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Fedora DraftDocumentation

Installation Quick Start GuideDownloading and installing Fedora 17 on most desktop and laptop computers

Red Hat Engineering Content Services Fedora DocumentationProject Edited by Rüdiger Landmann and Jack Reed

Copyright © 2011 Red Hat, Inc. and others.

The text of and illustrations in this document are licensed by Red Hat under a CreativeCommons Attribution–Share Alike 3.0 Unported license ("CC-BY-SA"). An explanationof CC-BY-SA is available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Theoriginal authors of this document, and Red Hat, designate the Fedora Project asthe "Attribution Party" for purposes of CC-BY-SA. In accordance with CC-BY-SA, ifyou distribute this document or an adaptation of it, you must provide the URL for theoriginal version.

Red Hat, as the licensor of this document, waives the right to enforce, and agrees notto assert, Section 4d of CC-BY-SA to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.

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AbstractThis document shows you how to download and install Fedora. It does not cover every possiblescenario, but describes steps that will work in most situations on most common hardware.

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1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 22. Requirements ......................................................................................................................... 23. Download the Fedora live CD image file .................................................................................. 34. Burn the image file to CD ....................................................................................................... 35. Boot your computer from the CD ............................................................................................. 46. Language Selection ................................................................................................................ 57. Fedora Live Desktop ............................................................................................................... 68. Keyboard Configuration ........................................................................................................... 79. Storage Devices ..................................................................................................................... 8

9.1. The Storage Devices Selection Screen .......................................................................... 910. Assign Storage Devices ....................................................................................................... 1011. Initializing the Hard Disk ...................................................................................................... 1112. Upgrading an Existing System ............................................................................................. 1213. Setting the Hostname .......................................................................................................... 1314. Time Zone Configuration ..................................................................................................... 1415. Set the Root Password ........................................................................................................ 1516. Disk Partitioning Setup ........................................................................................................ 1617. Write changes to disk .......................................................................................................... 1818. Boot Loader Configuration ................................................................................................... 1919. Package Group Selection .................................................................................................... 2020. Installing Packages ............................................................................................................. 2121. Firstboot ............................................................................................................................. 2122. License Agreement ............................................................................................................. 2223. Create User ........................................................................................................................ 2224. Date and Time .................................................................................................................... 2325. Hardware Profile ................................................................................................................. 2426. Your installation is complete ................................................................................................ 2527. We Need Feedback! ........................................................................................................... 25

A. Package Group Selection 26A.1. Customizing the Software Selection ............................................................................ 27

B. Revision History 28

1. IntroductionThis guide shows you how to download a Fedora 17 live CD image, burn this image to a disc, and usethis disc to install Fedora 17 on a typical desktop or notebook computer. This guide is not a completedescription of the installation process and all its options — for greater detail, refer to the Fedora 17Installation Guide, available from http://docs.fedoraproject.org/.

2. RequirementsTo create a Fedora live CD, you need:• a broadband connection to the Internet.

• a computer with a CD or DVD burner.

• software that allows you to create a CD from an image file.

• a blank, writeable CD.

If you do not have a fast Internet connection, or if you have a problem creating boot media,downloading may not be an option. Fedora DVD and CD distribution media is available from a number

Download the Fedora live CD image file

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of online sources around the world at a minimal cost. Use your favorite Web search engine to locate avendor, or refer to http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Distribution.

The computer on which you intend to install Fedora 17 from the live CD should have:• a CD or DVD drive, and the capability to boot from this drive.

• a 400 MHz processor or faster

• at least 1 GB of memory (RAM)

• at least 10 GB of permanent storage (hard drive) space.

These specifications represent a bare minumum to use Fedora in graphical mode. Almost any laptopor desktop computer manufactured in recent years will meet these requirements. For more details ofthe hardware requirements for Fedora 17, refer to the Fedora 17 Release Notes, available from http://docs.fedoraproject.org/.

