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Arch Linux With Hyprland (Hyde Project) Dotfiles For A Cutting-Edge Experience

Arch Linux With Hyprland (Hyde Project) Dotfiles For A Cutting-Edge Experience

hyprland-hyde-dotfiles-on-a-minimal-arch-linux-system

Hi all, welcome to MusaBase!. In this article, I'll guide you through installing Hyprland (HYDE) on Arch Linux and take your desktop experience to the next level. In this guide, I'll cover:

  • Creating and Formatting Partitions for Arch Linux
  • Configuration of archinstall for a Minimal Arch Linunx Installation
  • Configuration of Base Arch System for Hyprland Installation
  • Install Hyprland with HyDE Dotfiles

Without further ado, let's get started.





Prerequisites

This guide assumes you have already downloaded the Arch Linux ISO and created a bootable USB drive plus you are using a UEFI firmware motherboard.



Step 1: Boot into Arch Live ISO & Create Partitions

  • Reboot your PC.
  • Press F9, F10, F11, F12, Esc, or Del, (depending on your motherboard) to enter BIOS/UEFI settings.
  • Locate and disable Secure Boot.
  • Save changes and exit.
  • When prompted, press the key to select a boot device (e.g., F9) depending on your motherboard.
  • Choose your USB drive as the boot device.
  • You should see the Arch Linux boot menu, similar to this one:
grub-menu-for-arch-linux-live-iso

  • Press Enter on Arch Linux install medium (x86_64, UEFI) .
  • After a few seconds, you will be in the Arch Linux live installation environment.
arch-linux-live-iso-environment

1.1: Creating & Formatting Disk Partitions

Partitioning with cfdisk

We need to partition the hard disk to create a boot and root parititon. You can use fdisk, gparted or cfdisk. In this guide, I'll use cfdisk because it's convenient and provides an easy-to-use text-based "graphical interface".

  • If you have more than one drive connected, list all storage devices with: 
lsblk
listing-out-all-connected-storage-devices
  • Now run the following command to open the cfdisk interface.
  • Select gpt as the partition table and press Enter.
cfdisk /dev/sdb
cfdisk-dev-sdb
select-gpt-partition-table-style
cfdisk-interface

1.1.1: Create the Boot Parititon

  • In the cfdisk interface, select Free Space and press Enter.
  • Allocate around 512 MB to 1 GB depending on your needs. (.e.g., 1G or 512M) with capital G for Gigabytes and M for Megabytes
  • Next on the bottom options menu select [ Type ] and press Enter to open Partition Type/Filesystem menu.
  • Choose EFI System and press Enter.
  • Setting the boot partition table to EFI is essential because without it the firmware won't be able to locate and execute the bootloader.
select-free-space-for-boot-partition
allocate-storage-for-boot-partition
select-type-to-change-the-filesystem-for-boot-partition
efi-system-assigned-to-boot-partition

1.1.2: Create the Root Partiton

  • Next, select Free Space again, then choose [ New ] from the bottom menu and press Enter.
  • Allocate the desired size for your root partition. If you plan to create a separate /home partition, allocate accordingly. In this example, we'll give 15GB to the root partition reserve space for swap partition.
creating-root-partition
15gs-for-root-partition
root-partition-with-linux-filesystem

1.1.3: Create a Swap Partition (Optional)

This step is optional, if you want to create a Swap Partition for your system then follow this or skip to next step.

  • Select Free Space then choose [ New ] and press Enter.
  • Allocate around 4GB (or as needed) and press Enter.
  • Next, with the Swap Partition highlighted, select [ Type ] and choose Linux swap partition type from the menu and press Enter.
creating-swap-partition
allocating-space-to-swap-partition
changing-filesystem-for-swap-partiton
select-linux-swap-for-swap-partition
swap-partition-created-with-filesystem

1.1.4: Write the Partition Changes

This step is crucial, without writing the changes, your new partitions won't be created.

