How to Set Up a Raspberry Pi for the First Time

admin September 17, 2022

1 6 minutes read

I just got a new Raspberry Pi, such as the Raspberry Pi 4 or Raspberry Pi 400, and just unboxed it. So? From using your minicomputer as a web server to turning it into a retro arcade, there are countless things you can do with a minicomputer, but first you need to set up your Raspberry Pi. Note that if this were a Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller, the setup process would be completely different. See our article on how to set up your Raspberry Pi Pico.

If you bought your Pi as part of a kit, it probably comes with everything you need, but if you just have the board, you’ll need:

You’ll also need it unless you plan to do a headless install on your Raspberry Pi and use it via remote desktop or SSH (controlled from your PC).

keyboard (wired or probably one of the best wireless keyboards)
mouse or other pointing device
monitor or television
HDMI cable

The HDMI cable you need depends on which Raspberry Pi you’re using. Raspberry Pi 4 B and Pi 400 have two micro HDMI output ports, so Micro HDMI to HDMI Cable (opens in new tab) Or an adapter. Raspberry Pi Zero / Zero W and Zero 2 W have mini HDMI, so Mini HDMI to HDMI cable (opens in new tab) Connect to your display. All other Raspberry Pi models, including the 3 B, have a standard HDMI port and can be connected to a monitor or TV using an HDMI male-to-male cable.

Configure the power of the Raspberry Pi

You can’t set up a Raspberry Pi without a way to power it on. The Raspberry Pi 4 B and Raspberry Pi 400 (only the 4 B in the keyboard) are powered via the USB Type-C port. This requires a charger that can output 5 volts and 3 amps. Most USB Type-C phone chargers don’t have enough amps unless they have USB PD capability, but any USB-C laptop charger should work. While unlikely to be an issue, note that Pi 4 models manufactured in 2019 or early 2020 have a bug that prevents them from charging with high-speed data cables that support USB 3.x 5 or 10 Gbps connections. please.

All other Raspberry Pi models, including the Raspberry Pi 3 B and Pi Zero / Zero W / Zero 2 W are powered via the micro USB port. It can also be done by connecting to a third party charger or one of your computer’s USB ports. The optimal power supply for the Raspberry Pi 3 is 5 volts 2.5 amps, although the problem can be solved by giving the board a lot less power (the Pi Zero W works perfectly from my laptop’s USB port). is needed. Provides power to all peripherals connected to the USB port.

There are many power supplies made specifically for the Raspberry Pi. Raspberry Pi 4 official power supply (opens in new tab) and the CanaKit 5V 2.5A power supply (opens in new tab)For other Raspberry Pi models.

Since the Pi doesn’t have a built-in power switch, the default way to power it is by plugging in. You can also find power supplies with built-in on/off switches. However, to avoid data loss, it is recommended that you use your operating system’s (OS) shutdown feature before unplugging or powering down.

OS on microSD card

The Raspberry Pi has a dozen different OSes, and there’s even a way to run a full Windows 11 on the Pi 4. However, the Raspberry Pi OS, a special version of Debian Linux optimized for the Pi, is the most use case, so we’ll show you how to set it up.

The Raspberry Pi has no internal storage, but instead boots from the provided microSD memory card. Make sure you get a card that’s at least 8 GB, preferably 32 GB or more, and has a class 10 speed (see our list of the best Raspberry Pi microSD cards). Needless to say, you need some sort of card reader to burn the OS from your PC.

Headless installation for Raspberry Pi?

If you just want to experiment with your Pi and control physics objects like lights, motors and sensors, you don’t need a dedicated screen or keyboard. Follow separate instructions on how to do a headless installation on the Raspberry Pi. You can control your device from your PC or Mac desktop using VNC or SSH remote access software.

Download and install Raspberry Pi OS

Once you have all the necessary components, use the following steps to create the boot disk needed to set up your Raspberry Pi. These instructions should work using a Windows, Mac, or Linux-based PC (I tried this on Windows, but should be the same on all three).

1. Insert a microSD card/reader to your computer.

2. download and install Official raspberry pi imager. Available for Windows, macOS, or Linux, this app downloads and installs the latest Raspberry Pi OS. There are other ways to do this. That means downloading a Raspberry Pi OS image file and using a third-party app to “burn” it, but Imager makes it easy.

