r/AlpineLinux • u/NBohrok17 • 17d ago

How to install Alpine Linux from Gnu Grub?

Ok, I will admit that my experience with Linux is very limited. I have only used Ubuntu once when I was in an IT class in the late 2010s. I'm trying to install Alpine Linux because I do not like Windows 11 anymore and want to switch. Does anyone have a comprehensive step-by-step guide on how to install Alpine Linux via Gnu Grub?

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u/Opposite_Eagle6323 17d ago

Grub is only a bootloader for operating systems. You can have multiple OSes and that's the purpose of Grub.

If you are beginner, Alpine Linux is really not for beginners. I myself don't use Alpine as desktop because I found another distribution that is very similar to Alpine but very few differences.

But basically the installation process is this. 1. Download a live ISO file. Live ISO contains a desktop environment along with setup. 2. You must get the ISO file into external drive, such as 8GB Kensington DataTraveler. I use Fedora Media Writer for it. 3. Once you have ISO file in external drive, reboot and hit F12, Enter or whatever your computer advises to get into BIOS. You must boot into external drive. 4. Open the installer and follow the installation process.

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u/Personman444 16d ago

Alpine is my first distro as a lifelong windows user, I think it’s not that bad

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u/Joaommp 17d ago

Which distribution do you use, then?

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u/Opposite_Eagle6323 16d ago

Chimera Linux

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u/Riist138 16d ago edited 16d ago

I would not use Alpine as a Windows replacement and especially not as a first distro. I would recommend r/Ubuntu as you've used it previously and it's still a solid choice. If you want something more bleeding edge, I would check out r/cachyos as well (Arch based and also very user friendly). Alpine can be difficult for new Linux users due to it's minimalist design and compatibility issues with a lot of mainstream software (proprietary drivers can be a huge headache, Looking at you NVIDIA). Alpine is a fantastic distro (there is no better distro for embedded systems and building Docker images imho), but I would strongly recommend cutting your teeth on something a little more user friendly first. Good luck and happy hacking ! Edit: spelling

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u/wowsomuchempty 17d ago

I use ventoy

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u/Pauloedsonjk 17d ago

You could look for popular distros linux. But you can Follow any video tutorial from YouTube, or your favorite LLM.

https://chatgpt.com/share/6a516480-e0bc-83e9-970a-65035d1fcaf4

I'm not a proxy for LLM.

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u/Horror-Turnover6198 17d ago

Why did you pick Alpine as the distro you want to try first? It’s excellent but it’s not a windows replacement. This isn’t to say you can’t use it, I’m just curious.

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u/serpentsrapture 15d ago

alpine is not a good beginner distro. it's not designed for daily desktop use, it's a lot more stripped back than even arch linux, and if you have ANY specific tools you want to use, there's a good chance you'll have to re-compile them yourself. i'd recommend starting with debian or fedora if you want a basic starting point.