For the hardware, if you have no other preference, I would go with:
For the operating system image and board-specific installation information, see:
The instructions for flashing the operating system to eMMC are on the same page. See:
Section 4.4.3 - Install OS to eMMC
Once the operating system is installed and the system has booted, you should be able to connect a monitor and get a command shell.
First update the system:
sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade -y
Install Java 8:
sudo apt install openjdk-8-jdk
I would also install a lightweight windowing system:
sudo apt install lxqt lightdm
To start the window manager manually:
sudo systemctl start lightdm
You can also configure the graphical desktop to start automatically at boot, as described below.
sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade -y
TransSECS currently requires Java 8 (or will run in Java 11)
On a Debian-based Armbian installation:
sudo apt install openjdk-8-jdk
Verify the installation:
java -version
You should see output similar to:
openjdk version "1.8.0_xxx"
If multiple Java versions are installed, select Java 8 as the default:
sudo update-alternatives --config java
Install the LXQt desktop and LightDM login manager:
sudo apt install lxqt lightdm
During installation, if prompted to select a display manager, choose:
lightdm
To start the graphical desktop automatically whenever the NanoPi boots:
sudo systemctl enable lightdm sudo systemctl set-default graphical.target sudo reboot
After reboot, the system should display the LXQt login screen.
If the system will normally operate without a monitor, you can disable the graphical desktop:
sudo systemctl disable lightdm sudo systemctl set-default multi-user.target sudo reboot
After reboot, the system will start in command-line mode only.
If the desktop is normally disabled but you need it temporarily for maintenance:
sudo systemctl start lightdm
This launches the graphical login screen without changing the boot configuration.
To stop the graphical desktop and return to command-line operation:
sudo systemctl stop lightdm