What is the best alternative to&#x20;CloverOS?

An init system with the "do one thing and do it right" mentality. Void Linux does not support systemd. See More

115 26

score 185 · Answer 2

Void Linux

Top Pro

Runit init system

Top Con

Small amount of packages

Top Pro

xbps (X Binary Package System)

A brand new package manager that is fast, full-featured, and tailored specifically for Void Linux. See More

Top Con

Not suitable for those new to Linux

Documentation is scarce, NTFS partitions aren't automatically mounted, etc. See More

Top Pro

Rolling release

Top Con

Not popular

Void Linux is not a popular Linux distro. So, if you run into a problem then it's likely you won't find any fix except from the maintainers. See More

Top Pro

Runit is fast and easy to configure

Runit init system is incredibly fast to boot and very simple to use. See More

Top Con

Poor video performance with AMD gfx cards

While you can easily get the latest VLC thanks to Void being a rolling distro, video performance is abysmal, at least for those with AMD cards. See More

Top Pro

Musl image available

Musl libc is lighter and faster than bloated glibc. Musl has been argued to be more secure overall than glibc also but is also not supported by all software. See More

Top Con

No support for systemd

Top Pro

BSD-like improvements with Linux

Full support for LibreSSL, an OpenSSL fork focused on maximizing security. The xbps-src package builder works in a similar manner to BSD's ports collection. See More

Top Con

Slower than pacman

Top Pro

Friendly Forum

Unlink Elite Arch Forum, it is friendly forumalthough it's small See More

Top Pro

Different DE's live ISO's are available

Arch Linux doesn't make ISO's with different DE's. One need to manually install it through CLI version. But Void which is competitor of Arch, provides a wide range of DE's ISOs. See More

Top Pro

No Systemd

Specs

Default Desktop Environment:GNOME, KDE, XFCE, Cinnamon, Enlightenment, LXDE, LXQt, MATE, CLI

Init-System:runit

You build the package from a source you can see and read. You decide which features you want to build in and which aren't needed. You can choose build options, optimisation and whatever else fancy stuff you want modified. With a binary distribution this simply isn't possible. See More

185 45

score 371 · Answer 3

Gentoo Linux

Top Pro

Full control of the software

Top Con

Not beginner-friendly

You have to read a lot of instructions to start, even if you are familiar with Linux. Furthermore, as you have to configure the kernel and init system, expect some boot failures at beginning. See More

Top Pro

Portage's emerge is powerful

Top Con

Customized package installation can take a long time and cause installation failures

The Gentoo package management system allows you to configure what compilation flags packages should support - i.e. specific processor flag support (SSE, SSE2, etc.), -O1, -O2, -O3 optimization, etc. If you accept one of the default flags, Gentoo downloads binaries from the server. However, if you decide to optimise, it can and will download all source packages and start compiling allthe programs and libraries on your system. If your chosen flags don't work with a particular library, installation will fail. See More

Top Pro

Great for anyone who is serious about learning the intricacies of Linux

It's useful for both beginners and professionals. For the installation, Gentoo offers various types, which are referred to as stages. Basically meaning how in depth you would want to go into the process of installation. For beginners it's useful to choose for a starting distro due to its various stages that can be very time consuming but beneficial as you learn the composition in general of Linux. See More

Top Con

Since everything must be compiled it takes a lot longer to update

And if you have to update the kernel or some heavy software like Chromium it can takes hours if not more on weaker hardware. See More

Top Pro

Can be officially systemd-free

Gentoo's default init system is OpenRC. Gentoo also officially supports systemd-free Gnome and udev. Users are free to choose any init system they want. See More

Top Con

Has no live images with graphical interface

Full installation is hand-made with a CLI (Command-Line Interface) See More

Top Pro

Portability

There are many architectures available for Gentoo : i386, x86-64, PowerPC, PowerPC 64, sparc, DEC Alpha, ARM, MIPS, PA-RISC, S390, IA-64, sh, m68k. See More