3. [OS の選択]Click.

[OS を選択]Click

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Four. Select Raspberry Pi OS (32-bit). From the OS menu (there are other choices, but 32-bit is the best in most cases).

Select Raspberry Pi OS 32-bit

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Four. [ストレージを選択]Click When Select SD card I’m using.

[ストレージの選択]Click

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Five. Click the settings button Alternatively, press CTRL + SHIFT + X to enter settings.

[設定]Click

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

6. fill in the settings fields As below press saveAll of these fields are technically optional, but it’s highly recommended to have your Raspberry Pi set up and online as soon as it boots. If you don’t set a username and password here, you’ll have to run the setup wizard asking you to create them on first boot.

set host name: Pi name. It doesn’t matter if it’s “raspberrypi” or whatever.
Enable SSH: Allow SSH connections to the Pi. Recommended.
Use password authentication/public key: How to login with SSH
Set your username and password. Choose a username and password to use for your Pi
Configure your wireless LAN.Set the SSID and password for your Wi-Fi network
WiFi Country: This must be selected when setting up Wi-Fi.
Set your locale settings. Configure your keyboard layout and timezone (probably selected correctly by default).

Configuring the Raspberry Pi Imager

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

7. [書き込み]Click. It takes a few minutes for the app to download the OS and write it to the card.

With the Raspberry Pi Imager[書き込み]Click.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Boot the Raspberry Pi for the first time

Now that the Raspberry Pi OS has been written to the microSD card, it’s time for the defining moment.

1. Insert a microSD card to the Raspberry Pi.

2. connect raspberry pi monitor, keyboard and mouse.

3. Connect Ethernet Cable If you use wired internet.

Four. Plug in your Pi Power on.

If you have created a username and password using the Raspberry Pi Imager settings, you will be able to enter the desktop environment directly, otherwise you will be presented with a setup wizard.

Using the Raspberry Pi First Time Setup Wizard

If you have chosen a username and password in the Raspberry Pi Imager settings, the desktop will appear on first boot before writing to the microSD card. However, if you don’t, the setup wizard will prompt you to create a username and password and enter all your network credentials during the first boot. If so, follow these steps to finish setting up your Raspberry Pi.

1. [次へ]Click in a dialog box.

[次へ]Click

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

2. Setting country and language [次へ]Click. The default selection may already be correct.

Country and language settings

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

3. Please enter your username and password Used for primary login. [次へ]Click.

Please enter your username and password

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Four. Toggle on “Reduce desktop size” If the desktop border is cut off.otherwise, just [次へ]Click.

Reduce the size of the Raspberry Pi desktop

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Five. Select the appropriate Wi-Fi network On the subsequent screen if you are connected via Wi-Fi. If you don’t have Wi-Fi or are using Ethernet, you can skip this.

Select Wi-Fi network

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

6. Enter your Wi-Fi password (unless you are using ethernet and skipped).

Enter Wi-Fi password

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

7. [次へ]Click When asked to update software. This only works if you have an internet connection and may take a few minutes. If you are not connected to the Internet,[スキップ]Click.

[次へ]Click to update

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

8. [再起動]Click.

click restart

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

If you want to change these settings later, click the Pi icon in the top left corner of the screen and Settings -> Raspberry Pi SettingsYou can configure Wi-Fi by clicking the Wi-Fi / network icon on the taskbar.

Selecting the Raspberry Pi Settings Menu

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Change screen resolution on Raspberry Pi

If you don’t have enough desktop space, we recommend changing the screen resolution to match the capabilities of your display. Even if you’re using a headless Pi and accessing it via VNC, you’ll want at least a 720p screen.

To change the resolution of your Raspberry Pi:

1. Open screen configuration menu Click the Pi icon and then select Preferences -> Screen configuration.

screen structure

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

2. Right click on the HDMI box When Please select a resolution From the resolution menu.

Select resolution

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

3. Click the check box. Screen resolution is updated.

click the checkbox

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Four. [はい]Click Restart.

Click Yes to reboot

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

what do i do now

Now that you have your Raspberry Pi set up, there are many things you can do with it. Popular uses include turning the Raspberry Pi into a retro arcade machine, using the Raspberry Pi as a web server, and using it as the brain for robots, security systems, and custom iOT devices.

Here are some tutorials.