Hey guys! So, you're looking to dive into the world of Linux and you've set your sights on Arch Linux, huh? Awesome choice! Arch is known for being super customizable and giving you a ton of control over your system. And if you're looking for a modern, stylish desktop environment, you've probably heard of Hyprland. It's a Wayland compositor that's all about that smooth, tiled window management vibe. In this guide, we're gonna walk through how to install Arch Linux and get Hyprland up and running. Don't worry, it might seem a little intimidating at first, but we'll break it down step by step, making it as easy as possible. Let's get started!

Prerequisites: What You'll Need Before You Start

Before we jump into the actual Arch Linux installation with Hyprland, let's make sure we've got everything we need. Think of this as gathering your tools before starting a project. First things first, you'll need a computer, obviously! Any relatively modern x86_64 architecture computer should work. Then, you'll need a USB drive – 8GB or more is recommended. This is where we'll put the Arch Linux installation image. You'll also need a working internet connection. During the installation, Arch Linux will download packages, so you'll need to be connected to the internet, either through Ethernet or Wi-Fi. Finally, it's highly recommended to have a backup of any important data on your computer. While the installation process generally won't touch other drives, it's always better to be safe than sorry. We can't stress this enough: Back up your stuff!

Now, let's gather the software tools you'll need. You'll need to download the Arch Linux installation ISO image from the official Arch Linux website. It's important to download this from a trusted source to ensure you're getting a clean image. You can usually find the latest ISO on the Arch Linux download page. Next, you'll need a tool to create a bootable USB drive from the ISO image. There are several options available, and the best choice often depends on your operating system. For Windows, Rufus is a popular and user-friendly choice. For macOS and Linux, Etcher (also known as balenaEtcher) is a great option. These tools will handle the process of writing the ISO to your USB drive, making it bootable. With these tools and a bit of patience, you will successfully start with your Arch Linux installation with Hyprland. Remember, the key is to have all the components and tools at hand before starting the process. This will help you to run through the process without issues and efficiently.

Creating a Bootable USB Drive

Alright, now that we've got our ISO and our USB drive, let's get that installation image onto the drive and make it bootable. This step is super crucial because this is how we're going to start the Arch Linux installation process. First, insert your USB drive into your computer. Make sure you don't have any important files on the drive, as the process will wipe it clean. Next, launch the USB creation tool you chose (Rufus, Etcher, etc.). The interface should be pretty straightforward, but just in case, let's quickly run through the process with Etcher.

If you're using Etcher, click the "Flash from file" button and select the Arch Linux ISO you downloaded earlier. Then, Etcher should automatically detect your USB drive. If it doesn't, make sure the drive is connected properly. Next, click the "Flash!" button, and Etcher will begin writing the ISO to your USB drive. This process can take a few minutes, so grab a coffee or something. Once the flashing is complete, Etcher will verify the write. It's a good idea to let it do this, just to make sure everything went smoothly. When the flashing and verification are done, you'll have a bootable USB drive. You can now safely remove the USB drive from your computer and move on to the next step: booting from the USB. This part can be a bit tricky, but with the right guidance, you'll get through it without a hitch. Remember to be patient and follow the instructions carefully, and you'll be booting into the Arch Linux installer in no time.

Booting into the Arch Linux Installer

Okay, time to get into the thick of it! Now that we have our bootable USB drive, it's time to boot from it. The process of booting from a USB drive can vary slightly depending on your computer's BIOS or UEFI settings, but the general idea is the same. First, shut down your computer completely. Then, insert your bootable USB drive into a USB port. Power on your computer. As your computer starts up, you'll need to enter the BIOS or UEFI settings. The key to enter the BIOS varies depending on your computer manufacturer. Common keys are Del, F2, F12, Esc, or F10. Keep tapping the appropriate key as your computer starts up. You should see the BIOS or UEFI setup screen appear. In the BIOS settings, you'll need to change the boot order so that your USB drive is the first boot device. Look for a "Boot Order" or "Boot Priority" option in the BIOS settings. Select your USB drive from the list and move it to the top. Save the changes to the BIOS settings and exit. Your computer should now reboot, and this time, it should boot from the USB drive. You should see the Arch Linux boot menu appear. Select the option to boot Arch Linux (usually the first option). The system will then boot into a live environment, and you'll be presented with a command-line interface. This means you've successfully booted into the Arch Linux installer. Now, get ready to start the actual installation. Congratulations, you're one step closer to your new Arch Linux system with Hyprland!