Top Con

Somewhat outdated solutions

While being outdated per se is virtually impossible for a rolling-release distro with a large community, a large portion of said community sticks to outdated solutions. For example, Gentoo's primary init system is OpenRC, which is cumbersome and awkward to use and provides little control over the system. While you can just choose systemd, it will require some tinkering. Other examples include stubbornly declaring an initramfs a last resort and an "oh my god 1337 H4XX0RZ surely have nothing better to do than trying for a month to exploit some vulnerability to steal my pony art, I have to fortify so hard my performance and ease of use will suffer" 90s security mentality. Because of just how much freedom Gentoo provides you with, this usually isn't a big deal though. See More

Top Pro

Documentation and community are second to none

Provides a whole handbook to refer to during setup and usage. See More

Top Pro

Gentoo does not impose a standard look-and-feel

Top Pro

Fully customizable

The usage of advanced features like USE flags makes it more customizable than any binary distribution. See More

Top Pro

A very large collection of software is available

There are more than 19.000 packages available in the official repository. And even more with overlays. See More

Top Pro

Can by optimized to any given CPU by using proper compile flags

Since everything is being built on your PC you can fine-tune the code to make use of your CPU. And all it requires is two lines of string variables in a global config. See More

Top Pro

Freedom

You are free to do whatever you want with it. As a result, its configuration reflects your unique taste and personality. See More

Top Pro

Live USB

Specs

Default Desktop Environment:N/A

Init-System:OpenRC

Since Parabola is a completely free distro, there is no non-free software available and the community repositories are small compared to the AUR. See More

371 86

score 127 · Answer 4

Parabola GNU/Linux-libre

Top Pro

Protects your freedom, certified free by the FSF

Top Con

Small repositories

Top Pro

Option to use OpenRC or Systemd

Parabola has an OpenRC edition and a Systemd edition, so users can choose which init system they want. See More

Top Con

Won't work out-of-the-box on the most PC's

Almost all PCs need non-free drivers but Parabola has none to offer. See More

Top Pro

Very Secure

Top Con

Incompetent developers

They only care about removing non-free software, rather than making a properly working OS. See More

Top Pro

All the benefits of Arch Linux, only 100% certified free software

Top Con

Serves no purpose

It's just Arch without non-free software and is basically a niche OS with few users. See More

Top Pro

Has its own repos

Parabola has its own repos (which are almost as large as Arch Linux) and the IceCat browser is included. See More

Top Con

Same cons that apply to Arch Linux

Top Pro

Can be migrated from Arch Linux without a CD/USB

Top Con

Not really free

People have to pay hundreds to maintain this distro. See More

Top Pro

Based on Arch Linux

Top Con

Not compatible with AUR

Unlike other Arch-based distros, this free distro doesn't support AUR. See More

Specs

Based On:Arch Linux

Default Desktop Environment:LXDE

Init-System:Systemd or OpenRC

it uses the BSD ports system as package manager See More

127 40

score 15 · Answer 5

CRUX

Top Pro

Ports

Top Con

KISS

You have to do everything by yourself there are no helpers! See More

Top Pro

Very BSD/UNIX-like

Top Pro

Learning

Nice if you want to learn some stuff about Linux See More

Specs

Default Desktop Environment:N/A

Init-System:BSD-style initscripts

The profile system improves portage's usability without losing the soul of Gentoo. See More

15 7

score 32 · Answer 6

Funtoo

Top Pro

Like Gentoo but more streamlined

Top Pro

Use flags that are suitable for a task or environment are grouped into Profiles

It allows selecting, for example, gnome or desktop profile with most of the sane use flags enabled inside the profile. See More

Top Pro

Portage tree split into kits

This allows more fine-grained control over package updates, and packages can be now tied together inside the kit to minimize dependency breakage while upgrading. See More

Top Pro

Stage3 archive coming with pre-compiled kernel based on Debian's kernel

Top Pro

Simpler template-based network configuration

Top Pro

`boot-update` to take care of bootloader configuration

A tool to update your grub config. See More

Top Pro

Funtoo Linux offers a variety of stage3 builds

Customized to a variety of CPU microarchitecture variants from AMD, ARM, and Intel. See More

