To install Fedora Server we will need a USB stick and to download the ISO from the official Fedora website. We will write the ISO to the USB and start the operating system installer. We'll configure our installation and let the wizard do the rest. The guide assumes that you will prepare the installation media from a Linux operating system. If you are doing this from Windows, you can try using the Rufus tool and its guide: https://rufus.ie/.
Caution
Before starting make sure to backup the data on the USB stick as it will be formatted and all the data on it will be lost!
Caution
Before starting make sure to backup the data on the server disks as these will be formatted and all data on them will be lost!
- Go to https://fedoraproject.org/server/download and download the "Network Install" ISO for your architecture (normally x86_64). If you want, you can verify the file signature with the hash on the same page.
- Insert the USB stick and determine the device using
lsblk
. Find the USB stick in the list and write down the name, for examplesdc
. - If your system mounted the USB automatically, unmount with
sudo umount /dev/sdc*
. - Write the ISO to the USB with
dd if=./Fedora-Server-netinst-x86_64-39-1.5.iso of=/dev/sdc bs=8M status=progress
. Set the address to the ISO file in the command. - Remove the USB stick and insert it into the server. If the server is on, turn it off.
- Turn on the server and access the BIOS (try the F2 or Insert key or read your motherboard manual).
- Disable Secure Boot if it is active. Each BIOS is different so consult your manual to find the option.
- Select the option to boot from USB. If you can't, try changing the order of boot devices and putting the USB before other disks. Save and restart. The Fedora installer should start. If not, try changing the boot order again.
- Select "Test media & install Fedora".
- Select the language of your preference and Continue. The guide will assume English.
- If you want to use another keyboard layout, click
Keyboard
and select one or more layouts. PressDone
to return to the main menu. - If you want to install more languages, click
Language Support
and select one or more languages. PressDone
to return to the main menu. - Click on
Time & Date
and choose your region and city to select your time zone. Make sure you enableNetwork Time
. PressDone
to return to the main menu. - Click on
Software Selection
. Fedora Server Edition
should be selected by default, if not, select it. InAdditional Software
you don't need to select anything, but if you like you can install whatever you want. PressDone
to return to the main menu.- Click
Network & Host Name
and set theHost Name
. The guide will useserver.lan
but you can use another name. PressDone
to return to the main menu. - Click on
User Creation
. Enteradmin
inUser name
(if you want to use another name, use another one, but the guide will assumeadmin
and you will need to adjust files in the future with the name you choose). Do not uncheck any boxes. - Enter a strong password and confirm it. Press
Done
to return to the main menu. - Click on
Installation Destination
and configure the partitions. The guide assumes that nothing else will be running on this server and will wipe all partitions. If you know what you're doing and want a different setup, skip the steps below and configure the partitions however you want.- Select only the SSD as the installation disk.
- Select
Advanced Custom
inStorage Configuration
. ClickDone
- Select the only disk and delete all existing partitions.
- Add new EFI partition.
- Click
Add New Device
. Device Type
must bePartition
.Size
must be 512 MiB.Filesystem
must beEFI System Partition
.Label
must beEFI
.Mountpoint
must be/boot/efi
.- Accept.
- Click
- Select
free space
. - Add boot partition.
- Click
Add New Device
. Device Type
must bePartition
.Size
must be 512 MiB.Filesystem
must beext4
.Label
must beboot
Mountpoint
must be/boot
.- Accept.
- Click
- Select
free space
. - Add LVM.
- Click
Add New Device
. Device Type
must beLVM2 Volume Group
.- Use all remaining space.
Name
must beroot-vg
.- Enable
Encrypt
. - Set a password for the disk and confirm it.
- Accept.
- Click
- Select
root-vg
. - Add swap.
- Click
Add New Device
. Device Type
must beLVM2 Logical Volume
.Size
should be 2 to 8 GiB depending on how much space on the SSD and RAM you have.Filesystem
must beswap
.Label
must beswap
Name
must beswap
.- Accept.
- Click
- Select
free space
. - Add root partition.
- Click
Add New Device
. Device Type
must beLVM2 Logical Volume
.Size
should be the remaining space.Filesystem
must beext4
. If you preferbtrfs
you can change it.Label
must beroot
.Name
must beroot
.Mountpoint
must be/
.- Accept.
- Click
- Click
Done
. Review the changes and Accept if they match the previous steps.
- Click on
Begin Installation
. Let the installer do its job. - Click
Reboot System
to reboot. - Enter the BIOS again.
- Change the startup order again and put Fedora at the top of the list. Save and exit.
- Enter the disk's password.
- From your computer (not the server) connect remotely with SSH
ssh admin@server
- Install git:
sudo dnf install -y git
. - Download this repository:
git clone https://github.com/JurgenCruz/HomeServerSetup.git
. - Delete the .git folder:
rm -rf HomeServerSetup/.git
. - Move everything up one level;
mv HomeServerSetup/* ./
- Update the system:
dnf up
. - Shut down the server:
shutdown
.