If your computer does not have a CD or DVD drive, or is not capable of booting from this drive, thenyou might be able to install Fedora from a USB storage device such as a USB flash drive. Refer to theliveusb-creator page at https://fedorahosted.org/liveusb-creator/ for instructions.

Do you already have Fedora 17 on CD, DVD, or live USB media?

If you already have Fedora 17 on CD, DVD, or live USB media, you can still use this guide,because many steps will be similar. Skip ahead to Section 5, “Boot your computer from the CD”,then

• continue through the instructions in order if you have a Fedora 17 live CD or live USB device.

• skip ahead to Section 8, “Keyboard Configuration” if you have a Fedora 17 DVD.

3. Download the Fedora live CD image fileThe image file for the Fedora 17 live CD is available from http://download.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/releases/16/Live/i686/Fedora-16-i686-Live-Desktop.iso. Download and save this file toyour computer.

4. Burn the image file to CDThe exact series of steps that produces a CD from an image file varies greatly from computer tocomputer, depending on the operating system and disc burning software installed. Use this procedureas a general guide. You might be able to omit certain steps on your computer, or might have toperform some of the steps in a different order from the order described here.

Make sure that your disc burning software is capable of burning discs from image files. Although this istrue of most disc burning software, exceptions exist.

In particular, note that the CD burning feature built into Windows XP and Windows Vista cannot burnCDs from images and that earlier Windows operating systems did not have any CD burning capabilityinstalled by default. Therefore, if your computer has a Windows operating system prior to Windows 7installed on it, you need a separate piece of software for this task. Examples of popular CD burningsoftware for Windows that you might already have on your computer include Nero Burning ROMand Roxio Creator. If you use a Windows operating system on your computer and do not have disc

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burning software installed (or you are not sure that the software can burn discs from image files)InfraRecorder is a suitable alternative available from http://www.infrarecorder.org/, and is free andopen-source.

The Disk Utility software installed by default with Mac OS X on Apple computers has the capability toburn CDs from images built into it already. Most widely-used CD burning software for Linux, such asBrasero and K3b, also includes this capability.

1. Insert a blank, writeable CD into your computer's CD or DVD burner. On some computers, awindow opens and displays various options when you insert the disc. If you see a window likethis, look for an option to launch your chosen disc burning program. If you do not see an optionlike this, close the window and launch the program manually.

2. Launch your disc burning program. On some computers, you can do this by right-clicking (orcontrol-clicking) on the image file and selecting a menu option with a label like Copy imageto CD, or Copy CD or DVD image. Other computers might provide you with a menu option tolaunch your chosen disc burning program, either directly or with an option like Open With. Ifnone of these options are available on your computer, launch the program from an icon on yourdesktop, in a menu of applications such as the Start menu on Windows operating systems, or inthe Mac Applications folder.

3. In your disc burning program, select the option to burn a CD from an image file. For example, inNero Burning ROM, this option is called Burn Image and is located on the File menu.

Note that you can skip this step when using certain CD burning software; for example, DiskUtility on Mac OS X does not require it.

4. Browse to the ISO CD image file that you downloaded previously and select it for burning.

5. Click the button that starts the burning process.

Check the CD

After the burning process completes, browse to the CD and check its contents. If you haveburned the disc correctly, it should contain a number of files and folders, including GPL,README, LiveOS, EFI, and isolinux. If you see only a single file named Fedora-17-i686-Live.iso, you have burned the image file itself to the CD, rather than burning a CD from theimage file. In this case, you cannot use the CD and must try again.

5. Boot your computer from the CDSwitch on your computer, load the Fedora 17 live CD into the CD or DVD drive, and restart thecomputer with the disc still in the drive. Ideally, you should soon see the Fedora boot screen and aten-second countdown:

Language Selection

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Figure 1. The Fedora live CD boot screen

Either press Enter to select the Start Fedora 16 option, or wait for the countdown to expire.