Top Pro

Uses GIt instead of Rsync

THis makes updates so much faster! See More

Top Pro

Stage3 sources are built using the Funtoo Linux tool 'metro'

It's a sophisticated replacement for Gentoo's build tool 'catalyst'. See More

Specs

Based On:Gentoo

Default Desktop Environment:N/A

Init-System:OpenRC

PrimeOS is standalone OS thus provides 2x performance than any emulator as emulator runs on a host OS. See More

32 14

score 15 · Answer 7

PrimeOS

Top Pro

Dual boot at single click with PrimeOS installer

Top Con

Windows software aren't compatible

Top Pro

Standalone OS, better performance than any emulator

Top Pro

3x better performance than windows budget laptop

Top Pro

Android Gaming on PC

PrimeOS is equipped with a key mapping tool, DecaPro whihc let you play any Android game at the comfort of keyboard and mouse. See More

Top Pro

Android Ecosystem with Desktop Interface

PrimeOS provides access to the whole Android ecosystem with complete desktop interface. Now use multiple apps on single screen with minimise, maximise and close option. See More

Specs

Default Desktop Environment:PrimeOS Desktop

Init-System:Android-Init

OS Family:Linux (AOSP-based)

Built on Alpine's APKBUILD system, which is an accessible and simple packaging system. If you're familiar with Arch's ABS or Gentoo's ebuilds, APKBUILDs are a breeze. See More

15 1

score 8 · Answer 8

Adélie Linux

Top Pro

Simple packaging system

Top Con

Not (yet) ready for Linux newbies

As of November 2018, there isn't an installer yet. If you're familiar with installing Arch or Gentoo (via chroot, fdisk, et al) then it's no big deal. An installer framework (called Horizon) is in the works. See More

Top Pro

Is pure Python 3

There is a hard and fast rule against Python 2 software in the main repositories, with efforts focused on adapting software to use Python 3 where possible. See More

Top Con

Is pure Python 3

Python 2 support is not supported by the distro, so many older upstreams who haven't adapted to Python 3 yet will need their software patched to work (this is both a pro and a con). See More

Top Pro

Small and performant

A standard installation takes under 200 MB. Only the bare necessities are included. See More

Top Con

Somewhat limited package set for servers

As of November 2018, it's still missing some server software. It's primarily a desktop-oriented distribution, but accepts server packages and progress has already been made on that front, including lighttpd, apache, and php-fpm. Contributors are already bringing more server software to the distro, including certbot, cgit, and Nextcloud. See More

Top Pro

Inviting and receptive development team

The people building the distro are knowledgeable and helpful when issues arise. Merge requests are actively suggested and reviewed, and the developers thank users for taking the time to learn the distro. See More

Specs

Default Desktop Environment:KDE or LXQt

Init-System:OpenRC or s6

Apt/Aptitude, debconf or the alternatives system. See More

8 1

score 94 · Answer 9

Siduction

Top Pro

Debian based

Top Con

Hardware recognition is bad compared to Ubuntu.

Siduction won't install any non-free drivers by default. See More

Top Pro

Secure Boot support

It supports secure boot which is great for LiveCDs and dual boot systems. See More

Top Pro

Updates are slow, but stable. It is based on Debian after all.

It uses Unstable per default so it is still some kind of stable since all dangerous packages are tested in experimental first. See More

Specs

Based On:Debian Unstable>Aptosid

Default Desktop Environment:KDE, Xfce, Cinnamon and LXQt

Init-System:systemd

No reinstalling the OS after every major upgrade. Keep your OS updated, and you have the latest version. See More

94 9

score 10 · Answer 10

PCLinuxOS

Top Pro

Rolling release model

Top Con

No 32-bit version

Top Pro

Software management and updating made simple through Synaptic

Top Con

Gaming can be hit or miss

To run some titles, particularly from Steam, some "massaging" is necessary. See More

Top Pro

Helpful and knowledgeable forums

Many issues can be resolved by just searching the forums. They are really a storehouse of knowledge. If not, expert help is still available. See More

Top Pro

"Batteries included" philosophy

Main release includes most apps needed by users everyday. Windows users will see a familiar look and feel to the UI. H/W issues practically nonexistent, as most drivers come with the ISO. See More

