This page covers two ways to install Ubuntu — VM virtual machine and WSL — just pick one of them.

Method 1: VM Virtual Machine

1

Download the Ubuntu image

Official download for Ubuntu 20.04.6 (recommended, fast): download ubuntu-20.04.6-desktop-amd64.iso.

You can also visit https://cn.ubuntu.com/download to pick another version.

2

Open VMware and create a virtual machine

Open VMware Workstation and click Create a New Virtual Machine on the home screen:

3

Choose the typical configuration

Select Typical and click Next:

4

Select the ISO image

Select Installer disc image file (iso), click Browse to choose the downloaded Ubuntu image, then click Next:

5

Set the user name and password

Give your Linux a nice name, set a user name and password, then click Next:

⚠️ Remember the password you set — you will need it to log in!

6

Choose the install location

Choose where to store the virtual machine (a disk with plenty of free space is recommended) and click Next:

7

Set the disk size

Enter 50G for the disk size (default is 20G; 50G or more is recommended), select Store virtual disk as a single file, and click Next:

8

Finish creating the VM

Keep the defaults and click Finish:

9

Install the system

The VM starts installing Ubuntu; click OK on any prompt that appears, then wait for the installation to finish and boot into the system:

System configuration inside the VM

1

Edit the software sources

Open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run the command below to open the apt sources file:

After copying a command, paste it in the terminal with the middle mouse button.

sudo nano /etc/apt/sources.list

2

Comment out the original content

Comment out the original entries with #:

3

Replace with the Tsinghua mirror (recommended)

Replace all the content with the addresses below, then save with Ctrl+O and exit with Ctrl+X:

# Default commented out source mirrors to speed up apt update; uncomment if needed

deb https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse

# The security update sources below include official and mirror config; edit comments as needed

deb http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse

4

Replace with the Aliyun mirror (alternative)

Prefer not to use Tsinghua? Replace everything with the Aliyun mirror instead:

deb https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse

# deb https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-proposed main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-proposed main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse
deb-src https://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse

5

Replace with the USTC mirror (alternative)

Or replace everything with the USTC mirror:

# Default commented out source repositories; uncomment if needed

deb https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse

deb https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse
# deb-src https://mirrors.ustc.edu.cn/ubuntu/ focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse

6

Update the software sources

Run the command below to apply the new sources:

sudo apt update

7

Upgrade the software

Upgrade the installed packages (this takes a while — please be patient):

sudo apt upgrade

8

Install essential tools

Install the common development tools (vim, git, net-tools, ssh, python):

• vim: terminal text editor
• git: code repository tool for fetching code
• net-tools: network tools for checking IP addresses
• ssh: remote connection tool
• python3-pip: Python package manager

sudo apt-get install vim git net-tools ssh python2 python3-pip

9

Add serial port permission

Add the current user to the dialout group, otherwise accessing the serial port (/dev/ttyUSB0) later will fail with a permission error:

sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER

10

Set up the python version

Register python2 and python3 for version switching (run both commands). Later, use sudo update-alternatives --config python and type a number to switch:

sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python python /usr/bin/python2 100
sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python python /usr/bin/python3 150

11

Ubuntu is ready

Ubuntu is now installed and configured. To continue setting up the development environment, see:

• 👉 Install VSCode and connect to Ubuntu remotely
• 👉 Ai-WB2 quick start (Linux)
• 👉 Ai-M6x quick start (Linux)

Method 2: Install Ubuntu in WSL

1

Open PowerShell

Hold shift + right-click and choose Open PowerShell window here (or search for PowerShell in the Start menu), then run the command below to install Ubuntu 20.04:

wsl --install -d Ubuntu-20.04

2

Wait for the installation to finish

The installation downloads from the internet — please be patient. The screen below means it succeeded; the first launch of Ubuntu asks you to set a user name and password:

FAQ

The Ubuntu image download is too slow

The official link releases.ubuntu.com is usually the fastest; you can also visit https://cn.ubuntu.com/download for a China mirror entry.

Forgot the login password

Restart Ubuntu in the VM; on the GRUB screen choose Advanced options for Ubuntu → recovery mode → root, then run passwd username in the shell to reset the password.

The VM says “Intel VT-x is disabled”

Enable virtualization (Intel VT-x / AMD-V) in the computer BIOS, save and reboot, then start the VM again.

Have questions?

For any other questions, visit the unified Q&A and discussion board: Ai-Thinker Discussions