Desktop Configuration

Configure your Linux desktop environment.

Automated scripts

General

Sudo errors

If you’re getting errors when trying to use sudo, you should add your user to sudoers. Open terminal, run these commands and restart your machine:

su -
usermod -aG sudo username

Common configuration

Fedora

  • Dolphin video previews:

    sudo dnf install ffmpegthumbs

  • Optimize startup by masking systemd-udev-settle:

    sudo systemctl mask systemd-udev-settle

    More info

  • Optimize startup by disabling NetworkManager-wait-online.service:

    sudo systemctl disable NetworkManager-wait-online.service

    More info

  • Disable check for updates at startup (KDE):

    sudo mkdir /etc/xdg/autostart.disabled
sudo mv /etc/xdg/autostart/org.kde.discover.notifier.desktop /etc/xdg/autostart.disabled/org.kde.discover.notifier.desktop

    In case that you’ve wanted to go back, just restore the files from the backup directory autostart.disabled. You may need to re-apply this commands after some system updates.

Software

Git

Terminal

  1. Install zsh
  2. Run command:
    zsh
  3. Install and run Powerlevel10k
  4. Set it as your default shell:
    usermod --shell /usr/bin/zsh root
usermod --shell /usr/bin/zsh YOUR_USERNAME

To re-run the setup:

p9k_configure

VS Code (VSCodium)

  • Install VSCodium

  • Set VSCode/Codium as default editor. more info

    xdg-mime default codium.desktop text/plain

# If you're using code instead of codium
xdg-mime default code.desktop text/plain

GitHub Desktop

  • Repository.

    • Install with dnf on Fedora.
    • Install with apt or download .deb on Debian / Ubuntu (on KDE right click run with Discover)
    • Use app-image on arch.

  • If you’re working with Windows users:

    git config --global core.autocrlf input

NodeJS and NPM

Install NVM.

nvm install 14
nvm use 14 (OPTIONAL STEP)

Docker

Add your user to docker group and restart:

su -
usermod -aG docker username

Rider

Install with tool-box:

If your project has NPM tasks with msbuild (if NPM INSTALL fails during compilation), run Rider using a terminal with NPM access. For example: left click on Rider search for Application > Command run. Copy and run it:

/home/equilaterus/.local/share/JetBrains/Toolbox/apps/Rider/ch-0/213.6775.4/bin/rider.sh

To avoid repeating the previous step, create a file rider.sh at /home with the following content:

#!/bin/bash
echo 'Running Rider...'
# Copy your Rider command....
sh /home/equilaterus/.local/share/JetBrains/Toolbox/apps/Rider/ch-0/213.6775.4/bin/rider.sh

Next time, open a console and type:

sh rider.sh

Dotnet core

If you have multiple versions of dotnet core, create a file global.json in the same location as this readme with the following contents:

{
    "sdk": {
        "version": "3.1.417"
    }
}

Replace the version with a 3.1.x installed on your machine. To see your SDKs:

dotnet --list-sdks

If you have trouble with dotnet ef after installing it, use the following command:

export PATH="$PATH:$HOME/.dotnet/tools/"

To fix certificates error run:

dotnet dev-certs https

You’ll still have to configure trust certificates or access your page as unsecure resource from your web browser. As it is a dev env, you can safely access it as an unsafe site.

IMPORTANT!: Before upgrading your system disable source package repo: packages-microsoft-com-prod (ADDED WHEN INSTALLING POWERSHELL), otherwise you may need to uninstall all dotnet (sudo dnf remove ‘dotnet’*) and reinstall it again (after removing the repo). To remove it you can go to Discover > Settings and disable the repo.

Error “The configured user limit (128) on the number of inotify instances has been reached.”, increase the instances with the following command:

echo fs.inotify.max_user_instances=524288 | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf && sudo sysctl -p

Powershell

Installation

You can install it as a dotnet tool (after installing dotnet):

dotnet tool install --global PowerShell

Other methods of installation are not recommended as MSFT repo can cause issues with your dotnet installation.

Usage

After that use pwsh to start powershell.

