Mar 11
Ubuntu installation on a low RAM machine
Ever wanted to get a decent ubuntu on an older PC, a legacy machine that you found down the cellar? Then you might run into weird trouble when installing from a live CD or DVD - the installer needs more than the available RAM
While booting the system, press Ctrl+Alt+F1 to go to console
Select a disk for swap: sudo fdisk -l
(a) Create swap partition: $ sudo fdisk /dev/hda
(b) Make swap file system (hda5 is swap file system in this example): $ sudo mkswap /dev/hda5
(c) Add swap to the running system: $ sudo swapon /dev/hda5
(d) Make sure that swap is live: $ sudo swapon -s
Then, press Ctrl+Alt+F7 to go back to desktop. Run graphical installer
Further reading and sources:
http://cutecomputer.wordpress.com/2006/07/18/ubuntu-606-installation-on-legacy-pc-low-ram/
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/LowMemorySystems