Connect to Wi-Fi

• Use iwctl to connect:

  iwctl
  # Inside iwctl
  device list
  station <device> scan
  station <device> get-networks
  station <device> connect <SSID>
  exit

Set Time and Date

timedatectl set-ntp true

• Ensures your system clock is accurate.

List Block Devices

lsblk

• Displays all attached storage devices.

Partition the Disk

cfdisk /dev/<drive_name>

• How to use cfdisk
• Select Label Type:
  • Choose gpt for UEFI systems.
• Create Partitions:
  • EFI System Partition (ESP):
    • Size: 1G or 512M
    • Type: EFI System
  • Swap Partition (Optional):
    • Size: 8G (match your RAM size if desired)
    • Type: Linux swap
  • Root Partition:
    • Size: Remaining space
    • Type: Linux filesystem
• Write Changes and Exit cfdisk.

Format the Partitions

• Format EFI System Partition as FAT32:

  mkfs.fat -F32 /dev/<esp_partition>

• Format Root Partition as ext4:

  mkfs.ext4 /dev/<root_partition>

• Initialize Swap Partition:

  mkswap /dev/<swap_partition>
  swapon /dev/<swap_partition>

• Note: Swap is optional if you have sufficient RAM (16GB or more).

Mount the Partitions

• Mount Root Partition:

  mount /dev/<root_partition> /mnt

• Create and Mount EFI Directory:

  mkdir -p /mnt/boot
  mount /dev/<esp_partition> /mnt/boot

  • In Arch Linux, it's standard to mount the ESP at /boot.

Install Essential Packages

pacstrap /mnt base linux linux-firmware vim networkmanager grub efibootmgr intel-ucode man-db man-pages texinfo

• Explanation:
  • base: Minimal package set.
  • linux: Latest Linux kernel.
  • linux-firmware: Necessary firmware.
  • vim (or nano): Text editor.
  • networkmanager: Manages network connections.
  • grub: Bootloader.
  • efibootmgr: Required for UEFI boot management.
  • man-db: Man page database utilities
  • man-pages: Collection of man pages for Linux
  • texinfo: Tools for reading and creating GNU info pages
  • intel-ucode: Verify first with ;scpu | grep 'Vendor ID first before installing. It must display 'GenuineIntel' or 'AuthenticAMD'

Generate fstab File

genfstab -U /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab

• Generates /etc/fstab with UUIDs for reliable device identification.

Change Root into the New System

arch-chroot /mnt

• Switches from the live USB environment to your installed system.

Enable NetworkManager

systemctl enable NetworkManager

• Ensures networking is active on boot.

Set Timezone

ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Asia/Manila /etc/localtime
hwclock --systohc

• Replace Region/City with your locale (e.g., America/New_York).
• Synchronizes hardware clock.

Localization

• Edit Locale Generation File:

  vim /etc/locale.gen

  • Uncomment en_US.UTF-8 UTF-8 (remove the # at the beginning).
  • Uncomment en_US.UTF-8 UTF-8, en_PH.UTF-8 UTF-8

• Generate Locales:

  locale-gen

• Set System Language:

  echo "LANG=en_US.UTF-8" > /etc/locale.conf

Set Hostname

echo "your_hostname" > /etc/hostname

• Replace your_hostname with your desired system name.

Set Root Password

passwd

• Enter and confirm a strong password for the root user.

Install and Configure GRUB Bootloader

• Install GRUB for UEFI Systems:

  grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --bootloader-id=GRUB

• Generate GRUB Configuration:

  grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

• Note: If you see messages about missing Linux images, ensure the linux package was installed during pacstrap.

Exit chroot Environment

exit

Unmount Partitions and Reboot

umount -R /mnt
reboot

• Remove the installation media after the system restarts.