In this step-by-step guide, we will discuss how to remove the GNOME Desktop Environment from a Linux system using Yum, a package manager for RPM-based Linux distributions.
The goal is to uninstall GNOME safely and efficiently, freeing up system resources and allowing you to install another desktop environment if desired.
Step 1: Open Terminal
First, open the terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T or searching for “Terminal” in your applications menu.
Step 2: Update Package List
Before removing the GNOME Desktop Environment, it’s a good idea to update your package list to ensure you have the latest information on your installed packages. Run the following command:
sudo yum update
Step 3: List GNOME Packages
To identify the GNOME packages installed on your system, execute the following command:
sudo yum grouplist "GNOME Desktop Environment"
This will show you the list of packages associated with the GNOME Desktop Environment.
Step 4: Remove GNOME Packages
Now that you have the list of GNOME packages, you can remove them using the yum groupremove command. Run the following command to remove the GNOME Desktop Environment:
sudo yum groupremove "GNOME Desktop Environment"
Yum will prompt you to confirm the removal of the listed packages. Type ‘y’ and press Enter to proceed with the uninstallation.
Step 5: Clean Up Dependencies
After removing the GNOME packages, you should clean up any unused dependencies to free up additional system resources. Run the following command:
sudo yum autoremove
This will remove any orphaned packages that were installed as dependencies for the GNOME Desktop Environment.
Commands and Their Functions:
- yum update: Updates your package list to ensure you have the latest information on installed packages.
- yum grouplist: Lists package groups available in your system repositories, allowing you to identify packages associated with a specific group.
- yum groupremove: Removes a specified package group, such as the GNOME Desktop Environment, and its associated packages.
- yum autoremove: Removes orphaned packages that were installed as dependencies but are no longer needed.
Terminal:
[root@server ~]# yum groupremove gnome-desktop Loaded plugins: fastestmirror Setting up Remove Process Resolving Dependencies --> Running transaction check ---> Package gnome-desktop.i386 0:2.16.0-1.el5.centos.1 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: gnome-panel --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: eel2 --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: nautilus-open-terminal --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: gnome-session --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: gnome-applets --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: gnome-utils --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: nautilus --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: eog --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: totem --> Processing Dependency: libgnome-desktop-2.so.2 for package: control-center --> Processing Dependency: gnome-desktop >= 2.9.91 for package: gnome-panel --> Processing Dependency: gnome-desktop >= 2.6.0 for package: totem --> Running transaction check ---> Package control-center.i386 1:2.16.0-16.el5 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: control-center >= 2.16.0-5 for package: orca --> Processing Dependency: control-center >= 2.0 for package: gnome-volume-manager ---> Package eel2.i386 0:2.16.1-1.el5 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libeel-2.so.2 for package: nautilus-cd-burner ---> Package eog.i386 0:2.16.0.1-6.el5 set to be erased ---> Package gnome-applets.i386 1:2.16.0.1-19.el5 set to be erased ---> Package gnome-panel.i386 0:2.16.1-7.el5 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libpanel-applet-2.so.0 for package: gnome-python2-applet --> Processing Dependency: libpanel-applet-2.so.0 for package: gnome-pilot --> Processing Dependency: libpanel-applet-2.so.0 for package: gnome-netstatus --> Processing Dependency: libpanel-applet-2.so.0 for package: libgail-gnome --> Processing Dependency: gnome-panel >= 2.5.1 for package: gnome-netstatus ---> Package gnome-session.i386 0:2.16.0-7.el5.centos set to be erased ---> Package gnome-utils.i386 1:2.16.0-5.el5 set to be erased ---> Package nautilus.i386 0:2.16.2-7.el5 set to be erased ---> Package nautilus-open-terminal.i386 0:0.6-7.el5 set to be erased ---> Package totem.i386 0:2.16.7-6.el5 set to be erased --> Running transaction check ---> Package gnome-netstatus.i386 0:2.12.0-5.el5 set to be erased ---> Package gnome-pilot.i386 0:2.0.13-16 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libgpilotd.so.2 for package: evolution --> Processing Dependency: libgpilotdcm.so.2 for package: evolution --> Processing