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diff --git a/blog/alpine-desktop/index.org b/blog/alpine-desktop/index.org deleted file mode 100644 index 2648123..0000000 --- a/blog/alpine-desktop/index.org +++ /dev/null @@ -1,260 +0,0 @@ -#+title: Alpine Linux as a Desktop OS -#+date: 2022-12-23 -#+description: Learn how to set up Alpine Linux with Sway to use as a desktop operating system. -#+filetags: :linux: - -* Isn't Alpine Linux for Servers? -This is a question I see a lot when people are presented with an example -of Alpine Linux running as a desktop OS. - -While Alpine is small, fast, and minimal, that doesn't stop it from -functioning at a productive level for desktop users. - -This post is documentation of how I installed and modified Alpine Linux -to become my daily desktop OS. - -* Installation -Note that I cover the installation of Alpine Linux in my other post, so -I won't repeat it here: [[../alpine-linux/][Alpine Linux: My New -Server OS]]. - -Basically, get a bootable USB or whatever you prefer with Alpine on it, -boot the ISO, and run the setup script. - -#+begin_src sh -setup-alpine -#+end_src - -Once you have gone through all the options and installer finishes -without errors, reboot. - -#+begin_src sh -reboot -#+end_src - -* Initial Setup -Once Alpine is installed and the machine has rebooted, login is as root -initially or =su= to root once you log in as your user. From here, you -should start by updating and upgrading the system in case the ISO was -not fully up-to-date. - -#+begin_src sh -# Update and upgrade system -apk -U update && apk -U upgrade - -# Add an editor so we can enable the community repository -apk add nano -#+end_src - -You need to uncomment the =community= repository for your version of -Alpine Linux. - -For v3.17, the =repositories= file should look like this: - -#+begin_src sh -nano /etc/apk/repositories -#+end_src - -#+begin_src conf -#/media/sda/apks -http://mirrors.gigenet.com/alpinelinux/v3.17/main -http://mirrors.gigenet.com/alpinelinux/v3.17/community -#http://mirrors.gigenet.com/alpinelinux/edge/main -#http://mirrors.gigenet.com/alpinelinux/edge/community -#http://mirrors.gigenet.com/alpinelinux/edge/testing -#+end_src - -#+begin_src sh -# Add the rest of your packages -apk add linux-firmware iwd doas git curl wget - -# Add yourself to the wheel group so you can use the doas command -adduser $USER wheel -#+end_src - -* Window Manager (Desktop) -The [[https://wiki.alpinelinux.org/wiki/Sway][Sway installation guide]] -has everything you need to get Sway working on Alpine. - -However, I'll include a brief list of the commands I ran and their -purpose for posterity here. - -#+begin_src sh -# Add eudev and set it up -apk add eudev -setup-devd udev - -# Since I have Radeon graphics, I need the following packages -apk add mesa-dri-gallium mesa-va-gallium - -# Add user to applicable groups -adduser $USER input -adduser $USER video - -# Add a font package -apk add ttf-dejavu - -# Add the seatd daemon -apk add seatd -rc-update add seatd -rc-service seatd start - -# Add user to seat group -adduser $USER seat - -# Add elogind -apk add elogind polkit-elogind -rc-update add elogind -rc-service elogind start - -# Finally, add sway and dependencies -apk add sway sway-doc -apk add \ # Install optional dependencies: - xwayland \ # recommended for compatibility reasons - foot \ # default terminal emulator - bemenu \ # wayland menu - swaylock swaylockd \ # lockscreen tool - swaybg \ # wallpaper daemon - swayidle # idle management (DPMS) daemon -#+end_src - -Once you have the packages installed and set-up, you need to export the -=XDG_RUNTIME_DIR= upon login. To do this, edit your =.profile= file. - -If you use another shell, such as =zsh=, you need to edit that shell's -profile (e.g., =~/.zprofile=)! - -#+begin_src sh -nano ~/.profile -#+end_src - -Within the file, paste this: - -#+begin_src sh -if test -z "${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}"; then - export XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=/tmp/$(id -u)-runtime-dir - if ! test -d "${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}"; then - mkdir "${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}" - chmod 0700 "${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}" - fi -fi -#+end_src - -Once that's complete, you can launch Sway manually. - -#+begin_src sh -dbus-run-session -- sway -#+end_src - -** Personal Touches -I also added the following packages, per my personal preferences and -situation. - -#+begin_src sh -doas apk add brightnessctl \ # Brightness controller - zsh \ # Shell - firefox \ # Browser - syncthing \ # File sync service - wireguard-tools \ # Wireguard VPN - gomuks \ # CLI Matrix client - neomutt \ # CLI email client - thunderbird \ # GUI email client - gnupg # GPG key manager -#+end_src - -From here, I use my Syncthing storage to pull all the configuration -files I stored from prior desktops, such as -[[https://git.sr.ht/~cmc/dotfiles][my dotfiles]]. - -* Resolving Issues -** WiFi Issues -I initially tried to set up my Wi-Fi the standard way with =iwd=, but it -didn't work. - -Here is what I initially tried (I did all of this as =root=): - -#+begin_src sh -apk add iwd -rc-service iwd start -iwctl station wlan0 connect <SSID> # This will prompt for the password -rc-update add iwd boot && rc-update add dbus boot -#+end_src - -Then, I added the Wi-Fi entry to the bottom of the networking interface -file: - -#+begin_src sh -nano /etc/network/interfaces -#+end_src - -#+begin_src conf -auto wlan0 -iface wlan0 inet dhcp -#+end_src - -Finally, restart the networking service: - -#+begin_src sh -rc-service networking restart -#+end_src - -My Wi-Fi interface would receive an IP address from the router, but it -could not ping anything in the network. To solve the Wi-Fi issues, I -originally upgraded to Alpine's =edge= repositories, which was -unnecessary. - -Really, the solution was to enable the =NameResolvingService=resolvconf= -in =/etc/iwd/main.conf=. - -#+begin_src sh -doas nano /etc/iwd/main.conf -#+end_src - -#+begin_src conf -[Network] - -NameResolvingService=resolvconf -#+end_src - -Once I finished this process, my Wi-Fi is working flawlessly. - -** Sound Issues -Same as with the Wi-Fi, I had no sound and could not control the -mute/unmute or volume buttons on my laptop. - -To resolve this, I installed -[[https://wiki.alpinelinux.org/wiki/PipeWire][pipewire]]. - -#+begin_src sh -# Add your user to the following groups -addgroup $USER audio -addgroup $USER video - -# Install pipewire and other useful packages -apk add pipewire wireplumber pipewire-pulse pipewire-jack pipewire-alsa -#+end_src - -Finally, I needed to add =/usr/libexec/pipewire-launcher= to my -=.config/sway/config= file so that Pipewire would run every time I -launched sway. - -#+begin_src sh -nano ~/.config/sway/config -#+end_src - -#+begin_src conf -# Run pipewire audio server -exec /usr/libexec/pipewire-launcher - -# Example audio button controls -bindsym XF86AudioRaiseVolume exec --no-startup-id pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ +5% -bindsym XF86AudioLowerVolume exec --no-startup-id pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ -5% -bindsym XF86AudioMute exec --no-startup-id pactl set-sink-mute @DEFAULT_SINK@ toggle -bindsym XF86AudioMicMute exec --no-startup-id pactl set-source-mute @DEFAULT_SOURCE@ toggle -#+end_src - -Note that I do not use bluetooth or screen sharing, so I won't cover -those options in this post. - -Other than these issues, I have a working Alpine desktop. No other -complaints thus far! |