First, download the ISO file from https://www.qubes-os.org/downloads/.
Remember, as always, to verify the signature of the downloaded file. There are several ways to get the Qubes Master Signing Key, which allows for the signature verification:
- Fetch it with GPG:
$ gpg --fetch-keys https://keys.qubes-os.org/keys/qubes-master-signing-key.asc
- Download it from https://keys.qubes-os.org/keys/qubes-master-signing-key.asc, and then import it with GPG:
$ gpg --import ./qubes-master-signing-key.asc
- Get it from a public keyserver (specified on first use with --keyserver <URI>, then saved in ~/.gnupg/gpg.conf), as in the following example:
$ gpg --keyserver pool.sks-keyservers.net --recv-keys 0x427F11FD0FAA4B080123F01CDDFA1A3E36879494
- Next, obtain the Release Signing Key from the Downloads page on the Qubes website, or by fetching it with GPG:
$ gpg --fetch-keys https://keys.qubes-os.org/keys/qubes-release-X-signing-key.asc
If you downloaded the file, you will need to import it with GPG, as seen in the following command:
$ gpg --import ./qubes-release-X-signing-key.asc
- Fianlly, verify the Qubes OS ISO file by running the following:
$ gpg -v --verify Qubes-R4.0-x86_64.iso.asc Qubes-R4.0-x86_64.iso
If part of the message you see contains the following, then you're good to go: Good signature from "Qubes OS Release X Signing Key".
Next, you need to transfer the ISO file to the DVD or USB flash drive. If you prefer to use a USB drive, then you just need to copy the ISO on to the USB device, for example, using dd:
dd if=FILENAME of= target device bs=1048576 && sync
According to the Qubes OS website:
Warning: If you do that on Windows 10, you can only install Qubes without MediaTest, which isn't recommended."
You can obtain Rufus from here: https://rufus.akeo.ie/.
You can also install Qubes on a USB flash drive, as a Live CD/USB, with one specification: leave the option checked to Automatically configure my Qubes installation to the disk(s) I selected and return me to the main menu.