# Set up an Ubuntu Server VM on an Arm64 Mac using UTM
UTM is an open-source VM host for macOS^®^, which allows you to run other operating systems on Macs, including Ubuntu. Setting up an Ubuntu Server VM using UTM on an Arm64 Mac involves
the following tasks:
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> **Figure : Workflow to set up Ubuntu VM**
## Host machine requirements
Before setting up an Ubuntu Server VM using UTM, ensure that your Arm64 Mac host
machine meets the following system requirements:
| **Processor architecture** | Arm64 |
| --- | --- |
| **Processor architecture** | To verify that the architecture of your Mac is Arm64, run the `uname -a` command in a terminal window.
 |
| **CPU cores** | 8 or more |
| **RAM** | 8 GB or more |
| **Storage** | 300 GB free space for the UTM VM |
| **Operating system** | macOS 14 |
| | |
If your Arm64 Mac host machine meets the system requirements,
download the following software:
| **Software** | **Description** |
| --- | --- |
| UTM virtualization software | Download the UTM virtualization software from the [UTM website](https://mac.getutm.app/). |
| Ubuntu Server ISO | All Ubuntu 22.04 64-bit ARM (ARMv8/AArch64) Server LTS versions are supported. Qualcomm recommends that you download the latest version of Ubuntu Server 22.04 ISO (for example, ubuntu-22.04.5-live-server-arm64.iso) from the [Ubuntu website](https://cdimage.ubuntu.com/releases/22.04/release/). |
## Install UTM on an Arm64 Mac
1. Double-click the **UTM.dmg** file downloaded earlier and drag the **UTM**
icon onto the **Applications** icon.
2. While installing UTM, if you see the following dialog box, click
**Open**:
3. Open Launchpad, search for **UTM**, and click **UTM**.
The UTM main window appears.
## Create a VM in UTM
1. In the UTM main window, click **Create a New Virtual Machine**.
2. On the **Start** screen, click **Virtualize**.
3. On the **Operating System** screen, select the **Linux** OS.
4. On the **Linux** screen, browse and select the Ubuntu ISO image you
downloaded, and click **Continue**.
5. On the **Hardware** screen, specify the memory and CPU cores you want
to allocate to the Ubuntu VM, and click **Continue**. The
recommended values are as follows:
- Memory: About 70% of the available memory
- CPU cores: At least 50% of the available cores
If you leave the **CPU Cores** field blank or set it to 0, UTM allocates all the host machine cores to the VM. Allocating all CPU cores to the VM can make the host machine slow or unresponsive.
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> Note
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> To know the memory size and the CPU core count of a Mac host machine, see the instructions in the [macOS User Guide](https://support.apple.com/en-in/guide/mac-help/syspr35536/mac).
6. On the **Storage** screen, specify the drive size for the VM, and
click **Continue**.
Note
It is recommended that you allocate at least 300 GB of storage space for the VM.
7. If you want to share a directory between the host machine and the VM,
do the following on the **Shared Directory** screen:
1. Browse and select the directory.
2. Click **Continue**.
8. On the **Summary** screen, do the following:
1. Review the configuration summary for the VM that you are creating.
2. Provide a name to the VM.
3. Click **Save**. The newly created VM is listed in the UTM main
window.
## Install Ubuntu Server in UTM
1. Run UTM.
2. In the UTM main window, click the **Play** icon to run the Ubuntu ISO
image through virtualization.
3. Select **Try or Install Ubuntu Server** using the arrow keys and press **Enter**.
4. Select a language, and press **Enter**.
5. Optional: You may see a screen to update the installer. Select one
of the following options and press **Enter**:
- **Update to the new installer**
- **Continue without updating**
6. Select a keyboard layout, select **Done**, and press **Enter**.
7. Select the **Ubuntu Server** installation base, select **Done**,
and press **Enter**.
8. Select the appropriate network interface, select **Done**, and press **Enter**.
9. Select the appropriate proxy configuration, select **Done**, and
press **Enter**.
10. If necessary, configure the mirror address and wait until the mirror
location passes all the tests, select **Done**, and press
**Enter**.
11. Select **Use an entire disk** > **Set up this disk as an LVM group**,
select **Done**, and press **Enter**.
12. Configure the storage space as follows:
1. Under the **USED DEVICES** section, select **ubuntu-lv**, and
press **Enter** to view additional options.
2. In the dialog box, select **Edit**, and press **Enter**.
3. In the **Size** field, type *296.000G*, select **Save**, and press **Enter**. The updated size should now reflect for the ubuntu-lv entry.
4. Select **Done** and press **Enter**.
13. To set up your profile, specify the required details, select **Save**, and press **Enter**.
14. Skip the **Ubuntu Pro** upgrade option, select **Continue**, and press **Enter**.
15. Optional: Select **Install OpenSSH Server** to set up SSH, select
**Done**, and press **Enter**.
Note
OpenSSH is not required for syncing, compiling, and flashing Qualcomm Linux. Install the OpenSSH server only if you want to allow secure remote access for the Ubuntu VM.
16. Select a **Docker** snap, select **Done**, and press **Enter**.
Wait for the installation process to complete.
Note
The installation process may suggest multiple Docker channels, such as stable and candidate. Select an appropriate Docker channel to continue with the installation.
17. After the installation is successful, click the **Power** icon to shut down and stop the VM.
18. In the **Confirmation** dialog box, click **OK**. After the VM is stopped, close the window.
19. In the UTM main window, in the **CD/DVD** drop-down list, select **Clear**.
20. Confirm that the ISO image association is cleared/empty against the CD/DVD option.
21. To run the Ubuntu VM, click the **Play** icon.
22. After the Ubuntu operating system boots successfully, enter the
credentials to log in and access the shell.
23. Run the following commands to update the Ubuntu operating system and install the
graphical desktop environment, followed by a reboot:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
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sudo apt install ubuntu-desktop -y
Copy to clipboard
reboot
Copy to clipboard
24. Log in to the Ubuntu VM you created.
## Access the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit from the UTM VM
1. Connect the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit to the host machine.
The UTM software may show you a dialog box to confirm whether the virtualized Ubuntu operating system should have access to the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit.
1. If you see a dialog box as follows, click **Confirm**:
2. After clicking **Confirm**, if you see the following USB
disconnection error, click **OK** to ignore it:
2. To verify if the Ubuntu VM can access the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit, run the `lsusb` command in a Linux terminal window.
The Qualcomm Linux Development Kit is shown in the output as follows:
If the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit is not detected in the Ubuntu VM, do the
following:
1. Click **USB Devices** in the toolbar of the UTM VM window.
2. Select **QCMXXXX\_xxxxxxxx**.
Note
If you do not see the Qualcomm Linux Development Kit listed as one of the USB devices, in UTM settings, click **Input** in the left panel, and set the value in the **Maximum Shared USB Devices** field to 10.
## Configure sleep and wake settings for Mac, and power settings for Ubuntu
To ensure that the Mac host machine and the Ubuntu VM do not go to sleep due to inactivity, do the following:
- To configure the sleep and wake settings for the Mac host machine, see [macOS User Guide](https://support.apple.com/en-in/guide/mac-help/mchle41a6ccd/mac).
- To configure the power settings for Ubuntu, do the following:
1. In **System Settings** for Ubuntu, click **Power**.
2. Turn off **Automatic Suspend**.
Note
To sync, build, and flash Qualcomm Linux, see [Qualcomm Linux Build Guide](https://docs.qualcomm.com/bundle/publicresource/topics/80-70017-254).
Last Published: Dec 18, 2024
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