If you do not see this screen, you might need to select an option manually to make your computer bootfrom the CD. Power your computer on, and watch the initial BIOS screen for a prompt that indicateswhich key to use for either:

• a boot menu, or

• the BIOS setup utility

The boot menu option is preferable. If you cannot see such a prompt, consult your manufacturer'sdocumentation for your computer system, motherboard, or mainboard for the correct keystroke. Onmany systems, the required key will be F12, F2, F1, Esc, or Delete.

6. Language SelectionAfter the ten-second countdown, your computer loads the Fedora live system desktop. You will see amenu bar at the top of the screen.

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Figure 2. The Fedora Live desktop

The default language for the installation process is English. If you do not need to change thelanguage, proceed to Section 7, “Fedora Live Desktop”

To select another language:

1. Click Live System User in the menu bar.

2. Select System Settings.

3. Select Region and Language.

4. Select your preferred language. If it is not listed, click on the + button. Either select from the list orsearch, then press Select.

5. Close the Region and Language window and select Log Out from the Live System User menu.

6. Log back in. No password is required. The desktop will now be presented in your selectedlanguage.

7. Fedora Live DesktopClick Activities, and a menu with several icons will drop down.

Keyboard Configuration

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Figure 3. The Activities menu in the Fedora live system

The final icon is labeled Install to Hard Drive. Click this icon to launch the installation program.

8. Keyboard ConfigurationUsing your mouse, select the correct layout type (for example, U.S. English) for the keyboard youwould prefer to use for the installation and as the system default (refer to the figure below).

Once you have made your selection, click Next to continue.

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Figure 4. Keyboard Configuration

9. Storage DevicesYou can install Fedora on a large variety of storage devices. This screen allows you to select eitherbasic or specialized storage devices.

The Storage Devices Selection Screen

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Figure 5. Storage devices

This quick start guide only covers installing Fedora on basic storage devices such as the hard drivesand solid-state drives of typical desktop and laptop computers. Refer to the Fedora 17 InstallationGuide available from http://docs.fedoraproject.org/ for details of installing Fedora on specializedstorage devices.

If you select Basic Storage Devices, anaconda automatically detects the local storage attached tothe system and does not require further input from you. Proceed to Section 11, “Initializing the HardDisk”.

9.1. The Storage Devices Selection ScreenThe storage devices selection screen displays all storage devices to which anaconda has access.

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Figure 6. Select storage devices

Each device is presented on a separate row, with a checkbox to its left. Click the checkbox to makea device available during the installation process, or click the radio button at the left of the columnheadings to select or deselect all the devices listed in a particular screen. Later in the installationprocess, you can choose to install Fedora onto any of the devices selected here, and can choose toautomatically mount any of the other devices selected here as part of the installed system.

Note that the devices that you select here are not automatically wiped by the installation process.Selecting a device on this screen does not, in itself, place data stored on the device at risk. Note alsothat any devices that you do not select here to form part of the installed system can be added to thesystem after installation by modifying the /etc/fstab file.

If you selected only one storage device, click Next and proceed to Section 11, “Initializing the HardDisk”. If you selected two or more storage devices, click Next and proceed to Section 10, “ AssignStorage Devices ”.

10. Assign Storage DevicesIf you selected more than one storage device on the storage devices selection screen (refer toSection 9, “Storage Devices”), anaconda asks you to select which of these devices should beavailable for installation of the operating system, and which should only be attached to the file systemfor data storage. If you selected only one storage device, anaconda does not present you with thisscreen.

During installation, the devices that you identify here as being for data storage only are mounted aspart of the file system, but are not partitioned or formatted.

Initializing the Hard Disk

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Figure 7. Assign storage devices

The screen is split into two panes. The left pane contains a list of devices to be used for data storageonly. The right pane contains a list of devices that are to be available for installation of the operatingsystem.

