Installing Arch Linux is not too hard, but there are a few tricks that will help new users to get everything working.

If you want me to post more tips on Arch installation, leave a comment.

Table of Contents

Install a text editor

During installation process you will have to edit some files, so you will need to install a text editor, like nano.

pacman -S nano

Make bootloader to recognize other installed operating systems

  • When you are going to install grub: 
    pacman -S grub efibootmgr os-prober ntfs-3g
  • Mount other systems partitions, for example: 
    mkdir /mnt/windows
mount /dev/sda4 /mnt/windows
  • Run grub-install. 
    grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot --bootloader-id=GRUB
  • Open /etc/default/grub and add or uncomment this line: 
    GRUB_DISABLE_OS_PROBER=false
  • Create the main configuration file. 
    grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg
  • Check that all OS are showed in the command output.

Install a network manager (in order to have Internet access)

pacman -S networkmanager

# Once you've finished the installation and after you've restarted the system
systemctl start NetworkManager
systemctl enable NetworkManager

Install sudo and create a user

# as root
pacman -S sudo

useradd -m <username>
passwd <username>
# Type a password for your new user

groupadd sudo
usermod -aG sudo <username>

EDITOR=nano
visudo

# Uncomment following line
%sudo   ALL=(ALL) ALL

Log out and log in again.

Installing a desktop (XFCE)

pacman -S xorg-server xfce4 xfce4-goodies lightdm lightdm-gtk-greeter

systemctl enable lightdm.service
# Reboot

Change keyboard layout for the desktop

localectl set-x11-keymap <keymap>
# Log out and log in

Enabling audio (pipewire)

pacman -S pipewire pipewire-pulse gst-plugin-pipewire

systemctl --user enable pipewire.service pipewire-pulse.service
# Reboot

Fixing SD card reader error (Broadcom BCM57765/57785)

Create a file named “sdcard-fix” in /bin and paste this:

#!/bin/bash

rmmod sdhci-pci sdhci
modprobe sdhci debug_quirks2=4
modprobe sdhci-pci

Make the file executable.

chmod +x /bin/sdcardfix

Execute the file to confirm that works.

Create a service file (/lib/systemd/system/sdcardfix) and paste this:

[Unit]
Description=Fix SDCard reader error
After=network.target
StartLimitIntervalSec=0

[Service]
Type=simple
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=1
User=root
ExecStart=sdcard-fix

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Reload, start and enable service.

systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl start sdcardfix
systemctl enable sdcardfix

Installing an all-in-one HP printer

  • Install cups, hplip.
  • Edit /etc/cups/cups-files.conf and add your user’s group to SystemGroup line.
  • Start and enable cups service.
  • First, try installing the printer via “HP Device Manager”. If that does not work:
  • Find your printer’s usb URI with lpinfo -v: 
    # lpinfo -v
usb://HP/PSC%201500%20series?serial=XXXXXXXXXXXXX&interface=1
  • Search your printer model with lpinfo -m and grep: 
    $ lpinfo -m | grep 1510
drv:///hp/hpcups.drv/hp-deskjet_1510_series.ppd HP Deskjet 1510 Series, hpcups 3.21.8
lsb/usr/HP/hp-deskjet_1510_series.ppd.gz HP Deskjet 1510 Series, hpcups 3.21.8
  • Add a new queue with lpadmin. 
    lpadmin -p <queue_name> -E -v <uri> -m <model>
# lpadmin -p HP_1510 -E -v "usb://HP/PSC%201500%20series?serial=XXXXXXXXXXXXX&interface=1" -m drv:///hp/hpcups.drv/hp-deskjet_1510_series.ppd
  • List printer options. 
    lpoptions -p <queue name> -l
  • Set an option. 
    lpoptions -p <queue name> -o <option>
# lpoptions -p HP_1510 -o PageSize=A4

Installing fonts

You can use pacman to search and install fonts or you can download a font (from Google Fonts for example) and then copy it to ~/.local/share/fonts/ for a single-user installation, or /usr/local/share/fonts/ for a system-wide installation. Subdirectory structure depends on the user preferences, but a good example could be the following:

/usr/local/share/fonts/
└── ttf
    ├── AnonymousPro
        ├── Anonymous-Pro-B.ttf
        ├── Anonymous-Pro-I.ttf
        └── Anonymous-Pro.ttf

If you have copied the files manually, regenerate the fontconfig cache: fc-cache --force.

Microsoft fonts (TrueType)

There are several packages in AUR, some download a Windows 10/11 ISO and extract the fonts, others require that you have the Windows/Office installation media. If you have Windows installed on another partition or computer, copy the files from /windows/Windows/Fonts/ to /usr/local/share/fonts/ (if that partition is mounted on your Arch Linux system, you can just link the files). Then, regenerate the fontconfig cache.

You may want to use open source alternatives like ttf-liberation.

Asian fonts

pacman -S noto-fonts-cjk

Emoji fonts

pacman -S noto-fonts-emoji

Bluetooth

Install blueman and start bluetooth service.

pacman -S blueman
systemctl enable --now bluetooth

Note: if KDE Plasma is installed, you may need to uninstall blueman if you want to manage Bluetooth with Plasma.

Pacman cheatsheet

Check Package managers in Linux/UNIX.

AUR

Check Repositories in Arch Linux: official and AUR.

If you have any suggestion, feel free to contact me via social media or email.