How to uninstall the default Desktop environment of Ubuntu12.04? [duplicate]

Question

I have installed Ubuntu 12.04 but I really don't like the default desktop environment. I want to uninstall it and install Gnome. But I don't know which package should I remove. Can somebody help me?

Answer 1

Welcome to AskUbuntu. Go to the Software Centre and search for "gnome", this will return a list of results where you will find:

Full GNOME Desktop Environment, with extra components

Select it and click "Install". When it finishes installing log out and in the log in screen you can click on the icon besides your user name to select Gnome as the desktop environment.

or, from the command line:

sudo apt-get install gnome-shell

To uninstall Unity (the Ubuntu desktop environment) the steps are similar, go to the Software Centre and perform a search for "unity". One of the results will be:

Interface designed for efficiency of space and interaction

Select it and click remove. Note though that you can have both environments installed, and even try a few others. You can then select which to use in the log in screen.

or, from the command line:

sudo apt-get remove unity unity-2d unity-2d-panel unity-2d-spread unity-asset-pool unity-services unity-lens-files unity-lens-music unity-lens-applications gir1.2-unity-5.0 unity-common indicator-sound indicator-power indicator-appmenu libindicator7 indicator-application indicator-datetime indicator-messages libnux-2.0-0 nux-tools libunity-misc4 unity-2d-common

(see here)

You only have to remove the extra desktop environment if you want to save disk space. Otherwise you can have both and select which environment you wish to use on the login screen, like this:

See here: How to revert to GNOME Classic Desktop?

Answer 2

If you're willing to reinstall, you could just install Ubuntu Gnome, which may be easier than dealing with installing other environments. You also get all Gnome-native tools, though that's less of an issue than if you were installing KDE.