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This page is an attempt to document installing a custom Ubuntu system using only the Eee and a USB drive, while implementing a lightweight window manager, full disk encryption, and up-to-date Asus patches so that all hardware functions are retained.

Following these directions will allow you to take a brand-new fresh out of the box Eee and transform it into a fully customized laptop, with the latest in software. The plan is to only use the most basic hardware available to an Eee owner that doesn't have access to another computer.

Most of the install process will be done using the command line. This is because installing the GUI is nearly the last step, unlike a normal Ubuntu install. While more difficult, it leads to a much leaner and customized system.

It's important that you read this entire page before beginning. Some steps might not make sense, unless you know what is coming later, which might lead you to skipping things. If skip steps and hose your Eee, it'll be your own fault.

Also, life will be a lot easier if you take time to understand each command, before you type it.

Hopefully this page will be a complete reference, with no need for you to look up other information elsewhere.

• Asus Eee PC
• Working Internet connection
• 1GB+ USB pen drive or SD card
• 2GB RAM Upgrade (200-pin SO-DIMM, DDR2-667, PC2-5300) – For optional Ramdisk setup.
• Small screwdriver – For optional Ramdisk setup.

1. Pre-flight checklist
2. Install optional RAM
3. Enable needed repositories
4. Setup Advanced Desktop
5. Download needed files
6. Install Ubuntu CD to USB drive
7. Install a baseline cli Ubuntu system w/ full disk encryption
8. Compile Eee specific drivers
9. Install a lightweight window manager & login manager
10. Setup a custom ramdisk (if 2GB RAM is installed)

Before we begin, you should unbox your Eee and take the following steps:

• Charge the battery for at least a few hours, power on your Eee, and inspect the screen for stuck/dead pixels, and other defects. If you're happy with the condition of your Eee, continue with this howto. Otherwise you might want to return or exchange it.
• Read the user's manual so that you'll have a basic familiarity with your Eee.
• If you've made any changes to your Eee's software, you might want to restore it to factory defaults. This will ensure that you'll be able to follow these directions cleanly.
  • Howto: Restore factory defaults:
    • step 1
    • step 2
• Prepare a clean well-lit work area, and place the Eee upon it.
• Touch unpainted metal to discharge any accumulated static electricity (doorknob, etc). Use of a grounding strap is preferred if you have access to one.

If you have purchased RAM for your Eee, we'll install it before doing anything else. (Skip this step if you don't have RAM to install.)

(more to be added)

To get the packages needed to install the Advanced Desktop, we'll need to enable some repositories. These are only needed while we use the factory OS. Once the upgrade is complete, you'll want to use Ubuntu repositories.

deb http://update.eeepc.asus.com/p701 p701 main
deb http://update.eeepc.asus.com/p701/en p701 main
deb http://xnv4.xandros.com/xs2.0/upkg-srv2 etch main contrib non-free
deb http://dccamirror.xandros.com/dccri/ dccri-3.0 main

After you're finished with this howto, you might want to look at this page to see how to using pinning to manage your repository list. (Warning! Don't use the repositories listed there, they're for the factory OS.) (to be added)

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There are several files we'll need to download before we can begin. This because the default Ubuntu install won't recognize the network port out of the box. If we don't have these files saved, we'll be stuck with out Internet access, but needing to download packages. Not a nice catch-22 at all.

• Needed scripts can be found in the Googlecode repository for this project.

(more to be added)

(note: might change this to using the mini.iso, depending on testing.) We're installing the alt-CD version of Ubuntu to make installation easier, as it has a textual installer that fits better on the Eee's screen. The file you need is ubuntu-7.10-alternate-i386.iso which available here:

• Ubuntu alternative CD (Direct download link, you might want to find a closer mirror.)

Alt-CDs of Kubuntu and Xubuntu will also work, we're only interested in the base packages. The pretty pictures will come later. (more to be added)

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