  • Navigate to [ Write ] in the bottom options menu and press Enter.
  • Type yes when prompted and press Enter.
  • Finally, select [ Quit ] to exit cfdisk.
navigate-to-write-option
type-yes-to-write-the-changes
changes-have-been-commit

1.2: Format the Parititons

Now that all required partitions have been created, let's format them before installing Arch Linux. First, run lsblk command to list all attached storage devices and their partitions. It's an easy way to identify partitions and also avoiding formatting the wrong one:

partitioned-hard-drive-sdb

1.2.1: Format the Boot Partition

  • Run the following command:
mkfs.vfat -F32 /dev/sdb1
formatting-boot-partition

1.2.2: Format the Root Partition

  • Run the following command:
mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdb2
format-the-root-partition

1.2.3: Make Swap Area (Optional if you created a swap partition)
  • If you created a swap partition, run the following command (replace sdb3 with your swap partition name):
mkswap /dev/sdb3
making-a-swap-area


Step 2: Install Minimal Arch Linux with archinstall Script

Before running the arhcinstall script, I need to cover a few preliminary steps to ensure it doesn't fail. You can skip ahead to the installation section if you wish, but if you encounter any errors, return to this step and try again.

Synchrionizing the Live Enviornment (Optional)

Keys Activation

  • Run these two commands consecutively:
pacman-key --init
pacman-key --populate archlinux

Synchronize and Update the Local Package Database

  • Run the following command:
pacman -Sy
sudo-pacman-sy
package-database-synchronized

Update the Keyring

  • Run the following command:
pacman -S archlinux-keyring
sudo-pacman-s-archlinux-keyring
archlinux-keyrings-synchronizing
archlinux-keyring-sycnhronized

Install or Update the archinstall Script

  • Run the following command:
pacman -S archinstall
sudo-pacman-s-archinstall
archinstall-confirm-installation
archinstall-updated-installed

Arch Linux Installation

2.1: Run the archinstall Script

  • Finally, run the following command to start the installer:
archinstall
archinstall
archinstall-interface

2.2: Mounting Partitions

  • Navigate to Disk Configuration and press Enter.
  • Select Partition press Enter.
  • Select Manual Partitioning and press Enter.
navigate-to-disk-configuration
select-partition-press-enter
manual-partitioning
  • Choose the disk you partitioned for Arch Linux and press Enter, for me it's /dev/sdb.
choose-disk

2.2.1: Mount the Boot Partition

  • Select the boot partition created in Step 1 (Efi System) and press Enter.
  • Select Assign mountpoint and press Enter.
  • When prompted, enter the mountpoint and press Enter:
/boot
select-boot-partition-sdb1
select-assign-mountpoint
type-/boot
boot-partition-mounted

2.2.2: Mount the Root Partition

  • Select the root partition created in Step 1 (formatted as ext4) and press Enter.
  • Select Assign mountpoint and press Enter.
  • When prompted, enter the mountpouint and press Enter:
/
select-root-partition-with-ext4-format
select-assign-mountpoint
type-/-press-enter
root-partition-mounted

2.2.3: Confirm the Partition Layout & Exit

  • If you created additional partitions (e.g., /home), mount them now in the same way.
  • After moutning every partition, select Confirm and exit and press Enter.
  • Select Back and press Enter to return to the archinstall main menu.
confirming-mounted-partition-points

2.3: Disable Swap in archinstall

  • Even if you didn't create a swap partition in Step 1, you still need to disable this options. Leaving it enabled can cuase installation errors.
  • From the archinstall main menu, select Swap and press Enter.
  • On the prompted options select no and press Enter.
navigate-to-swap-in-archinstall
select-no-and-press-enter
swap-disabled

2.4: Select a Bootloader

  • Select Bootloader and press Enter.
  • Choose GRUB and press Enter.
navigate-to-bootloader
select-grub-bootloader
bootloader-selected

2.5: Set the Hostname

  • Select Hostname and press Enter.
  • Replace the default hostname (archlinux) with your desired hostname (e.g., MusaBase) and press Enter.
navigate-to-hostname-option
type-your-hostname
hostname-replaced

2.6: Set the Root Password

  • Select Root password and press Enter.
  • Enter a strong password for the root account, then re-enter it to confirm.
navigate-to-root-password
enter-your-root-password
re-enter-your-root-password

2.7: Create a User Account

2.7.1: Add a User

  • Select User account and press Enter.
  • Choose Add a user and press Enter.
  • When prompted, type your username (e.g., john) and press Enter.
navigate-to-create-user-account
enter-on-add-a-user
type-your-username

