How to install Linux Mint Debian edition 5 "Elsie"

Linux Mint Debian Edition 5 “Elsie” was released in March. With it come many excellent features and software improvements. Here’s how you can install LMDE 5 on your desktop or laptop.

Downloading LMDE 5 Elsie

To install LMDE 5 Elsie on your desktop or laptop computer, you’ll need to download the latest ISO release from the official website. Head over to the Linux Mint Debian Edition page on the Linux Mint website.

Once on the website page, find the “Torrent Download” section, and select either 64-bit or 32-bit. When you choose this option, the torrent client installed on your computer will open and begin downloading LMDE 5.

Don’t have a torrent client set up on your computer? Consider installing Transmission or Qbittorrent. Downloading Linux Mint Debian Edition via torrent saves developers hundreds of dollars in web hosting fees.

If you prefer to download directly through your web browser, select one of the mirror links on the page. For fast download speeds, choose the mirror that corresponds to your country.

Creating an LMDE 5 Elsie USB installer

You must create an LMDE 5 USB installer to set up the latest Linux Mint Debian Edition version on your desktop or laptop. There are many ways to make a USB installer. In this guide, we’ll focus on the Etcher app.

Why use Etcher? Simple. The GUI for Etcher is cross-platform, so no matter what PC OS you use to create your LMDE 5 USB installer, the instructions are the same.

To get your hands on Etcher, head over to the official website. Once on the Etcher website, download the app, install it on your system and start it up. Then, follow the step-by-step instructions below.

Step 1: Find the “Flash from file” button in the Etcher app and click on it with the mouse. Upon selecting this button, a pop-up window will appear. In this pop-up window, browse for the LMDE 5 Elsie ISO file on your PC and select it.

Step 2: After selecting the ISO file, find the “Select target” button, and click on it with the mouse. Then, insert your USB flash drive, and select it in the “Select target” menu.

Step 3: Find the “Flash!” button inside the Etcher application, and click on it with the mouse to start the flashing process. Keep in mind that this process will take some time as LMDE 5 is quite large.

When the flashing process is complete, reboot your computer into its BIOS. Then, inside of the BIOS, configure your PC to boot directly from USB. Booting from USB will allow you to start up the LMDE 5 installer.

Installing LMDE 5 Elise

To install LMDE 5, Elsie, follow the step-by-step instructions below.

Step 1: On the LMDE desktop, find the “Install Linux Mint” disc icon and click on it with the mouse to start the installation tool.

Step 2: In the installation tool, you’ll see a welcome message that says “Welcome to LMDE 5”. Followed by “This program will ask you some questions and set up LMDE on your computer. Select the “Let’s go!” button to continue.

Step 3: You’ll be asked to select your language. Look through the list of available languages and select it (if the installer doesn’t automatically detect it.) Then, press the “Next” button to continue.

Step 4: You must now choose your timezone. Using the world map, click where you live. Alternatively, let LMDE 5’s installation tool automatically detect your timezone. When done, select the “Next” button.

Step 5: With the timezone set, you’ll have to choose your keyboard layout. Look through the available keyboard layouts for the one you prefer. Then, click on the “Next” button to move to the next page.

Step 6: After setting up your keyboard layout, the LMDE 5 installation tool will ask you to fill out your name, your computer’s name (network identity), username, and password.

Note: Select “Encrypt my home folder” on the user page if you want encryption.

Once everything is filled out, click on the “Next” button to move to the next page.

Step 7: With your username configured, it is time to choose an installation type. Select your hard drive in the “Disk” menu. Then, click the “Next” button to continue. Alternatively, select “Manual Partitioning” if you prefer to do things your way.

Step 8: After configuring your installation type, the LMDE 5 installer will ask you to install the GRUB boot menu. Select where you plan to install it and click on the “Next” button to continue.

Step 9: With Grub set up, the LMDE 5 installer will show you a summary of what the installation will do to your computer. When you’ve read the summary, find the “Install” button to start the installation of Linux Mint Debian Edition 5.