• kodi 20.1 Nexus
• Linux kernel 6.1.0

Debian packages to install:

• kodi - Depends on kodi-bin and kodi-data.
• kodi-inputstream-adaptive - Required e.g. by the YouTube addon.
• kodi-peripheral-joystick - Requied if you want to control Kodi e.g. with a SNES controller.
• kodi-repository-kodi - The official Kodi repository addon.
• kodi-visualization-spectrum
• acpi-support - Required to support e.g. power button actions.

It is advisable to run the Kodi media player under an unprivileged user, it is common practice to create an user kodi:

adduser kodi

Add the user to the standard Debian groups, to allow using the hardware (mainly the video and the input groups):

cdrom:x:24:kodi
floppy:x:25:kodi
audio:x:29:kodi
dip:x:30:kodi
video:x:44:kodi
plugdev:x:46:kodi
users:x:100:kodi
input:x:102:kodi
netdev:x:106:kodi

There is an obsolete recipe that suggests to install Kodi as a systemd service under the control of the kodi user. Using polkit and acpi-support you should be able also to enable the Power off System and Reboot options in the Kodi exit menu. This seems no longer possibile, because the systemd-logind.service imposes that you have a full terminal session to do things like poweroff the system.

This means that if you run kodi as a systemd service under the kodi user, you cannot give enough permissions to that process to let the Power off System and Reboot options appear in the Exit menu of Kodi.

So the recommended way to run Kodi as a startup service an an unprivileged user, is to enable the aoutlogin of the kodi user on a virtual terminal of the console and create a .profile script that will launch the kodi-standalone program.

/etc/systemd/system/getty@tty1.service.d/autologin.conf

[Service]
ExecStart=
ExecStart=-/sbin/agetty --autologin kodi --noclear %I $TERM

/home/kodi/.profile

# Start the Kodi media center, only if text console on VT1.
if [ -z "$DISPLAY" -a "$(tty)" = "/dev/tty1" ]; then
    while true; do
        kodi-standalone
        echo "Sleeping 15 seconds before restarting Kodi; press Ctrl-C to interrupt..."
        sleep 15
    done
fi

• How to Install The Latest Kodi 21.2 in Debian 12 Bookworm