Select an image
Kubuntu is distributed on four types of images described below.
Desktop CD
The desktop CD allows you to try Kubuntu without changing your computer at all, and at your option to install it permanently later. This type of CD is what most people will want to use. You will need at least 384MiB of RAM to install from this CD.
There are two images available, each for a different type of computer:
- PC (Intel x86) desktop CD
- For almost all PCs. This includes most machines with Intel/AMD/etc type processors and almost all computers that run Microsoft Windows, as well as newer Apple Macintosh systems based on Intel processors. Choose this if you are at all unsure.
- 64-bit PC (AMD64) desktop CD
- Choose this to take full advantage of computers based on the AMD64 or EM64T architecture (e.g., Athlon64, Opteron, EM64T Xeon, Core 2). If you have a non-64-bit processor made by AMD, or if you need full support for 32-bit code, use the Intel x86 images instead.
Alternate install CD
The alternate install CD allows you to perform certain specialist installations of Kubuntu. It provides for the following situations:
- setting up automated deployments;
- upgrading from older installations without network access;
- LVM and/or RAID partitioning;
- installs on systems with less than about 384MiB of RAM (although note that low-memory systems may not be able to run a full desktop environment reasonably).
In the event that you encounter a bug using the alternate installer, please file a bug on the debian-installer package.
There are two images available, each for a different type of computer:
- PC (Intel x86) alternate install CD
- For almost all PCs. This includes most machines with Intel/AMD/etc type processors and almost all computers that run Microsoft Windows, as well as newer Apple Macintosh systems based on Intel processors. Choose this if you are at all unsure.
- 64-bit PC (AMD64) alternate install CD
- Choose this to take full advantage of computers based on the AMD64 or EM64T architecture (e.g., Athlon64, Opteron, EM64T Xeon, Core 2). If you have a non-64-bit processor made by AMD, or if you need full support for 32-bit code, use the Intel x86 images instead.
Install/live DVD
The combined install/live DVD allows you either to install Kubuntu permanently on a computer, or (by entering 'live' at the boot prompt) to try Kubuntu without changing your computer at all.
There are two images available, each for a different type of computer:
- PC (Intel x86) install/live DVD
- For almost all PCs. This includes most machines with Intel/AMD/etc type processors and almost all computers that run Microsoft Windows, as well as newer Apple Macintosh systems based on Intel processors. Choose this if you are at all unsure.
- 64-bit PC (AMD64) install/live DVD
- Choose this to take full advantage of computers based on the AMD64 or EM64T architecture (e.g., Athlon64, Opteron, EM64T Xeon, Core 2). If you have a non-64-bit processor made by AMD, or if you need full support for 32-bit code, use the Intel x86 images instead.
Preinstalled desktop image
The preinstalled-desktop image allows you to unpack a preinstalled version of Kubuntu onto a target device.
There are four images available, each for a different type of computer:
- Texas Instruments OMAP3 preinstalled desktop image
- For OMAP3 boards. See ARM/OMAP for detailed installation information.
- Texas Instruments OMAP4 preinstalled desktop image
- For OMAP4 boards. See ARM/OMAP for detailed installation information.
- Texas Instruments OMAP3 (Hard-Float) preinstalled desktop image
- For OMAP3 boards. See ARM/OMAP for detailed installation information.
- Texas Instruments OMAP4 (Hard-Float) preinstalled desktop image
- For OMAP4 boards. See ARM/OMAP for detailed installation information.
A full list of available files, including BitTorrent files, can be found below.
If you need help burning these images to disk, see the CD Burning Guide.