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自动选题[tech]: 20210516 How to install a Desktop Environment (GUI) on Ubuntu Server
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[#]: subject: (How to install a Desktop Environment (GUI) on Ubuntu Server)
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[#]: via: (https://itsfoss.com/install-gui-ubuntu-server/)
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[#]: author: (Chris Patrick Carias Stas https://itsfoss.com/author/chris/)
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[#]: collector: (lujun9972)
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[#]: translator: ( )
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[#]: reviewer: ( )
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[#]: publisher: ( )
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[#]: url: ( )
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How to install a Desktop Environment (GUI) on Ubuntu Server
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======
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Do you want to install GUI on your Ubuntu server? You can totally do that in most scenarios and I am going to discuss the steps in details in this tutorial.
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But before you see that, let me tell you why the server edition does not come with GUI and in which cases you could install the GUI on your server.
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### Why does Ubuntu server not have a GUI?
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If you compare Ubuntu desktop with server, the main difference will be the absence of GUI, i.e. [the desktop environment][1] in the server edition. Ubuntu Server is basically a striped down version of Ubuntu desktop without the graphical modules.
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This is intentional. A Linux server intends to use the system resources on running services. The graphical desktop environment consumes a lot of system resources and for this reason, the server operating systems do not include a desktop environment by default.
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You may use an Ubuntu server on 512 MB of RAM but an Ubuntu desktop will need at least 2 GB of RAM to function decently. That’s considered a waste of resources in the server world.
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As a server user (or sysadmin), you are expected to use and manage your system through command line. You should have decent knowledge of the Linux commands for this purpose.
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![Typically, you have to manage a server from the command line][2]
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### Do you really need to install GUI on your server?
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Some people do not feel comfortable with the idea of doing everything using commands in the terminal. Most people are conditioned to use a computer graphically after all.
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You may choose to install a desktop environment on your server and use it graphically. That’s not how most people do it but it’s an option.
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But this works only if you have direct access to the server. If you are running it on a physical machine like a server, a desktop/laptop or devices like Raspberry Pi. You may also install it on a server running in a virtual machine if you have direct access to the host system.
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If you have a server deployed using a [cloud server provider like Linode, DigitalOcean or AWS][3], installing GUI won’t be a good idea. If you have a remote server that you want to manage graphically, you may use tools like Webmin or [Cockpit][4]. These tools allow you to use and manage your servers graphically in a web browser. It consumes a lot less system resources than a full-fledged desktop environment.
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![Tools like Cockpit allow managing Linux servers graphically][5]
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### How to install GUI on Ubuntu server?
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Once the basics are clear, let’s see the steps for installing a desktop environment on an Ubuntu server.
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You’ll need the following things:
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* Ubuntu Server configured and running with at least 2 GB of RAM
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* Administrative privileges (you need to run sudo commands)
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* Internet connection (you are going to download and install new packages)
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In my case, the Ubuntu server is installed in a virtual machine and I have direct access to the host machine. I have used the same method on an [Ubuntu server installed on a Raspberry Pi][6].
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Attention!
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These things are fine for experimental purpose when you are learning and exploring. Please do not add GUI on a production server. Removing GUI afterwards could cause dependency issues and leave a broken system in some cases.
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#### Preparing your system
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First, since you are going to make some system-wide modifications, let’s update & upgrade everything to make sure that our system is running the latest packages:
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```
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sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
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```
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#### Installing the desktop environment
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With the updates out of the way, you can continue with the installation of a desktop environment.
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There are two ways to do this:
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* Using [apt][7] to install the packages
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* Using a Debian tool called [tasksel][8] which helps with the installation of multiple packages in one coordinated process (tasks)
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Either one will let you install the full desktop environment you choose as a full package, just like if you were installing the desktop version from scratch. By this, I mean that you will get all the default applications and tools you get with the desktop version.
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If you want to use `tasksel` you must first install it using the following command:
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```
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sudo apt install tasksel
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```
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Once this task is finished, you can use `tasksel` to install the desktop environment (also referred as DE).
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Now, you probably know that there are [several desktop environments available][9]. You may choose the one you like. Some desktop environments need more system resources (like GNOME) while some use fewer system resources (like Xfce, MATE etc).
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It is up to you to decide which DE you would like to use. I am going with the [GNOME Desktop][10] since it is the default desktop for Ubuntu. Later on, I’ll share some tips for installing different desktops too.
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If you are using `tasksel` run this command:
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```
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sudo tasksel install ubuntu-desktop
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```
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if you want to use only apt, then run this command:
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```
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sudo apt install ubuntu-desktop
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```
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Depending on your connection speed and hardware this process will take from a couple of minutes to an hour.
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I want to point that both actions will result in the full installation of the GNOME Desktop Environment. I ran both commands for the sake of this tutorial and ended up having the exact same results.
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#### Installing and setting up the display manager
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After this process is completed, you will need a component called a [Display Manager][11], also known as a “login manager”. This tool is going to be responsible for starting the [display server][12] and loading the desktop while managing user sessions and authentication.
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By default, GNOME Desktop uses GDM3 as its display manager, but it is a bit heavy on the resources side. You can use something lighter and more resource-friendly. In this case, let’s go with [lightdm][13], a platform independent display manager. Install it with apt:
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```
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sudo apt install lightdm
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```
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When installing lightdm the system is going to ask for a default display manager because only one can run at a time, although you can have several installed.
