How to install Gnome on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa

GNOME, GNU Network Object Model Environment is a graphical user interface (GUI) in Linux and, in particular, in the Ubuntu operating system. It includes a variety of desktop applications and its aim is to make a Linux system easy to use for non-programmers. The objective of this tutorial is to install Gnome on Ubuntu 20.04 Focal Fossa Linux.

In this tutorial you will learn:

• How to install Gnome Vanilla on Ubuntu 20.04.
• How to install Full Gnome Desktop.

Software Requirements and Conventions Used

Software Requirements and Linux Command Line Conventions

Category	Requirements, Conventions or Software Version Used
System	Installed or upgraded Ubuntu 20.04 Focal Fossa
Software	GNOME Shell 3.34.1 or higher
Other	Privileged access to your Linux system as root or via the sudo command.
Conventions	# - requires given linux commands to be executed with root privileges either directly as a root user or by use of sudo command $ - requires given linux commands to be executed as a regular non-privileged user

Installing Gnome on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa step by step instructions

Install Gnome Vanilla on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa

The Vanilla Gnome version is a clean GNOME desktop installation. It lacks most of the software you would expect as default, however the desktop resource requirements are minimal.

1. To install GNOME desktop vanilla version execute the following command:

   $ sudo apt install gnome-session gdm3
   

2. All done. Reboot your system:

   $ sudo reboot
   

Install Full Gnome Desktop on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa

The following section will provide you with the step by step instructions on how to install Full Gnome Desktop on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa.

1. The easiest way to install full GNOME desktop is by using the tasksel command. First ensure that the tasksel command is available on your system:

   $ sudo apt install tasksel
   

2. Next, use the tasksel command to install GNOME desktop:

   $ sudo tasksel install ubuntu-desktop
   

3. All done. Reboot your Ubuntu 20.04 system:

   $ sudo reboot