For dotnet core 3.1:

dotnet tool install --global PowerShell --version 7.0.9

For other versions check: nuget package

SQL Server with Docker

Guide

Summary:

# Download SQL Server image
sudo docker pull mcr.microsoft.com/mssql/server:2019-latest


# Create and run sql1 container
sudo docker run -e "ACCEPT_EULA=Y" -e "SA_PASSWORD=testdb123*" \
   -p 1433:1433 --name sql1 --hostname sql1 \
   -d mcr.microsoft.com/mssql/server:2019-latest

# Start container
docker start /sql1

# Delete container with DB
docker rm /sql1 -f

Connection string:

string _connString = "Server=localhost,1433;Database=Master;User Id=SA;Password=testdb123*";

Temperature and other sensors

Run the following steps and execute xsensors:

sudo dnf install lm_sensors
sudo sensors-detect
# Configure
sensors

# Install GUI app
sudo dnf install xsensors

Scanner

Install simple-scan and sane-backends. For example, of Fedora:

sudo dnf install simple-scan sane-backends

Flatpacks

Enable flatpaks: Setup instructions

# Fedora
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

Other software

Bottles:

# Fedora
sudo dnf install bottles
# You may need to install this to fix a dependency issue:
sudo dnf install gtksourceview5

# Using flatpack
flatpak install flathub com.usebottles.bottles

Lutris:

# Fedora
sudo dnf install lutris

# Lutris
flatpak install flathub net.lutris.Lutris

Dropbox:

flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
flatpak install flathub com.dropbox.Client

Steam:

# Fedora
sudo dnf install https://mirrors.rpmfusion.org/nonfree/fedora/rpmfusion-nonfree-release-$(rpm -E %fedora).noarch.rpm
sudo dnf install steam

# Flatpak
flatpak install flathub com.valvesoftware.Steam

Telegram:

sudo flatpak install flathub org.telegram.desktop

Flatpacks permissions (Flatseal):

flatpak install flathub com.github.tchx84.Flatseal

Share files with Samba

This section is a WIP. Tested only on Fedora KDE.

  1. Installation:

    sudo dnf install samba
hostnamectl status
# Set the hostname that you prefer
sudo hostnamectl set-hostname 'YOUR-HOST-NAME'

# Add a password to your user when using samba
# used to auth external users to open shared resources
# USERNAME is your Linux username
sudo smbpasswd -a USERNAME

# List users
sudo pdbedit -L -v

# Firewall
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service={samba,samba-client} --zone=home
sudo firewall-cmd --reload
# Verify Samba is included in your active firewall:
sudo firewall-cmd --list-services

#Enable and start smb and nmb services:
sudo systemctl enable smb.service
sudo systemctl start smb.service

#Verify smb service:
sudo systemctl status smb.service


# IF YOU CANT ACCESS YOUR SMB RESOURCES
# Open SELinux to see warnings, common fixes:

# If you want samba to export all ReadOnly
setsebool -P samba_export_all_ro 1
# If you want samba  to enable home dirs
setsebool -P samba_enable_home_dirs 1
# If you want samba to export all ReadWrite
setsebool -P samba_export_all_rw 1

  2. Sample configuration:

[global]
  workgroup = workgroup
  usershare allow guests = No
  usershare owner only = No
  guest ok = No

[memes]
  comment = memes
  path = /path/to/memes
  read only = Yes
  public = Yes
  browseable = Yes

Dont forget to start the service: sudo systemctl start smb.service

Problems

If you have problems with some paths, add this under global section:

force user = USERNAME

More info: Forum

Configure Usershares

OPTIONAL - To use Dolphin to share elements directly. Not working sometimes:

sudo dnf install kdenetwork-filesharing

mkdir /var/lib/samba/usershares
groupadd -r sambashare
chown root:sambashare /var/lib/samba/usershares
chmod 1770 /var/lib/samba/usershares

Set the following parameters in the /etc/samba/smb.conf configuration file:

/etc/samba/smb.conf
[global]
 usershare path = /var/lib/samba/usershares
 usershare max shares = 100
 usershare allow guests = yes
 usershare owner only = yes

Add the user to the sambashare group. Replace USERNAME with the name of your linux user:

gpasswd sambashare -a USERNAME

# Reload samba config!
smbcontrol all reload-config

Now, you can go to Dolphin (KDE file explorer) and left click on a folder > Properties > Share and configure the settings to share your folder on the network.

If you want to share paths inside your home directory you must make it accessible for the group others (Everyone).

Links:

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