Most people using Linux systems mostly interact with the terminal to carry out various operations. In fact some Linux systems do not come with a graphical user interface at all. Users may need to use a graphical interface for some installations and there are various desktop environments that a user can install. Gnome desktop provides a straightforward interface. It is the most friendly interface for any Linux system. In this guide, we are going to see how to install and use Gnome desktop on Linux Mint 22.
Linux Mint Supported Desktop Environments.
Before we dive into the installation on Gnome desktop environment on Linux Mint 22, let us first familiarize ourselves with the currently supported Linux Mint desktop environments. Linux Mint comes with three different desktop environments, each with its own features. These include:
- Cinnamon: It is the most modern, innovative and full-featured desktop.
- MATE: A more stable and faster desktop
- Xfce: It is the most stable and most lightweight desktop.
Cinnamon is Linux Mint most popular desktop environment, primarily developed for and by Linux Mint. It has a lot of new features, is slick and beautiful. Linux Mint are also developing MATE, is a continuation of Gnome 2 which had been the default desktop for Linux Mint between 2006 and 2011. Even though Mate development is slower compared to Cinnamon, MATE is more stable, faster and utilizes less resources. Xfce on the other hand is does not support many features but is lightweight and very stable.
Install Gnome Desktop Environment on Linux Mint 22
What is Gnome? Gnome, short for GNU Network Model Environment, is a user friendly desktop environment developed to suit both developers and non developers using Linux operating system, intended to make Linux systems easy to use for everyone. It corresponds to Windows operating system and can be made to look like windows and Mac desktop environments.
The installation of Gnome desktop environment is quite straightforward. First ensure that your all your system packages are updated. Run the below commands to ensure the same:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -yTo install desktop vanilla version, run the command below:
sudo apt install gnome-session gdm3Once Gnome desktop installation is complete, reboot your Linux Mint to launch Gnome desktop:
sudo rebootDuring login, you’ll notice that it already took up the GNOME login look. If it didn’t, select Gnome desktop by clicking on the gear icon:
Once you’ve selected Gnome and logged in, you should that notice your desktop environment has changed and taken up Gnome desktop environment:
Install Gnome Utilities and Packages
One of the most common Gnome utilities is the disk utility that enables one to manage disks on the Linux system by providing an easy to use graphical tool for disk partitioning. Run the below command to install Gnome disk utility.
sudo apt install -y gnome-disk-utilityGo back to your desktop, click on activities and on the search bar, type disks. You should see disk icon which upon clicking, a page appears as shown:
Install and change themes with Gnome tweak tool
Gnome tweaks enables customization of Gnome desktop environment. To install Gnome tweak tool on Linux Mint 22, first enable universe repository using the below command.
sudo apt-add-repository universeNow install Gnome tweak tool on Linux Mint 21 using the below command.
sudo apt update
sudo apt install gnome-tweak-toolOnce installation is completed, you can launch Gnome tweak tool from the terminal by running the below command:
gnome-tweaks &Alternatively, on your Gnome desktop, click on activities then search for tweaks from the search bar. Click to launch it.
It is also recommended to install Gnome shell extension package. Run the command below to install:
sudo apt install gnome-shell-extensionsTo install themes, you can search and install with the below commands:
sudo apt search themeThe output is a list of quite a number of different themes arranged alphabetically. Below is a sample:
Now install your theme of choice using apt as shown:
sudo apt install <theme-name>To change theme with Gnome tweak tool, launch Gnome tweak tool from the terminal
gnome-tweaks &Once you launch Gnome tweaks, you should see different tabs that allows to customize your desktop environment appearance. To change theme, click on appearance and choose your preferred theme as shown below:
Enjoy Gnome desktop environment on Linux Mint 22. Below are more Linux guides for you:
