Ubuntu Desktop on iPad - Raspberry Pi 4 Setup

In this video, I'll show you how to setup a full Ubuntu Desktop on the Raspberry Pi 4 and how to set up TigerVNC and Jump Desktop to make that desktop accessible from your iPad.

CHAPTERS
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00:00 - Start
00:37 - Installing Ubuntu Server
02:10 - Installing Ubuntu GUI
02:47 - Configuring TigerVNC
04:48 - Configuring Jump Desktop
07:04 - Tweaking the Ubuntu GUI

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[tech_craft]

A few updates for some common issues:

1. To get the Ubuntu Software Center install the `gnome-software` package with `sudo apt install gnome-software`
2. To get browsers (and any other GUI app installed as a Snap) running inside VNC, run `xhost +si:localuser:$USER` from Terminal *within* the VNC session - this won't work when running over SSH. This adds the necessary permissions for Snap-sandboxed apps to see the virtual displays.

[SomeYouTubeGuy]

The question used to be why you would attempt to work from an iPad instead of a laptop. Watching your channel the question is rapidly changing to why wouldn't you? iOS and Ubuntu, full coding environment and external monitor over USB-C it's brilliant.

[Connor]

Thank you, this is working for me on a Pi model 4 8gb. I used your custom image for Ubuntu server, and am very appreciative for your help with this. Just as a note which may help others, mine has connected with no issues using the standard Apple USB-C charge cable that came with my 2018 12.9 inch iPad Pro, and within seconds of plugging it into the iPad for the first time, the Ethernet adapter showed up in the settings menu. I connected via Blink SSH to the raspberry(.local) and all is well. 👍 I am using this set up to further my understand of Ubuntu server, and to have this solution for me to use while sat in bed is perfect. Thanks again Rob.

[jimbagsh]

Thank you. Clear, no fluff, and easy to understand. You're the best. :) Now, if only I could buy a new RaspberryPi :(

[DomainObject]

Thank so much for this video and supplemental tutorial on your website! It has been invaluable. And this whole series of “iPad with Raspberry Pi” videos has been inspiring. Absolutely fantastic content.

I just finally got a Raspberry Pi 4B 4 GB unit today and just finished setting it up using the 1 USB-C cable approach from your tutorial. I finally have my iPad Pro running iOS and a fully functioning portable Linux machine running Ubuntu. The best of both worlds! Couldn’t be happier. 😀

[rafaeldomenikos]

Thank you so much for your content. Your idea and documentation of connecting the pi to the iPad pro has completely changed my workflow!

[Rvrd]

This is brilliant. It’s been awhile since you’ve posted. I hope all is well.

[adrianwiuk]

Another great video. Who'd have thought you could get ubuntu running on iPadOS with the help of a USB-C connected Raspberry Pi. Crazy stuff 😁

[kevinreedmiller]

Thank you so much for this. It works flawlessly from your image files. Great work and much appreciated.

[miskaknapek]

thank you very very much!
just what I needed.

[JoaquinVacas]

Maybe disabling animations will improve performance 👌

[LwPressure]

I actually frequently connect to x86 pc with ubuntu to run some blockchain nodes and/or tests and i use my ipad connected to my macbook as secondary monitor - i connect through anyDesk and it works similarly to what is shown in the video.

Raspberri-pie won't work for my needs but the setup itself is pretty cool.

[martinlarsson]

I have a Linux Desktop at home which I'd love to be able to remote into from my iPad. Would love a guide on getting this to run from scratch on a new normal Ubuntu Desktop install!

[iblackfeathers]

when the raspberry pi had beta firmware for booting from a flash drive or m.2 ssd instead of an sd card, i had to follow a similar process to get my rpi running with ubuntu server first then applying desktop gui on top of that. back then, the server version was only available but not the desktop for the pi.
if this video was 2 to 3 years earlier (when the firmware was first released) then this would have helped then but it is a very useful video to have on reference today.
it is interesting to note that even today the ubuntu rpi desktop still is not as supported as the server version in many aspects. i thought that was already sorted out by now.

[elitros]

Muy interesante tener Ubuntu con una Raspberry pi

[alejandrogiron]

Hi there! I thoroughly enjoyed watching the video. I’m interested in investing in a Raspberry Pi 5 for educational purposes, and I wanted to follow this video to connect my Pi5 to my iPad Pro. Before making a purchase, I wanted to know if the same setup can be applied to the Pi5 compared to the Pi4.

I’ve come across various posts on Reddit where people have encountered issues connecting their Pi5 specifically to the iPad over USB-C. However, these posts are quite old, so I’m not sure if the setup has been simplified over the past few months or if someone discovered this method in the video to work with the Pi5. If the setup is indeed more challenging to set up with the Pi5 compared to the Pi4, then I might consider purchasing the Pi4 instead.

[condrocita]

I have some problems, without configuring the wifi i’m not able to use cerains things like the store bc it didn’t recognize my internet access via ipad. Thank you so much for all you explications😊

[gonzmacben]

I got my first raspberry pi earlier this month and I am new to the hobby. I plan to use my PI with the usb c gadget functionality so I can connect it to my iPad pro and turn it into a "mini laptop" so I can work with ROS2, so far I managed to establish the ethernet connection but I haven't been able to install the GUI properly. I tried to use tigervnc and installed the ubuntu desktop minimal but the logs indicate that there are some problems with gnome I managed to create a vnc over ssh tunnel and the only thing I see is the white screen with the "Oh no! Something went wrong" message. I recently tried to install lightdm but it doesn't seem to work, the installation came with errors and I tried to fix it but it looks like it's just not compatible with my version.

[matthewstott]

This is an interesting solution. Having a Pi as an offline portable non-cloud solution is interesting. Too bad it's darn near impossible to procure a RaspberryPi due to supply chain issues. Using something like Blink / SSH / TMUX to a cloud can work well even over cellular. Would tunnel VNC/etc over SSH if using Cloud instead of a PI.

[virgiliobodega]

Please, could you make a video on how to set up a SBC powerful than RaspPi?
I dont care about the cpu architecture, arm64 or x86 64, i am just looking for a way to run a more usable linux on the go with ipad pro 11 + magic keyboard.
Of course the sbc have to use just an usb c cable, noting more, for power and video out.
I cant figure out which sbc to buy
Thank you

Forgot to mention that it may be better to use usb uvc instead of wireless streaming