Things to Do After Installing Ubuntu

A quick checklist of essential steps I always follow after a fresh Ubuntu installation — from system updates and firewall setup to installing must-have developer tools.

Every time I set up a new Ubuntu server or workstation — whether it's a fresh VM for development or a production server — I follow the same checklist. Having a consistent post-install routine saves time and ensures I don't forget critical steps like enabling the firewall or configuring Git.

Here's my go-to list, in the order I run them.

Update and Upgrade Packages

The first thing to do on any fresh install. This ensures you have the latest security patches and bug fixes.

📖 Ubuntu Package Management Docs

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y

Remove Unused Packages

Clean up packages that were installed as dependencies but are no longer needed.

sudo apt autoremove -y

Install Compilation Tools

Required to build software from source. Many developer tools and libraries depend on these.

📖 build-essential package

# Install essential build tools (gcc, make, etc.)
sudo apt install -y build-essential

# Verify installation
gcc --version
g++ --version

Install Network Tools

Provides legacy networking commands such as ifconfig and netstat.

Note: The modern alternative to ifconfig is ip addr. However, net-tools is still widely used and useful to have installed.

# Install network utilities like ifconfig, netstat
sudo apt install -y net-tools

# Check your IP address
ifconfig

Install Firewall

A must-have for any server or workstation exposed to a network. UFW provides a simple interface for managing iptables rules.

📖 Ubuntu Firewall Guide

# Install UFW firewall
sudo apt install -y ufw

# Check firewall status
sudo ufw status verbose

# If you use SSH remotely, allow SSH before enabling the firewall
sudo ufw allow ssh  # (skip this step if you are using Ubuntu as a desktop client)

# Enable firewall
sudo ufw enable

# (Optional) Control UFW via GUI
sudo apt install -y gufw

Install Git

Essential for version control and collaborating on code.

# Install Git
sudo apt install -y git

# Configure Git
git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"

Install curl and wget

Command-line tools for downloading files and making HTTP requests. Used by many install scripts and dev tools.

sudo apt install -y curl wget

Quick One-Liner

If you want to run everything at once (excluding Git config and firewall enable):

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y && sudo apt autoremove -y && \
sudo apt install -y build-essential net-tools ufw git curl wget

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Thanks for reading! I hope this checklist saves you time on your next Ubuntu setup. 🚀