2.7.2: Set User's Password

  • Enter a password for the new user and re-enter it to confirm.
enter-password-for-your-user
re-enter-password-for-your-user-account

  • When asked "if you want to make this user a superuser (sudo) ?", i am choosing no beacuse i will grant my user sudo previliges after installation of Linux OS.
  • Choose yes or no according to your needs and press Enter.
choose-whether-to-create-this-user-a-superuser-or-not
user-account-created-without-superuser

2.7.3: Confirm & Exit

  • Optionally create additional users. When finished, select Confirm and exit and press Enter.
confirm-and-exit
user-account-created

2.8: Choose a Profile

  • Select Profile and press Enter and then choose Type.
  • Choose Minimal and press Enter.
selecting-minimal-profile-for-arch-linux
minimal-profile-selected

2.9: Configure Audio

  • Select Audio and press Enter.
  • Choose an audio server. I'm going with pulseaudio but you can pick the other option if you prefer.
navigate-to-audio
pulseaudio
aduio-server-selected

2.10: Configure the Network

  • Select Network configuration and press Enter.
  • Choose NetworkManager. If you select another tool, ensure it's configured for internet access in the installed system.
navigate-to-network-configuration
select-networkmanager
networkmanager-selected

2.11: Install Arch Linux

I've left all other settings at their defaults but customized the kernel and ecryption options as needed. I'm not installing extra pacakges now, I'll add them after installation. Let's move on to the installation process:

  • Select Install and press Enter.
  • When prompted to confirm your configuration, chooseyes and press Enter. The installation will then begin.
navigate-to-install
confirm-configuration-and-installation
installing-arch-linux

2.12: Reboot

  • Once the installation finishes, you will be prompted to reboot.
  • Reboot now to begin the next phase:
rebooting-system-after-installation-finished


Step 3: Install Hyprland HyDE Dotfiles

After rebooting, you will see the GRUB menu with a few options:

grub-bootloader

3.1: Login with User Account

  • Select Arch Linux and press Enter.
  • After a few seconds, you will see the tty1 command-line login prompt.
  • At the login prompt, enter the username and password you created during installation.
enter-username
enter-password

Configuring Base Arch Linux for Hyprland HyDE Installation

3.2: Configure the DNS Server (Optional)

Configuring your DNS Server is optional, perform this step only if you encounter any network issues while updating or installing packages in your Linux system.

3.2.1: Install Nano

  • First things first, install nano (A command-line text editor) by running this command:
sudo pacman -S nano
sudo-pacman-s-nano
nano-installed

3.2.2: Add NameServers

  • Now that nano is installed, open the /etc/resolv.conf file in nano to add nameservers:
  • Run:
sudo nano /etc/resolv.conf
  • In the opened file add these nameservers like this:
nameserver 1.1.1.1
nameserver 8.8.8.8
  • After adding the nameservers, press CTRL + O to save the changes then press Enter to apply the changes then press CTRL + X to exit the file.
sudo-nano-etc-resolv.conf
adding-nameservers

3.3: Update Linux System

  • Run:
sudo pacman -Syu

3.4: Install Additional Packages

Although we can install Hyprland and implement HyDE dotfile right from here, but for a smooth installation without aborting or couldn't resolve dependencies errors these following steps are neede.

  • Run:
sudo pacman -S --needed git base-devel wget curl
installing-addditional-packages
additional-pacakges

Install Hyprland with HyDE Dotfiles

  • Finally its time to install Hyprland with HyDE dotfiles.
  • Run these commands consecutively:
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/HyDE-Project/HyDE ~/HyDE
cd ~/HyDE/Scripts
./install.sh
git-cloning
cd-and-installing-script



Afterwards

Now that Arch Linux and a fully Configured Hyprland are installed, you're ready to go. To adjust keybindings (e.g., terminal, browser, file manager) and other settings, edit ~/.config/hypr/userprefs.conf or visit HyDE official repo page for more information, just remember to reload the configuration after editing by running hyprctl reload in terminal or by pressing (SUPER + Shift + R ). I'll cover further customization in another article, this is it for now.


🎉 Congratulations! your Arch Linux system with one of the most Futuristic Hyprland dotfiles is now up and running!

If you hit any snags, drop a comment below, I'm here to help.
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1O1 out, I'll see you in the next one!



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