Top Pro

The team is headed by Texstar

One of the best in the business. See More

Specs

Based On:Mandrake Linux

Default Desktop Environment:KDE

Init-System:SysV.init

Isn't based on systemd which can spread malware into your system. See More

10 2

score 74 · Answer 11

Devuan GNU+Linux

Top Pro

Stability

Top Con

No systemd

Top Pro

Init based

Top Con

Impossibe to install on non-free hardware

Unlike Debian, Devuan offers no unfree install media so if your system needs unfree drivers(eg a laptop or a tablet) its nearly impossible to install devuan on it. See More

Top Pro

It's debian

Devuan is debian just without systemd, it just mirrors the the debian archive and repacks packages that have hard deps on systemd See More

Top Pro

Most decent look amongst other XFCE distros

Default XFCE theme is unique of all the XFCE distos including MXLinux, Xubuntu etc. See More

Specs

Based On:Debian

Default Desktop Environment:Xfce (KDE, MATE, Cinnamon and LXQt are available)

Init-System:SysVinit or OpenRC

Release Schedule:Point(release codename) Rolling(stable, oldstable, testing, unstable)

Has a 70-90MB memory footprint. See More

74 12

score 62 · Answer 12

antiX

Top Pro

Extremely lightweight

Top Con

Not really free and not available for download in Iran

Top Pro

Quick installation

The installation procedure for antiX is quick and painless. It installs the OS and grub in no time. See More

Top Pro

Stats appear on the desktop

Top Pro

Works very well on ASUS 1005HA netbook

Faster than other distros tested, including many on this list. See More

Specs

Based On:Debian Stable

Default Desktop Environment:IceWM

Init-System:SysVinit

Developers are working migrating all packages into their own repositories while ensuring there's no systemd malware. See More

62 11

score 126 · Answer 13

Artix Linux

Top Pro

No systemd

Top Con

Few Arch packages might not be available yet

Top Pro

Close to bare Arch Linux

No learning curve if you're coming from Arch or any of its derivatives See More

Top Con

No systemd

Top Pro

runit

Artix actively supports the runit init system known from Void Linux. (Equally besides the OpenRC init system known from Gentoo.) See More

Top Con

No systemd

Top Pro

Rolling distro

Top Pro

Lightweight

Only the software you would need like Terminal emulator, file manager, media player and a browser. See More

Top Pro

Flexibility

You can have a functional system in less than 10 mins using GUI installer OR you can do it "the Arch way" See More

Specs

Based On:Arch Linux

Default Desktop Environment:LXQt/KDE or MATE/LXDE

Init-System:runit or OpenRC

Especially during the manually partitioning and the additional software installing procedure. If you do the automatic partitioning and you don't install additional softwares it's ok. See More

126 22

score 234 · Answer 14

Anarchy Linux

Top Pro

The end result is a well configured standard Archlinux system

Top Con

The installer has many bugs

Top Pro

Saves a lot of time to set up an Archlinux system

Once you had your experience to set up an Archlinux system manually from scratch this distro saves a lot of setup time. See More

Top Pro

Many preconfigured Desktop environments supported

Top Pro

Everything you need in a small and fast Arch distro

Top Pro

Full access to Arch repositories as well as Aur

Top Pro

Looks good by default

Top Pro

Low setup time

Even a person without prior knowledge will figure out how to set it up quite quickly. See More

Top Pro

LVM on LUKS encryption of whole disk possible

It works! Whereas neither the calamares installer used by arcolinux or manjaro nor the archlabs installer produces a working result. See More

Top Pro

Good for gaming

Smooth and cool. Easy to get going. See More

Top Pro

Friendly community

The community and developers are willing to solve any kind of inconvenience. See More

Top Pro

Supports 32-bit architecture

Use ArchLinux32 instead of the traditional Arch Linux to support 32-bit architectures. See More

Top Pro

Fully developed in Bash

Being programmed entirely in Bash, it is relatively easy to find and solve errors or propose improvements. See More

