Install KDE Plasma on AlmaLinux 9 / RHEL 9 – Best Steps

This guide intends to teach you to Install KDE Plasma on AlmaLinux 9 / RHEL 9 / Rocky Linux 9 and Centos 9. As you may know, KDE Plasma is a free and open-source desktop environment. It provides a graphical interface (GUI) and is one of the most customizable and lightweight desktop environments.

The key features of the KDE Plasma desktop environment including:

• Highly Customizable
• Lightweight & Fast
• Modern & Attractive
• Widgets
• Activities and Workspaces
• Strong Application Ecosystem

To Install KDE Plasma on AlmaLinux 9 / RHEL 9, you can proceed to the following guide steps provided by the Orcacore team.

Step-by-Step Install KDE Plasma on AlmaLinux 9 / RHEL 9 / Rocky Linux 9 / Centos 9

To Install KDE Plasma on AlmaLinux 9, you must log in to your server as a non-root user with sudo privileges. For this purpose, you can check the Initial Server Setup with AlmaLinux 9.

Now follow the steps below to install KDE Plasma on ALmaLinux 9. You can also use this instruction on RHEL 9, Rocky Linux 9, and Centos 9.

Step 1 – Enable Required Repositories For Installing KDE Plasma

First, you must install the Epel repository and enable the code-ready builder on your server to install KDE plasma on AlmaLinux 9.

To install the Epel repository, you can run the following command:

sudo dnf install epel-release -y

Then, enable CRB on AlmaLinux 9 and RHEL 9:

#AlmaLinux9-Centos9-RockyLinux9
sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled crb

#RHEL9
subscription-manager repos --enable codeready-builder-for-rhel-9-$(arch)-rpms

Step 2 – Installing KDE Plasma Desktop Environment

Once you are done, you can easily use the following command to run the system update and install KDE plasma on AlmaLinux 9 and RHEL 9:

# sudo dnf update -y
# sudo dnf groupinstall "KDE Plasma Workspaces" "base-x" -y

Step 3 – Set KDE as the Default Desktop Environment

If you want KDE to be the default desktop environment when the system starts, you can run the following command:

sudo systemctl set-default graphical.target

Note: If your system boots into text mode, you can manually start the graphical interface with the following command:

sudo systemctl start graphical.target

Also, if you want additional KDE applications, you can install them with the below command

sudo dnf groupinstall "KDE Applications" -y

Once your installation is completed, reboot your system to log into the KDE Plasma environment:

sudo reboot

Step 4 – Uninstall and Remove KDE Plasma From AlmaLinux 9

If you no longer want to use the KDE Plasma desktop environment, you need to be sure you have another desktop environment installed like GNOME. You can check the Gnome Installation Guide on AlmaLinux 9.

Then, if your KDE is the default desktop environment, you need to switch the system to boot into the multi-user with the command below:

sudo systemctl set-default multi-user.target

Next, you can remove KDE Plasma with the following command:

sudo dnf groupremove "KDE Plasma Workspaces" -y

Also, you can remove the KDE applications with the command below:

# sudo dnf remove @kde-applications -y
# sudo dnf autoremove -y

Note: If you have another desktop environment (like GNOME) and want your system to boot into the graphical environment again, set the default back to graphical mode with the command below:

sudo systemctl set-default graphical.target

Finally, reboot the system to apply the changes:

sudo reboot

For more information, you can check the Official KDE Plasma Page.

Conclusion

At this point, you have learned to Install KDE Plasma on AalmaLinux 9 / RHEL 9 / Cento 9 / Rocky Linux 9. By following the simple steps outlined, you can easily install KDE Plasma, switch to it as your default desktop, and even uninstall it if necessary.

Hope you enjoy it. Also, you may like to read the following articles:

Change Ubuntu 24.04 Desktop to Cinnamon

Xfce Desktop Environment Debian 12 Setup Tutorial

Install XFCE Desktop Environment on AlmaLinux 9 and RHEL 9

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