Commodore OS 3.0 Installation Instructions

[LeoNigro]

INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMMODORE OS™ 3.0

SPECIAL NOTE: Commodore OS does not share any data whatsoever. Please dismiss statements to the contrary.

Commodore OS™ is the official operating system of the Commodore 64x (C64x) but it is free for use on other machines.
The Commodore 64x is currently available for purchase at https://myretrocomputer.com/ as a barebones case in which you can install a slim-line mini-ITX motherboard and optional DVD drive, or a fully loaded PC system with various configuration options.

The downloadable iso file available from https://www.commodoreos.net is a live image of the installer for Commodore OS Vision.
Commodore OS is a 64-bit Linux OS and will not run on 32-bit machines which would be PCs over approximately 12 years old.
To run comfortably I would recommend a 100Gb drive or larger (but no less than 40Gb).

Step 1: Installation Options

Commodore OS can be installed on your computer as the base operating system or in a virtual machine within another operating system.
With some forethought it can even be installed on the same hard drive as Windows. Whilst there has been some success using the current C64 themed grub2 bootloader, as a last resort you may want to try Grub2Win which is configurable from within Windows.

You have a number of installation options:

a) You can run the image directly within a Virtual machine like VirtualBox.

To do so create a new Machine with the desired specification

PLEASE DO NOT DEMO COMMODORE OS WITHOUT THE 3D DESKTOP OR WITHOUT CAPTURING AUDIO!!!!!!!!!!!
IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!! VIRTUALBOX INSTRUCTIONS!!! MUST SET!!!!
Under the Display tab ensure you have selected:
Graphics Controller: VMSVGA
And check Enable 3D Acceleration
Move the Video Memory slider to utilize maximum memory.

Under the Storage tab select the empty disc slot under Controller:IDE and select the Commodore OS ISO image
using the icon beside the Optical Drive
Ensure you have the Live CD/DVD checkbox checked.

Once installed, especially if you do not see the 3D desktop (see CommodoreOS.net website for example videos) please install the VirtualBox Guest Additions. These are available from your VM instance's window under the Devices menu option. Be sure to select the upgrade option before performing the installation. The default password is set to "C=" (A capital "C" followed by the equal sign "=").

b) You can install on VMWare.

Prerequisites are on this page:
https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-Works ... 1404.html
Select the virtual machine and select VM --> Settings.

PLEASE DO NOT DEMO COMMODORE OS WITHOUT THE 3D DESKTOP OR WITHOUT CAPTURING AUDIO!!!!!!!!!!!
IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!! IMPORTANT!!! VMWARE INSTRUCTIONS!!! MUST SET!!!!
On the Hardware tab, select Display.
Select Accelerate 3D graphics.
Configure the virtual machine to use only one monitor.
Click OK to save your changes.
Power on the virtual machine and install the required DirectX EndRuntime version.
This download is available from the Microsoft Download Center.
Install and run your 3D applications.

c) You can install Commodore OS to your PC via an SD card or USB stick.

Use a USB imaging tool to copy the ISO installation image file to your USB stick or SD Card.
Rufus for Windows(https://rufus.ie/en/) is recommended and Unetbootin for Linux would most likely work.
There is a high likelihood that you will need to get into your computer's BIOS(a key specified during boot up) to change
the Boot drive order to boot from the USB stick or SD card instead of your PC's Hard Drive.
(You may need to set it back after installation).

d) You can also run Commodore OS directly off the USB stick or SD card, which is usually the same experience but loads files slower.
If you've set persistence during the image creation your modifications might stick.


Step 2: The Installation Process

Select the Commodore OS Vision menu option to launch into the Commodore OS desktop experience.
Follow the prompts in the Commodore OS Greeter Window to launch the installer.

Options:

a) A regular install using the entire disk is the fastest and easiest option and recommended. (I wouldn't bother with the Encryption option)

b) Choose "Customize the disk layout" if you want to try and install other operating systems later that may be selected via the Grub boot menu.
The best way to set up the partitions to facilitate the other OSes is beyond the scope of this document
but may be discussed on the Commodore OS forum (http://forum.commodoreos.net).

Note: When presented to "Choose partitions" if you want to alter the partition sizes you will need to run
the partition management application by clicking on the tiny icon near the bottom of the list area.
(the default password is "C=". A "C" followed by "=")

Click the "Next" button to proceed through the installation and agree to formatting the Hard Disk.

I would recommend the following settings:
Computer Name: Commodore
Computer domain: Commodore

Click "Next" and set your locale appropriately. If your hardware struggles playing the music or playing the animated wallpaper, you may turn the animated wallpaper off from the Commodore OS menu.
System ---> Commodore OS -- Animated Wallpaper (Toggle)
If you wish to temporarily stop the music, there is an icon on the top menu on the far right that will kill the current music playing.

Installation should then proceed to completion and the computer can reboot when you click the "Finish" button.
Remove the USB stick or SD Card you had inserted. You may have to re-enter BIOS to enable booting off the Hard Disk.

Enjoy!!!

ADDENDUM:

Some of the unique features included in the Commodore OS menu are presented below:
System --> Commodore OS

The Commodore OS Settings manager provides some new features.

There is an OEM option that configures the desktop so that next time the user turns on the PC they are treated as a new user and can go through the welcome wizard without the installation step.
In Commodore OS 3 go to:
System --> Commodore OS --> Commodore OS Settings
and select the "Set machine for first boot up." option.
You may also be interested in having the animated wallpaper begin on start up.

Over 200 free Linux compatible games separated by genre are installed by default in Commodore OS 3, which can be selected from the Games menu.
Applications ---> Games

Instructions on how to obtain and install legal Commodore ROMS can be found in the Commodore OS Settings manager by navigating menu:
System --> Commodore OS --> Commodore OS Settings
and selecting "Emulation Settings" and then "Cloanto Commodore ROM Setup" option.
NOTE: You should not have to reconfigure the Commodore emulators, only run this ROM Setup which copies the ROMs to the appropriate places for the emulators. Whilst Commodore's 8-bit ROMs are not included Cloanto does provide their C64 Forever package for free online and Commodore OS is capable of extracting the files via the above process. It is suggested you perform this step even if you retain the valid ROMs yourself.

Don't forget to try clicking on the Commodore/C= logo in the dock which will take you to a number of nostalgia filled retro games, demos, animations and music for various retro systems. Definitely check out what's under DOS, Windows and Linux folder, but obviously the focus is on Commodore. There is a symbolic link called "ClassicSystems" in the home folder to set emulators to where ROMs can be stored and grouped.

Please join the growing Commodore OS community by visiting https://forum.commodoreos.net

Warmest Regards,
Leo Nigro
Commodore OS Distro Creator