Partitioning Your Disk

Alright, now that we've booted into the Arch Linux installer, it's time to get our hands dirty with disk partitioning. This is where we tell the computer how to organize the space on your hard drive or SSD. It might sound intimidating, but don't worry, we'll walk through it step by step. First, you'll need to open the cfdisk utility. In the terminal, type cfdisk /dev/sda (replace /dev/sda with the correct device name for your hard drive – it might be /dev/sdb, /dev/nvme0n1, etc. You can list your disks with lsblk). The cfdisk command is a menu-driven utility that lets you create, delete, and resize partitions. If you are not sure, make sure you choose the correct disk to prevent accidental data loss. Within cfdisk, you'll typically want to create at least two partitions: a root partition (/) and a swap partition. You may also want a separate /home partition for your user data. The root partition will contain your operating system files, and the swap partition is used as virtual memory, which can improve performance, especially if you have a limited amount of RAM. Use the arrow keys to navigate the menu options. Select "New" to create a new partition. Then, specify the size for the partition, typically using units like MiB or GiB. For the root partition, a size of 50-100 GiB should be enough. For the swap partition, a size equal to your RAM or a bit more is a good starting point (e.g., if you have 8GB of RAM, use 8GiB or 16GiB). If you're using an SSD, you might not need a swap partition, but it can still be beneficial. After creating the partitions, make sure to set the correct type for each partition. For the root partition, set the type to "Linux filesystem". For the swap partition, set the type to "Linux swap". Once you've created your partitions, select "Write" to write the partition table to the disk. Be very careful with this step, as any mistakes can lead to data loss. After writing the partition table, select "Quit" to exit cfdisk. If the partitioning process still sounds intimidating, you can always seek extra information. If you're using UEFI, you'll also need to create an EFI system partition (ESP), which is used for booting. This partition should be formatted as FAT32, and it usually has a size of around 500MiB.

Formatting the Partitions

Now that you've partitioned your disk, it's time to format those partitions with a file system. Formatting essentially prepares the partitions to store data. In this guide, we'll format the root partition with the ext4 file system, which is a popular and reliable choice. If you created a swap partition, we'll set it up as well. First, let's format the root partition. In the terminal, run the following command, replacing /dev/sda1 with the correct device name for your root partition (check your partitioning to be sure): mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda1. This command tells the system to format the specified partition with the ext4 file system. Now, let's format the EFI system partition (ESP) if you created one. You'll need to format it with FAT32: mkfs.fat -F 32 /dev/sda2 (replace /dev/sda2 with the device name of your ESP). Now, let's activate the swap partition, run: mkswap /dev/sda3 (replace /dev/sda3 with the correct device name for your swap partition). Then, enable the swap with: swapon /dev/sda3. This will activate the swap partition. With the partitions formatted, you're ready to proceed to the next step. Make sure that you execute each command without mistakes, and double-check your partition names to prevent any potential data loss. With the partitions formatted, we can move on to mounting them.

Mounting the Partitions

Alright, now that we've formatted the partitions, we need to mount them. Mounting means making the partitions accessible to the system, so the operating system can actually use them. This is a crucial step to make your new system boot and work as intended. First, mount the root partition to the /mnt directory: mount /dev/sda1 /mnt (replace /dev/sda1 with your root partition device name). Next, create the /mnt/boot/efi directory: mkdir -p /mnt/boot/efi. Then, mount the EFI system partition (ESP) to /mnt/boot/efi: mount /dev/sda2 /mnt/boot/efi (replace /dev/sda2 with your ESP device name). This is required if you are using UEFI. Now, if you created a separate /home partition, you would mount it to /mnt/home. However, in this guide, we are not going to create it. With the partitions mounted, we can move on to installing the base system. Remember to double-check the device names and the mounting points to make sure everything is in the right place.

