Click here if you want to download Ubuntu. Download a Linux distribution file and save it to your Downloads folder.Follow these steps to install Linux on a Mac using Parallels Desktop. VirtualBox is a free environment, although Parallels Desktop is more powerful and an easier installation, so we’d advise using Parallels Desktop for Mac first. Because Linux is capable of running on old hardware, it’s usually perfectly fine running inside OS X in a virtual environment. How to install Linux on a Mac: Use virtualisation softwareīy far the best way to install Linux on a Mac is to use virtualisation software, such as VirtualBox or Parallels Desktop. We’d suggest you start with Ubuntu, but it’s pretty easy to install all different versions of Linux and there’s nothing stopping you from trying out all three (and more) before settling on the one you want.

Crashes a lot though and isn’t great for beginners. This tends to be at the cutting edge of technology and you’ll often find features here that make there way into other distributions (and even macOS) down the line. But Debian offers a lot of features and is used widely in server software. It’s a bit more complex to setup than Ubuntu or Mint. The desktop is generally considered to be more powerful, and certainly has a lot more features. This blends the Ubuntu version of Linux with a different desktop called KDE Plasma. While Unity feels like OS X, Mint feels a little more like Windows. You can pick a range of desktops (Cinnamon or MATE are the most popular). This has made waves recently, and is a great alternative to Ubuntu. This is the most popular choice for beginners, and it uses a desktop interface called Unity, which is very similar to macOS. Which one you pick depends on what kind of experience you want. These are known as “distributions” and each offers a different experience. The first thing you need to know is that there are different versions of Linux around. It was a very short test, that ultimately ended without any experience in the Linux operating system.Parallels Desktop for Mac review How to install Linux on a Mac: Which version of Linux to pick I will stay with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger and Mac OS X Server 10.4 Tiger until Linux is fully support on my test bench platform. This does not include the niceties of having a multi-billion dollar company further developing the OS and bundling excellent applications for free like iTunes, iDVD, iCal, and GarageBand. In my analysis, even though the operating system originates as open source, your ability to install and support that OS may make the initial “free” license very expensive. If compared to a full blown Mac OS X Server 10.4 Tiger model, then Linux would make a financial difference ($430 each license for 10 client Mac OS X Server). Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger costs at retail around $115 on an individual license, and just $180 for a five seat license (just $36 a seat) for a family.

This makes Linux very price prohibitive to even attempt to run on my test bench. I do not believe the latest crop of dual 2.3 GHz is supported at all through the GNU GPL, and only through Terra Soft Solutions paid subscriptions to Linux, currently priced at $30 with no manual, or $60 with a manual but without support, and finally $90 with 60 days support, can it install at all. As of today, neither audio nor Mac-on-Linux work. On Intel white boxes, the structure of the chipset is well understood and documented, however on the Apple Power Mac G5, Linux cannot be fully implemented and has many gaps in service.

Linux on power mac g5