Install Ubuntu Server 22.04 on MAC Pro A1278

Installing the System#

Prepare a USB flash drive, an Ethernet cable, and a router connected to the internet in advance.

Download the system: https://ubuntu.com/download/server
Download the burning tool: https://www.balena.io/etcher
Format the USB flash drive and burn the system to the USB flash drive using the tool.
Connect one end of the Ethernet cable to the router and the other end to the Mac computer to ensure internet access.
Insert the USB flash drive into the Mac computer, turn on the computer, press the option key, and select the efi boot icon on the right side, similar to a USB icon, to enter.
Take note of the IP address assigned to the Ethernet, which will be used for remote access later.
Modify the Mirror Address configuration to http://mirrors.aliyun.com/ubuntu/.
Optional: Check the box for Install OpenSSH server by pressing the spacebar to facilitate remote access from other computers.
After the installation is complete, select Reboot now.
Follow the prompts to remove the USB flash drive and press Enter to continue.
After restarting, the cloud-init script will automatically execute to initialize some settings. It's okay when you see the login screen.

[Optional] Remote Access#

Because the keyboard of this laptop is hard and a bit difficult to press, I want to remotely access it from another computer. I usually use MobaXterm for remote access.

Installing Drivers#

Reference: Installing BCM4331 Driver for Wireless Card on Ubuntu

[Optional] Connect to Wi-Fi#

It is not necessary to configure Wi-Fi, but I need to because it is inconvenient to have the computer connected with an Ethernet cable.

Open the network configuration file. I like to use the nano editor:

# Note: Use the `Tab` key to autocomplete the file name `*.yaml` without typing it.
sudo nano /etc/netplan/*.yaml

Once opened, copy the following wifis configuration into it:

network:
    ethernets:
			...
    version: 2
  wifis:
    wlp3s0:
      dhcp4: true
      optional: true
      access-points:
        "home network":
          password: "123456789"

Replace the following in the above configuration to make it work:

Replace wlp3s0 with the name of your wireless network interface, which can be checked using the ip a command.
Replace home network with the name of your Wi-Fi network, case insensitive.
Replace 123456789 with the password of your Wi-Fi network.
Save and exit.

Then execute the following command to apply the network configuration changes:

sudo netplan apply

If you see the warning WARNING:root:Cannot call Open vSwitch: ovsdb-server.service is not running., ignore it.

[Optional] Update Software Packages#

Execute the following commands to update the software packages to the latest versions:

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y