Installing the Base System

Now comes the fun part: installing the actual Arch Linux base system! This is where we tell the installer to put the core files onto your hard drive. This process involves downloading and installing essential packages. First, you'll need to ensure you have a working internet connection. If you're using Ethernet, it should be working automatically. If you're using Wi-Fi, you might need to connect using the iwctl utility. Use the following command to install the base packages: pacstrap /mnt base linux linux-firmware. This command uses the pacstrap script to install the base, linux, and linux-firmware packages. The base package includes essential tools and utilities for a basic Arch Linux system. linux is the kernel, and linux-firmware contains firmware for various hardware devices. This process will take some time, depending on your internet connection speed. So, grab a coffee, or chill for a bit. After the base packages are installed, you'll also want to install the base-devel package. This package contains tools and libraries that are needed for building packages from the AUR (Arch User Repository). To install this package, run: pacstrap /mnt base-devel. Installing the base system is a critical step, but with a bit of patience, you will soon get through it. Make sure you don't interrupt the process and let it complete. After the base system is installed, we can move on to the next step.

Configuring the System

Now that the base system is installed, it's time to do some configuration. This includes setting up important things like the system's language, time zone, and network configuration. First, generate a fstab file: genfstab -U /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab. This will create a file that tells the system how to mount your partitions when it boots. Next, chroot into the new system: arch-chroot /mnt. This command changes the root directory to your new installation, allowing you to configure the system from within the installed environment. Now, let's set the time zone. First, list the available time zones: timedatectl list-timezones. Then, set your time zone. For example, to set the time zone to America/Los_Angeles: timedatectl set-timezone America/Los_Angeles. Next, set the hardware clock to UTC: timedatectl set-local-rtc 0. Now, let's configure the locale. Edit the /etc/locale.gen file with your favorite text editor (e.g., nano /etc/locale.gen) and uncomment your desired locales. For example, to enable English (US) with UTF-8 encoding, uncomment en_US.UTF-8 UTF-8. Save the file and generate the locales: locale-gen. Next, create the /etc/hostname file and add your desired hostname. For example, to set the hostname to arch: echo arch > /etc/hostname. Finally, configure the network. Create the /etc/hosts file: nano /etc/hosts. Add the following lines, replacing arch with your hostname and your_ip_address with your system's IP address: 127.0.0.1 localhost, ::1 localhost, 127.0.1.1 arch.localdomain arch. You can find your IP address by running ip addr. Now set a root password, this is very important: passwd. It is recommended to create a user account. You can create a user with the following command: useradd -m -G wheel <username>. Then, set the password for the new user: passwd <username>. Remember to substitute <username> with the username you'd like to use. It is a good practice to enable the sudo for the new user, by editing the sudoers file: EDITOR=nano visudo. Uncomment the line %wheel ALL=(ALL) ALL. This will allow members of the wheel group to use sudo. These configurations are critical to the usability of your system. Once you configure these settings, you are almost done!

Installing a Bootloader

Okay, time to install a bootloader. The bootloader is a program that loads the operating system. Without one, your computer won't know how to start Arch Linux. In this guide, we'll use GRUB (GNU GRand Unified Bootloader), which is a popular and versatile choice. First, install GRUB and the necessary packages: pacman -S grub efibootmgr. Next, install GRUB to your EFI system partition (ESP). This command depends on whether you have an UEFI or BIOS system. For UEFI: grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot/efi --bootloader-id=GRUB. This command installs GRUB to your ESP, using the EFI target. For BIOS: grub-install --target=i386-pc /dev/sda. This command installs GRUB to your MBR (Master Boot Record) on /dev/sda. Then, generate the GRUB configuration file: grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg. This command creates the GRUB configuration file, which tells GRUB how to boot your system. With GRUB installed and configured, you now have a bootable Arch Linux system. Remember to double-check the device names and the commands to make sure everything works correctly. Now, with a working bootloader, you're one step closer to booting into your new system.

