One of the biggest challenges for anyone breaking into IT is the classic Catch-22: employers want you to have experience, but you need someone to give you a chance to gain it. It\u2019s frustrating, and for many, discouraging. But here\u2019s the truth\u2014you don\u2019t have to wait for those opportunities to start building that experience. You can do it yourself, right now, with free tools and a willingness to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s where labs like this come in. In this article, I’ll be walking you through how to install Peppermint, an open-source help desk and issue management platform, on a free Ubuntu VM. Not only is this great hands-on practice with Linux and Docker, but it also gives you real-world exposure to software that\u2019s used in actual IT environments. This isn\u2019t just busy work\u2014it\u2019s experience you can talk about in interviews, put on your resume, or even use in your own freelance or home lab projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Peppermint is a lightweight, open-source help desk and issue management system designed to simplify ticket tracking and internal support. Built with modern web technologies, it offers an easy-to-use interface where users can submit support requests, and IT teams or administrators can manage, assign, and resolve tickets efficiently. Because it\u2019s self-hosted, Peppermint gives you full control over your data and configuration, making it a great option for small businesses, IT students, home lab enthusiasts, or anyone looking to gain hands-on experience with support workflows in a real-world setting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Docker is a platform that allows you to run applications in isolated environments called containers<\/strong>. Think of containers as lightweight, portable virtual machines, but faster and easier to manage. Instead of installing software directly on your operating system (and dealing with all the dependency headaches), Docker packages everything an app needs (code, libraries, and settings) into one neat container. This makes it ideal for labs, testing, and deploying apps like Peppermint, because you can get up and running with just a couple of commands. Plus, Docker is widely used in modern IT and DevOps environments, so getting comfortable with it is a smart move if you’re looking to break into tech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this blog, I won’t demonstrate how to install Ubuntu. Instead, I will provide two links. The first link is to my blog on virtualization. In this blog, I demonstrate how to install a Windows VM. You can follow the same steps (you can scroll to Step 14):<\/p>\n\n\n\nSteps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Install Ubuntu VM<\/h3>\n\n\n\n