Note: This article was originally published in 2013. Some steps, commands, or software versions may have changed. Check the current Ubuntu documentation for the latest information.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

  • A system running Ubuntu (desktop or server edition)
  • Terminal access with sudo privileges
  • Basic familiarity with Linux command line

How to: Run (http://www.ubuntu.com “Ubuntu (operating system)”) with a (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphical_user_interface “Graphical user interface”)?

Windows Azure allows you to run several Linux distributions and one of them is Ubuntu Server. I have been trying to use Ubuntu to deploy a (http://wordpress.org “WordPress”) installation so I was playing with the Ubuntu images. Because I am new with this I realized there is no easy way to remotely connect to a GUI and that the server version does not come with the Desktop package installed out of the box. However, installing the desktop/GUI on Ubuntu Server is rather simple:

First I recommend you get the latest updates first by running:

sudo apt-get update

You can install the default Ubuntu desktop by executing the following: sudo apt-get install ubuntu-desktop alternatively you can install a light weight version:

  • To install graphical interface without addons like (Email, Openoffice): sudo aptitude install --without-recommends ubuntu-desktop
  • To install a very light weight desktop environment, just the basic GUI (xfce): sudo apt-get install xubuntu-desktop

In order to start the desktop/GUI you need to type start-x There are many desktop alternatives which you may install and use, like:

Local and or remote administration Except from the above you can administer your server by using a web based solution using less resources:

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