Installing a Display Server and Hyprland

Alright, let's get Hyprland installed! First, we need a display server. Hyprland is a Wayland compositor, which means it needs a Wayland-compatible display server to run on. We'll use wayland. First, install Wayland and Hyprland, along with some essential packages: pacman -S wayland hyprland xorg-xinit. This command installs Wayland, Hyprland, and xorg-xinit. The xorg-xinit package is needed to start X applications. Next, create a user configuration file for Hyprland: nano ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.conf. You can copy and paste a basic configuration from the Hyprland documentation or create your own. Here's a basic example: cpp # Example configuration for Hyprland $mod = SUPER # Example keybinds for launching applications bind = $mod, Q, exec, kitty bind = $mod, W, exec, firefox Save the configuration file. Now, create a file named .xinitrc in your home directory: nano ~/.xinitrc. Add the following line to the file: exec hyprland. This tells the system to start Hyprland when you start X. With Hyprland installed, we are going to start the display server. Exit the chroot environment with exit and then umount -R /mnt. Now, reboot your system: reboot. When your system restarts, you should be able to log in to the command-line interface. Then, log in with your username and password. After logging in, type startx and press Enter. This will start the X server and launch Hyprland. If everything is configured correctly, you should now be greeted by the Hyprland desktop environment! Congratulations, you've successfully installed Hyprland on Arch Linux!

Post-Installation Steps and Further Customization

Congrats, you've installed Arch Linux with Hyprland! But, the fun doesn't stop there. Here are some things you might want to do next. Firstly, you should install a graphical user interface (GUI). Many users choose to install a package manager like yay to install packages from the AUR. You can install it with the following command: git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/yay.git. After cloning, go to the yay folder, and install it with: makepkg -si. Then, you should install your favourite programs. To install Firefox, for example, just type yay -S firefox. You can also tweak Hyprland. You can configure your keyboard shortcuts, appearance, and more by editing the hyprland.conf file in your home directory. Don't be afraid to experiment! Also, install your favourite programs. Install programs like a web browser, text editor, and other utilities. You can find many packages using pacman or the AUR. Additionally, you can configure audio and network settings. Install an audio server like pulseaudio or pipewire and configure your network connection. Lastly, get to know your system. Read the Arch Linux wiki, join online communities, and learn about the system. The Arch Linux wiki is a great resource, offering extensive documentation on a variety of topics. With these post-installation steps, you can create a truly personalized and functional Arch Linux system.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Installing Arch Linux can sometimes be a bit tricky, and you might run into some snags along the way. Here are some common issues and how to troubleshoot them. If you can't connect to the internet, make sure your network card is recognized. If you are using Wi-Fi, try using iwctl to connect to your network. If the installation fails, double-check your commands and make sure you're following the steps correctly. The Arch Linux wiki is your best friend when it comes to troubleshooting. Search for any error messages you encounter, and you'll likely find a solution. If you have trouble with the bootloader, double-check that you've installed it to the correct partition. If Hyprland doesn't start, make sure you've installed the necessary packages and that your configuration files are correct. Always double-check your configuration files for any errors. If you're still stuck, don't be afraid to ask for help on online forums or communities. Provide as much detail as possible about your problem, and someone will likely be able to help you. With the right troubleshooting steps, you'll be able to solve any issues and get your Arch Linux system up and running!

Conclusion

So there you have it, guys! We've walked through the process of installing Arch Linux with Hyprland. It might seem like a lot, but by following these steps, you should have a functional and customizable Linux system. Remember that the Arch Linux journey is all about learning and experimentation. Don't be afraid to try new things and customize your system to your liking. The Arch Linux community is incredibly supportive, so don't hesitate to ask for help if you need it. Enjoy your new Arch Linux system, and have fun customizing it to your heart's content! Happy Linuxing!