Each list contains information about the devices to help you to identify them. A small drop-down menumarked with an icon is located to the right of the column headings. This menu allows you to select thetypes of data presented on each device. Reducing or expanding the amount of information presentedmight help you to identify particular devices.

Move a device from one list to the other by clicking on the device, then clicking either the buttonlabeled with a left-pointing arrow to move it to the list of data storage devices or the button labeled witha right-pointing arrow to move it to the list of devices available for installation of the operating system.

The list of devices available as installation targets also includes a radio button beside each device.Use this radio button to specify the device that you want to use as the boot device for the system.

When you have finished identifying devices to be used for installation, click Next to continue.

11. Initializing the Hard DiskIf no readable partition tables are found on existing hard disks, the installation program asks toinitialize the hard disk. This operation makes any existing data on the hard disk unreadable. If yoursystem has a brand new hard disk with no operating system installed, or you have removed allpartitions on the hard disk, click Re-initialize drive.

The installation program presents you with a separate dialog for each disk on which it cannot read avalid partition table. Click the Ignore all button or Re-initialize all button to apply the same answer toall devices.

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Figure 8. Warning screen – initializing hard drive

12. Upgrading an Existing SystemIf your system contains a Fedora installation, a dialog appears asking whether you want to upgradethat installation. To perform an upgrade of an existing system, choose the appropriate installation fromthe drop-down list and select Next.

Setting the Hostname

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Figure 9. The Upgrade Dialog

13. Setting the HostnameSetup prompts you to supply a host name and domain name for this computer, in the formathostname.domainname. Many networks have a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)service that automatically supplies connected systems with a domain name, leaving the user to enter ahostname.

Unless you have a specific need to customize the host name and domain name, the default settinglocalhost.localdomain is a good choice for most users.

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Figure 10. Setting the hostname

14. Time Zone ConfigurationSet your time zone by selecting the city closest to your computer's physical location. Click on the mapto zoom in to a particular geographical region of the world.

From here there are two ways for you to select your time zone:

• Using your mouse, click on the interactive map to select a specific city (represented by a yellow dot).A red X appears indicating your selection.

• You can also scroll through the list at the bottom of the screen to select your time zone. Using yourmouse, click on a location to highlight your selection.

Set the Root Password

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Figure 11. Configuring the Time Zone

15. Set the Root Password

Setting up a root account and password is one of the most important steps during your installation.The root account is used to install packages, upgrade RPMs, and perform most system maintenance.Logging in as root gives you complete control over your system.

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Figure 12. Root Password

Enter the root password into the Root Password field. Fedora displays the characters as asterisksfor security. Type the same password into the Confirm field to ensure it is set correctly. After you setthe root password, select Next to proceed.

16. Disk Partitioning SetupOn this screen you can choose to create the default partition layout in one of four different ways, orchoose to partition storage devices manually to create a custom layout.

Disk Partitioning Setup

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Figure 13. Disk Partitioning Setup

The first four options allow you to perform an automated installation without having to partition yourstorage devices yourself. If you do not feel comfortable with partitioning your system, choose one ofthese options and let the installation program partition the storage devices for you. Depending on theoption that you choose, you can still control what data (if any) is removed from the system.

Your options are:

Use All SpaceSelect this option to remove all partitions on your hard drives (this includes partitions created byother operating systems such as Windows VFAT or NTFS partitions).

Warning

If you select this option, all data on the selected hard drives is removed by the installationprogram. Do not select this option if you have information that you want to keep on the harddrives where you are installing Fedora.

In particular, do not select this option when you configure a system to chain load the Fedoraboot loader from another boot loader.

Replace Existing Linux System(s)Select this option to remove only partitions created by a previous Linux installation. This does notremove other partitions you may have on your hard drives (such as VFAT or FAT32 partitions).

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Shrink Current SystemSelect this option to resize your current data and partitions manually and install a default Fedoralayout in the space that is freed.

