Desktop & Server Mode

At the "Desktop Environment" step you choose one of two: KDE Plasma (full desktop) or Server (no desktop) (terminal only).

KDE Plasma Desktop

Recommended by default: a complete KDE Plasma desktop out of the box — Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, printing and the graphical environment all work. The Plasma setup is curated for a workstation that handles both daily use and scientific work.

Server (No Desktop) Mode

Installing in server mode ships no desktop environment and no display manager. The system boots into a terminal-only environment (tty login), exactly like a base Arch Linux install — memory stays fully available for compute. System tools, containers, driver detection and all other capabilities remain intact.

Install Any Desktop Environment Later

Server mode locks nothing. After installation you can install any desktop environment supported by Arch — Plasma, GNOME, or anything else:

sudo pacman -S plasma-desktop sddm
sudo systemctl enable --now sddm

GNOME works the same way:

sudo pacman -S gnome gdm
sudo systemctl enable --now gdm

Desktop ⇄ Headless Switching

Whichever way you installed, the system ships a headless-mode switch (standard systemd target switching — zero desktop footprint, all RAM for compute):

linxira-config headless on now    # turn the desktop off immediately (confirm)
linxira-config headless off now   # restore the desktop immediately
linxira-config headless status    # show current mode

Note: the server-mode baseline still includes a few general-purpose tools (browser, terminal utilities, containers); actual desktop components (Plasma, SDDM, file managers) only appear when you choose KDE Plasma or install them yourself.