This blog is for those who have no or very less amount of knowledge about the latest device or you can say mini-computer i.e Raspberry Pi 4. It is nothing but a small computer which can perform all the work that a normal computer can perform. The only difference is that it is very cheap and if a person is very creative and wants to make new things out this small minicomputer then it is well suited for this purpose.
It provides a great platform for beginners who want to learn programming and digital making. It is the same as a normal computer, you can do lots of things there like browsing the web, games, videos, creating documents, etc. It is very inexpensive, those who were not able to afford a computer can now easily purchase this mini single board computer. It also provides an environment to learn physical computing and Linux OS.
Let’s begin with the installation part of the OS of the raspberry pi.
OS Selection
As we all know that a computer is of no use if there is no operating system installed in it. In simple words, an OS is a mediator between the hardware and the user. A user can not communicate with the computer if there is no mediator between the two. For example, if a person X knows Spanish and person Y knows Hindi then it obvious that they will not be able to communicate with each other. In the same way, if a user wants to communicate with the hardware a low-level software is needed and this known as the operating system.
In Raspberry Pi also we need an OS to communicate with the hardware part of the single-board computer. The official OS of the Raspberry Pi is Raspbian, other than this there are other OS also designed by the third-party. It is recommended to use the official OS of the Raspberry Pi 4.
There are two ways to install the OS:
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Installing OS from an installer called NOOBS
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Installing OS directly
Before we start with the installation part let’s take a look at the requirements:
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SD Card - The microSD card acts as a storage device where all the data is stored in the Raspberry Pi. All the files you create and the software you install, along with the operating system itself are stored on the microSD card. SD card comes with different size 8 GB , 16 GB, 32GB, 64 GB,etc. The minimum capacity of the SD card which we can use for Raspberry Pi is 8 GB. Depending upon your requirement you can select the size of the SD card. The more capacity of the SD card more smoothly your device will run.
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SD Card formatter - A software is also used to format an SD card. If you are a new card then you do not require this software but if there is already a data stored in an SD card then you’ll need a formatter to format an SD card.
Installing NOOBS:
Follow the steps mentioned below to install the OS using NOOBS:
NOOBS is basically an installer through which a user which is new or you can say a beginner can easily install an OS. It is recommended to the newbies to install using NOOBS because it is very easy to install. NOOBS means new out of the box software, the easiest way to install an OS.
Step 1: Visit the official website of the raspberry pi mentioned below:
www.raspberrypi.org/downloads
Step 2: You’ll see the NOOBS installer.
Step 3: Click on it and then select the first option.
Step 4: Download the zip file of the installer.
Step 5: Extract the zip file.
Step 6: Now, copy the whole files inside the unzipped folder into the SD card.
Now, you are ready to install your OS. On power-up, it will ask you to select the OS and it will start installing the OS into the single-board computer.
Installing Raspbian:
Raspbian is an official OS of the raspberry pi. Before you install this there is software that is required to install the OS. So, before you install the OS you’ll need win32diskimager for installing purpose.
Follow the steps below:
Step 1: Visit the official website of the raspberry pi mentioned below:
www.raspberrypi.org/downloads
Step 2: You’ll see Raspbian OS.
Step 3: Click on it and then select the first option.
Step 4: Download the zip file of the OS, prefer “Raspbian Buster with desktop and recommended software” for all the recommended software packages preinstalled.
Step 5: Extract the zip file.
Step 6: Now, open the win32diskimager. A window will pop up.
Step 7: Click on the folder icon it select the image that you have extracted in step 5 and also select the drive where it is to be copied i.e SD card drive
Step 8: After selecting the image click on the write button. It will take some time to copy. Upon completion, you’ll get a message of successful completion.
Now, your SD card is ready to boot. Insert it in the pi and on power-up, you’ll see Raspbian OS is getting installed into the pi.