Warning

If you shrink partitions on which other operating systems are installed, you might not be ableto use those operating systems. Although this partitioning option does not destroy data,operating systems typically require some free space in their partitions. Before you resize apartition that holds an operating system that you might want to use again, find out how muchspace you need to leave free.

Use Free SpaceSelect this option to retain your current data and partitions and install Fedora in the unused spaceavailable on the storage drives. Ensure that there is sufficient space available on the storagedrives before you select this option.

Warning

If your 64-bit x86 system uses UEFI instead of BIOS, you will need to manually create a /bootpartition. This partition must have an ext3 file system. If you choose to partition automatically,your system will not boot.

Create Custom LayoutSelect this option to partition storage devices manually and create customized layouts.

Choose your preferred partitioning method by clicking the radio button to the left of its description inthe dialog box.

Click Next once you have made your selections to proceed.

17. Write changes to diskThe installer prompts you to confirm the partitioning options that you selected. Click Write changes todisk to allow the installer to partition your hard drive and install Fedora.

Figure 14. Writing storage configuration to disk

If you are certain that you want to proceed, click Write changes to disk.

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Last chance to cancel safely

Up to this point in the installation process, the installer has made no lasting changes to yourcomputer. When you click Write changes to disk, the installer will allocate space on your harddrive and start to transfer Fedora into this space. Depending on the partitioning option that youchose, this process might include erasing data that already exists on your computer.

To revise any of the choices that you made up to this point, click Go back. To cancel installationcompletely, switch off your computer. To switch off most computers at this stage, press the powerbutton and hold it down for a few seconds.

After you click Write changes to disk, allow the installation process to complete. If the processis interrupted (for example, by you switching off or resetting the computer, or by a power outage)you will probably not be able to use your computer until you restart and complete the Fedorainstallation process, or install a different operating system.

18. Boot Loader Configuration

Some partitioning options cause the boot loader configuration screen to appear. If you do not see thisscreen, skip to Section 19, “Package Group Selection”.

GRUB (GRand Unified Bootloader), which is installed by default, is a very powerful boot loader.GRUB can load a variety of free operating systems, as well as proprietary operating systems withchain-loading (the mechanism for loading unsupported operating systems, such as Windows, byloading another boot loader). Note that Fedora 17 uses GRUB 2. GRUB Legacy is no longer activelydeveloped.1

1 http://www.gnu.org/software/grub/grub-legacy.en.html

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Figure 15. Boot Loader Configuration

If there are no other operating systems on your computer, or you are completely removing anyother operating systems the installation program will install GRUB as your boot loader without anyintervention. In that case you may continue on to Section 19, “Package Group Selection”.

If you have other operating systems already installed, Fedora attempts to automatically detect andconfigure GRUB to boot them. You may manually configure any additional operating systems if GRUBdoes not detect them.

To add, remove, or change the detected operating system settings, use the options provided.

AddSelect Add to include an additional operating system in GRUB.

Select the disk partition which contains the bootable operating system from the drop-down list andgive the entry a label. GRUB displays this label in its boot menu.

EditTo change an entry in the GRUB boot menu, select the entry and then select Edit.

DeleteTo remove an entry from the GRUB boot menu, select the entry and then select Delete.

Select Default beside the preferred boot partition to choose your default bootable OS. You cannotmove forward in the installation unless you choose a default boot image.

19. Package Group SelectionIf you install from a Fedora Live image, you cannot make package selections. This installation methodtransfers a copy of the Live image rather than installing packages from a repository. To change thepackage selection, complete the installation, then use the Add/Remove Software application to makedesired changes.

Installing Packages

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If you are installing Fedora from a DVD, refer to Appendix A, Package Group Selection for details ofpackage selection.

20. Installing PackagesAt this point there is nothing left for you to do until all the packages have been installed. How quicklythis happens depends on the number of packages you have selected and your computer's speed.

After installation completes, select Reboot to restart your computer. Fedora ejects any loaded discsbefore the computer reboots.