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![Use the arrow key to select an option and then use the tab key to select <OK> and press enter][14]
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Just choose **lightdm** from the list and hit **<Ok>**. This shouldn’t take more than a couple of minutes. After this task is done, you can then start the display manager and load the GUI with the following command:
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```
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sudo service lightdm start
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```
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If you want to check what display manager is configured in your system you can run:
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```
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cat /etc/X11/default-display-manager
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```
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and you will get a prompt similar to this:
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![Checking the default Display Manager][15]
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If everything went according to the plan, you will have a greeting screen loaded.
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![Greetings screen of GNOME Desktop with LightDM on an Ubuntu server][16]
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Enter your credentials and you will have your desktop running.
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![GNOME Desktop fully loaded on Ubutnu server][17]
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If you want to shutdown the GUI open a terminal window and type:
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```
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sudo service lightdm stop
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```
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#### Installing other desktop environments (optional)
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Earlier on I said that we could choose different desktops, so let’s take a look at some alternatives.
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##### MATE
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[MATE][18] is a lightweight desktop based on GNOME2 base code, it’s fully open source and a very nice option.
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To install MATE, you would run:
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```
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sudo tasksel install ubuntu-mate-core
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```
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or
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```
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sudo apt install ubuntu-mate-core
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```
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##### Lubuntu / LXDE/LXQT
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[Lubuntu][19] is another lightweight option which I recommend if your system is low on resources or if you are giving new life to an older computer. Install it using this command:
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```
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sudo tasksel install lubuntu-core
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```
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or
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```
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sudo apt install lubuntu-core
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```
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##### Xubuntu / Xfce
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[Xubuntu][20] is an Ubuntu derivative based on the [Xfce][21] desktop environment that is light, simple, stable, but it’s also highly customizable. If you want to try it, use the following command:
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```
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sudo tasksel install xubuntu-core
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```
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or
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```
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sudo apt install xubuntu-core
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```
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I’m leaving some other desktops out, like [KDE][22], [Cinnamon][23], and [Budgie][24], not for anything wrong, they are all excellent desktops too and you are free to install them as you want.
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### How to remove the GUI from Ubuntu server?
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If you realize that the desktop environment is taking too much computing resources, you may remove the packages you installed previously.
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Please keep in mind that it may cause dependency issues in some cases so please make a backup of your important data or create a system snapshot.
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You know [how to remove packages from Ubuntu][25]:
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```
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sudo apt remove ubuntu-desktop
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sudo apt remove lightdm
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sudo apt autoremove
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sudo service lightdm stop
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```
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Reboot your system now. You should be back to the normal command line login.
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### Wrapping up
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Installing a GUI for a desktop is possible but not needed in most scenarios. If you are not too comfortable with the command line, use a server distribution like [YunoHost][26] that is built on top of Debian to give you a server that can be managed via GUI.
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That said, if you are installing a system from scratch, then I’d recommend that you go with a desktop version and avoid the extra steps afterwards.
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With this information, I leave the comment section to you. Do you use GUI on a server? Did you face any issues in following this tutorial?
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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via: https://itsfoss.com/install-gui-ubuntu-server/
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作者：[Chris Patrick Carias Stas][a]
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选题：[lujun9972][b]
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译者：[译者ID](https://github.com/译者ID)
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校对：[校对者ID](https://github.com/校对者ID)
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本文由 [LCTT](https://github.com/LCTT/TranslateProject) 原创编译，[Linux中国](https://linux.cn/) 荣誉推出
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[a]: https://itsfoss.com/author/chris/
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[b]: https://github.com/lujun9972
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[1]: https://itsfoss.com/what-is-desktop-environment/
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[2]: https://i1.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/system-restart-required.png?resize=800%2C469&ssl=1
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[3]: https://linuxhandbook.com/free-linux-cloud-servers/
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[4]: https://linuxhandbook.com/cockpit/
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[5]: https://i1.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/cockpit-2-2.png?resize=800%2C450&ssl=1
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[6]: https://itsfoss.com/install-ubuntu-server-raspberry-pi/
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[7]: https://itsfoss.com/apt-command-guide/
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[8]: https://manpages.ubuntu.com/manpages/bionic/man8/tasksel.8.html
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[9]: https://itsfoss.com/best-linux-desktop-environments/
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[10]: https://www.gnome.org/
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[11]: https://itsfoss.com/display-manager/
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[12]: https://itsfoss.com/display-server/
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[13]: https://wiki.debian.org/LightDM
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[14]: https://i0.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/installing-gui-ubuntu-server-select-dm.png?resize=799%2C354&ssl=1
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[15]: https://i2.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/installing-gui-ubuntu-server-default.png?resize=800%2C68&ssl=1
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[16]: https://i2.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/installing-gui-ubuntu-server-gnome-desktop-greet.png?resize=798%2C600&ssl=1
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[17]: https://i0.wp.com/itsfoss.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/installing-gui-ubuntu-server-gnome-desktop.png?resize=792%2C597&ssl=1
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[18]: https://mate-desktop.org/
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[19]: https://lubuntu.net/
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[20]: https://xubuntu.org/
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[21]: https://www.xfce.org/
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[22]: https://itsfoss.com/install-kde-on-ubuntu/
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[23]: https://itsfoss.com/install-cinnamon-on-ubuntu/
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[24]: https://itsfoss.com/install-budgie-ubuntu/
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[25]: https://itsfoss.com/uninstall-programs-ubuntu/
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[26]: https://yunohost.org/
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