Dependency: libgpilotdconduit.so.2 for package: evolution --> Processing Dependency: gnome-pilot >= 2.0.13 for package: evolution ---> Package gnome-python2-applet.i386 0:2.16.0-3.el5 set to be erased ---> Package gnome-volume-manager.i386 0:2.15.0-5.el5 set to be erased ---> Package libgail-gnome.i386 0:1.1.3-1.2.1 set to be erased ---> Package nautilus-cd-burner.i386 0:2.16.0-7.el5 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libnautilus-burn.so.4 for package: rhythmbox --> Processing Dependency: libnautilus-burn.so.4 for package: gnome-media --> Processing Dependency: libnautilus-burn.so.4 for package: sound-juicer --> Processing Dependency: nautilus-cd-burner >= 2.15.3 for package: sound-juicer ---> Package orca.i386 0:1.0.0-5.el5 set to be erased --> Running transaction check ---> Package evolution.i386 0:2.12.3-19.el5 set to be erased --> Processing Dependency: libeshell.so.0 for package: evolution-connector --> Processing Dependency: libeutil.so.0 for package: evolution-connector ---> Package gnome-media.i386 0:2.16.1-3.el5 set to be erased ---> Package rhythmbox.i386 0:0.11.6-4.el5 set to be erased ---> Package sound-juicer.i386 0:2.16.0-3.el5 set to be erased --> Running transaction check ---> Package evolution-connector.i386 0:2.12.3-11.el5 set to be erased --> Finished Dependency Resolution Dependencies Resolved ========================================================================================== Package Arch Version Repository Size ========================================================================================== Removing: gnome-desktop i386 2.16.0-1.el5.centos.1 installed 1.9 M Removing for dependencies: control-center i386 1:2.16.0-16.el5 installed 8.1 M eel2 i386 2.16.1-1.el5 installed 1.1 M eog i386 2.16.0.1-6.el5 installed 1.8 M evolution i386 2.12.3-19.el5 installed 36 M evolution-connector i386 2.12.3-11.el5 installed 2.3 M gnome-applets i386 1:2.16.0.1-19.el5 installed 31 M gnome-media i386 2.16.1-3.el5 installed 5.2 M gnome-netstatus i386 2.12.0-5.el5 installed 972 k gnome-panel i386 2.16.1-7.el5 installed 10 M gnome-pilot i386 2.0.13-16 installed 1.7 M gnome-python2-applet i386 2.16.0-3.el5 installed 16 k gnome-session i386 2.16.0-7.el5.centos installed 1.3 M gnome-utils i386 1:2.16.0-5.el5 installed 8.5 M gnome-volume-manager i386 2.15.0-5.el5 installed 1.9 M libgail-gnome i386 1.1.3-1.2.1 installed 60 k nautilus i386 2.16.2-7.el5 installed 12 M nautilus-cd-burner i386 2.16.0-7.el5 installed 1.7 M nautilus-open-terminal i386 0.6-7.el5 installed 58 k orca i386 1.0.0-5.el5 installed 3.4 M rhythmbox i386 0.11.6-4.el5 installed 12 M sound-juicer i386 2.16.0-3.el5 installed 2.4 M totem i386 2.16.7-6.el5 installed 5.0 M Transaction Summary ========================================================================================== Remove 23 Package(s) Reinstall 0 Package(s) Downgrade 0 Package(s) Is this ok [y/N]: y Downloading Packages: Running rpm_check_debug Running Transaction Test Finished Transaction Test Transaction Test Succeeded Running Transaction Erasing : gnome-pilot 1/23 Erasing : nautilus 2/23 Erasing : eel2 3/23 Erasing : orca 4/23 Erasing : eog 5/23 Erasing : sound-juicer 6/23 Erasing : evolution 7/23 Erasing : nautilus-open-terminal 8/23 Erasing : libgail-gnome 9/23 Erasing : rhythmbox 10/23 Erasing : gnome-netstatus 11/23 Erasing : gnome-desktop 12/23 Erasing : gnome-session 13/23 Erasing : control-center 14/23 Erasing : gnome-utils 15/23 Erasing : gnome-python2-applet 16/23 Erasing : gnome-panel 17/23 Erasing : gnome-applets 18/23 Erasing : nautilus-cd-burner 19/23 Erasing : gnome-volume-manager 20/23 Erasing : evolution-connector 21/23 Erasing : gnome-media 22/23 Erasing : totem 23/23 Removed: gnome-desktop.i386 0:2.16.0-1.el5.centos.1 Dependency Removed: control-center.i386 1:2.16.0-16.el5 eel2.i386 0:2.16.1-1.el5 eog.i386 0:2.16.0.1-6.el5 evolution.i386 0:2.12.3-19.el5 evolution-connector.i386 0:2.12.3-11.el5 gnome-applets.i386 1:2.16.0.1-19.el5 gnome-media.i386 0:2.16.1-3.el5 gnome-netstatus.i386 0:2.12.0-5.el5 gnome-panel.i386 0:2.16.1-7.el5 gnome-pilot.i386 0:2.0.13-16 gnome-python2-applet.i386 0:2.16.0-3.el5 gnome-session.i386 0:2.16.0-7.el5.centos gnome-utils.i386 1:2.16.0-5.el5 gnome-volume-manager.i386 0:2.15.0-5.el5 libgail-gnome.i386 0:1.1.3-1.2.1 nautilus.i386 0:2.16.2-7.el5 nautilus-cd-burner.i386 0:2.16.0-7.el5 nautilus-open-terminal.i386 0:0.6-7.el5 orca.i386 0:1.0.0-5.el5 rhythmbox.i386 0:0.11.6-4.el5 sound-juicer.i386 0:2.16.0-3.el5 totem.i386 0:2.16.7-6.el5 Complete! [root@server ~]#exit
Outcome:
By following these steps, you will have successfully removed the GNOME Desktop Environment using Yum.
Your system will no longer have the GNOME packages and dependencies, freeing up system resources and allowing you to install another desktop environment if desired.