21. FirstbootFirstboot launches the first time that you start a new Fedora system. Use Firstboot to configure thesystem for use before you log in.

Figure 16. Firstboot welcome screen

Select Forward to start Firstboot.

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22. License AgreementThis screen displays the overall licensing terms for Fedora. Each software package in Fedora iscovered by its own license. All licensing guidelines for Fedora are located at http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Legal/Licenses.

Figure 17. Firstboot license screen

If you agree to the terms of the licence, select Forward.

23. Create UserCreate a user account for yourself with this screen. Always use this account to log in to your Fedorasystem, rather than using the root account.

Date and Time

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Figure 18. Firstboot create user screen

24. Date and TimeIf your system does not have Internet access or a network time server, manually set the date and timefor your system on this screen. Otherwise, click the Synchronize date and time over the networkcheckbox to configure your system to use NTP (Network Time Protocol) servers to maintain theaccuracy of the clock. NTP provides time synchronization service to computers on the same network.The Internet contains many computers that offer public NTP services.

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Figure 19. Firstboot date and time screen

25. Hardware ProfileFirstboot displays a screen that allows you to submit your hardware information anonymously to theFedora Project. Developers use these hardware details to guide further support efforts. You can readmore about this project and its development at http://smolts.org/.

Your installation is complete

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Figure 20. Firstboot hardware profile screen

To opt in to this important work, select Send Profile. If you choose not to submit any profile data, donot change the default. Select Finish to continue to the login screen.

26. Your installation is completeFedora is now installed on your computer. Log in with the username and password that you createdduring the installation process.

To learn more about Fedora, visit the Fedora Project website at http://fedoraproject.org/. If you needhelp installing or using Fedora, visit http://fedoraproject.org/en/get-help.

27. We Need Feedback!

If you find a typographical error in this manual, or if you have thought of a way to make this manualbetter, we would love to hear from you! Please submit a report in Bugzilla: http://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/ against the product Fedora Documentation.

When submitting a bug report, be sure to mention the manual's identifier: installation-quick-start-guide

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If you have a suggestion for improving the documentation, try to be as specific as possible whendescribing it. If you have found an error, please include the section number and some of thesurrounding text so we can find it easily.

A. Package Group Selection

DVD or six-CD set only

You will not see this screen if you are installing Fedora from the live CD.

The Package Installation Defaults screen appears and details the default package set for yourFedora installation. This screen varies depending on the version of Fedora you are installing.

Figure A.1. Package Group Selection

By default, the Fedora installation process loads a selection of software that is suitable for a systemdeployed as a basic server. Note that this installation does not include a graphical environment. Toinclude a selection of software suitable for other roles, click the radio button that corresponds to one ofthe following options:

Graphical DesktopThis option provides the OpenOffice.org productivity suite, graphical tools such as the GIMP, andmultimedia applications.

Software DevelopmentThis option provides the necessary tools to compile software on your Fedora system.

Customizing the Software Selection

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Web serverThis option provides the Apache web server.

MinimalThis option provides only the packages essential to run Fedora. A minimal installation provides thebasis for a single-purpose server or desktop appliance and maximizes performance and securityon such an installation.

To customize your package set further, select the Customize now option on the screen. Clicking Nexttakes you to the Package Group Selection screen.

A.1. Customizing the Software Selection

Figure A.2. Package Group Details

Fedora divides the included software into package groups. For ease of use, the package selectionscreen displays these groups as categories.

You can select package groups, which group components together according to function (for example,X Window System and Editors), individual packages, or a combination of the two.

After you choose the desired packages, select Next to proceed. The installer checks your selection,and automatically adds any extra packages required to use the software you selected. When you havefinished selecting packages, click Close to save your optional package selections and return to themain package selection screen.

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B. Revision HistoryRevision17.1.0

Tue Apr 24 2012 Jack Reed

Update for Fedora 17