Kali Linux – Complete Installation & Commands Guide

Part 1 — Create Virtual Machine in VirtualBox

Open VirtualBox

Launch VirtualBox application

Click New

Basic Details

Fill in the following:

Field	Value
Name	Kali Linux 2025
Type	Linux
Version	Debian (64-bit)
ISO Image	Select `kali-linux-2025.4-installer-amd64.iso`

Uncheck: Proceed with Unattended Installation

Click Next

Allocate RAM & CPU

Setting	Value
RAM	4096 MB (minimum) If you have 16GB RAM → give 6–8 GB
Processors	2 cores (or 3 if available)

Click Next

Create Virtual Hard Disk

Select: Create a virtual hard disk

Setting	Value
Disk size	50 GB
File type	VDI
Storage	Dynamically allocated

Click Finish

Part 2 — Start Kali Installation

Start VM

Select your Kali VM → Click Start

You'll see the Kali boot menu. Choose:

Graphical Install — Press Enter

Part 3 — Kali Installer Steps

Language

Select: English

Click Continue

Location

Select: India

Click Continue

Keyboard

Select: American English

Click Continue

Network Setup

It will auto-configure the network.

Field	Value
Hostname	`kali`
Domain name	Leave blank

Click Continue

Create User

Field	Value
Full name	Kali User
Username	`kali`
Password	Create a strong password (Remember it!)

Important: Remember this password — you'll need it to log in after installation.

Click Continue

Part 4 — Disk Partition

Partitioning Method

Select: Guided – use entire disk

Click Continue

Select the 50GB disk → Click Continue

Partition Scheme

Select: All files in one partition (recommended)

Click Continue

Finish Partition

Select: Finish partitioning and write changes to disk

Click Continue

Select: Yes

Click Continue

Now installation will copy files — this takes approximately 10–20 minutes. Be patient.

Part 5 — Software Selection

Select Software

Make sure these are selected:

Kali Linux default desktop (Xfce)

Standard system utilities

Do NOT select multiple desktops. Only Xfce is recommended for VirtualBox performance.

Click Continue

It will install packages — wait patiently.

Part 6 — Install Bootloader

GRUB Boot Loader

When asked: Install GRUB boot loader?

Select Yes

Click Continue

Select disk:

/dev/sda

Click Continue

Part 7 — Final Step

Installation Complete

Click Continue

VERY IMPORTANT — Before it reboots:

In VirtualBox menu:
Devices → Optical Drives → Remove disk from virtual drive

Then press Enter.

Part 8 — First Login

Login Screen

After reboot, you'll see the Kali login screen.

Field	Value
Username	`kali`
Password	(the one you created in Step 10)

DONE — Kali Linux Installed Successfully!

After Installation (Important)

Enable Full Screen

VirtualBox → View → Full Screen Mode

Install Guest Additions (Better Performance)

Open terminal and run these commands:

Terminal

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y build-essential dkms linux-headers-$(uname -r)
sudo mount /dev/cdrom /mnt
sudo sh /mnt/VBoxLinuxAdditions.run
sudo reboot

1. System Update (Very Important First Step)

Terminal

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y

Updates package list

Upgrades installed software

2. Basic Navigation Commands

Show current directory

Terminal

pwd

List files in current folder

Terminal

ls

More detailed list:

Terminal

ls -l

Show hidden files:

Terminal

ls -a

Change directory

Terminal

cd foldername

Go back one folder:

Terminal

cd ..

Go to home directory:

Terminal

cd ~

3. File & Folder Management

Create folder

Terminal

mkdir testfolder

Create file

Terminal

touch file.txt

View file content

Terminal

cat file.txt

Edit file

Terminal

nano file.txt

Save in nano: Ctrl + O → Enter
Exit nano: Ctrl + X

Delete file

Terminal

rm file.txt

Delete folder:

Terminal

rm -r foldername

4. Copy & Move

Copy file

Terminal

cp file.txt /home/kali/

Move file

Terminal

mv file.txt Documents/

5. Check System Info

Show current user

Terminal

whoami

Show OS info

Terminal

uname -a

Disk usage

Terminal

df -h

Memory usage

Terminal

free -h

6. Networking Commands

Show IP address

Terminal

ip a

Check internet connection

Terminal

ping google.com

Stop ping: Press Ctrl + C

7. Install Software

Install a package (example: git)

Terminal

sudo apt install git

Remove software

Terminal

sudo apt remove git

8. Clear Terminal

Terminal

clear

9. Kali Specific – Check Tools

List all Kali tools

Terminal

kali-tools

Example tool check

Terminal

nmap --version

10. Power Commands

Shutdown

Terminal

sudo shutdown now

Restart

Terminal

sudo reboot

Beginner Practice Task

Try running these commands one by one in your terminal:

Practice — Terminal

# Step 1: Create a folder
mkdir practice

# Step 2: Enter the folder
cd practice

# Step 3: Create a file
touch test1.txt

# Step 4: Open file in editor
nano test1.txt

# → Write something → Ctrl+O → Enter → Ctrl+X

# Step 5: View the file content
cat test1.txt

Congratulations! If you can do this, you've mastered the basics of Linux terminal. Keep practicing!