As some may not have used Linux before we have prepared a few important key shortcuts that may come in handy:
- ctrl-alt-T : open terminal (can also left click in desktop)
- ctrl-shift-V: paste in the terminal
- There is also a list of all the keyboard shortcuts for linux located at Settings > Devices > Keyboard.
Sometimes after installing linux you may find that certain keys are in a differnt position to what you are used to. This may be because the linux you have installed is using a different keyboard layout.
In order to change your keyboard layout go to settings > Language and Region > Then click the '+' sign and add the keyboard in the languague of your choosing.
In the case that you have special characters in your password and are unable to login due to the change in keyboard, we will attach mappings of important keys for both the English(US) and English(UK) keyboards.
UK English keyboard:
US English keyboard:
BIOS - Basic Input/Output System: the BIOS (pronounced bye-oss) is a ROM chip found on motherboards that allows you to access and set up your computer system at the most basic level.
GNU : The GNU is an extensive collection of free software, which can be used as an operating system or can be used in parts with other operating systems.
OS - Operating system: The low-level software that supports a computer's basic functions, such as scheduling tasks and controlling peripherals.
PC - Personal Computer: a computer designed for use by one person at a time.
ROS - Robotic Operating System: ROS is an open-source, meta-operating system for your robot. It provides the services you would expect from an operating system, including hardware abstraction, low-level device control, implementation of commonly-used functionality, message-passing between processes, and package management.
UEFI - Unified Extensible Firmware Interface: provides the same functions as the BIOS
VM - Virtual Machine: A Virtual Machine (VM) is a compute resource that uses software instead of a physical computer to run programs and deploy apps.