Specs

Based On:Arch Linux

Default Desktop Environment:Budgie, Cinnamon, Gnome, OpenBox, Xfce

Unbelievably fast for ArcoLinux with XFCE, Openbox, I3. See More

234 38

score 50 · Answer 15

ArcoLinux

Top Pro

Easy to install

Top Con

Small development team

Top Pro

Easy to isntall desktop environments

Thanks to the manuals provided by the developers it is really easy to install more than 10 different desktop environments that'll work at the same time! See More

Top Con

A bit bloated

It is is a bit bloated to many web browsers, text editors out the box. A simple customize menu's for all 3 desktops would have been nice. See More

Top Pro

Blazingly fast!

Startup time, shutdown time, everything in between. See More

Top Pro

XFCE, Openbox and I3

Finished Product with almost every tool a experienced user will use. See More

Top Pro

Community support is great

Need to install Discord on cell phone and computer. Fastest way to receive help. Community is mostly European on Discord so getting help at midnight may be a challenge. See More

Top Pro

Learning bash script

Fastest way to reload any Linux desktop is a script that will install all your favorite apps. Keep this file on a USB stick Update for any distro from Ubuntu, Fedora or even Arch Linux back to you favorite apps in minutes See More

Specs

Based On:Arch

Default Desktop Environment:Openbox + Xfce + i3

Unlike Remix OS, Phoenix OS is recently released and comes with Android 7.0. Remix OS support is discontinued and no further updates can be expected. But Phoenix OS updates can be expected. UI is same for both OS. See More

50 12

score 132 · Answer 16

Phoenix OS

Top Pro

Comes with Nougat

Top Con

32-bit version is no longer supported or updated

The developers of Phoenix OS have dropped support for the 32-bit version of Phoenix OS. It is still on Andriod 5.1 Lollipop and was last updated on 19 October 2017 See More

Top Pro

Accelerated gaming

With Phoenix OS you guys can play any android games on pc with 30+ fps but minimum requirements must be met (pentium 4 cores with 8 gig ram) [must] and even Intel gfx would also work to run heavy games like mc5 (fps) and kritika (role playing) or pubg(tps) usually puzzle games never lags on this OS See More

Top Con

Lots of ads

So many sucky ads for no apparent reason, making it not free at all. cant even open a FileManager withouth clicking closed ad See More

Top Pro

Regularly updated

Phoenix OS updated at least every month, bringing in new features and bug fixes with every release. See More

Top Con

Google Play service is not updating

Don't expect Google services-based apps. See More

Top Pro

For gaming

Top Con

It's snappy, in a way

Snappy but not smooth. Snappy when it comes to games. Setting the resolution to 1080 but that doesnt take effect on games which still run on low resolution. See More

Specs

Based On:AOSP>Android-x86

Init-System:Android-Init

OS Family:Linux (AOSP-based)

Comes with a taskbar launcher and the Pixel launcher. See More

132 29

score 61 · Answer 17

Bliss OS

Top Pro

Extra launchers

Top Con

Limited hardware support

Like android-x86, it has limited hardware support. See More

Top Pro

Rooted with a few clicks

Similarly to android-x86, it's rooted with just a few clicks, thus allowing the use of AdAway and other Ad Blockers. See More

Top Con

Not for power users

Android is designed for everyone so it might be a bit limited for power users. See More

Top Pro

Google Play Store

Google Play Store is installed by default. See More

Top Pro

ARM Virtualization

Like android-x86, it comes with ARM virtualization support, so you can run many Android ARM apps on your x-86 device. See More

Top Pro

Android Apps

There exist an app for any task. See More

Top Pro

Simple Linux distro

Like ChromiumOS it has a very simple(stipped down) user interface that is easy to understand and use. See More

Top Pro

Unique

It is unique compared to taditional GNU-based Linux distributions. See More

Top Pro

Multi-platform

Android is available for PCs, Phones, Tablets, TVs and even Clocks. See More

Top Pro

Familiar UI/Design

Everyone who owns an android device already know the OS. See More

Top Pro

Fully opensource

It is fully opensource and there is no company behind it. See More

Specs

Based On:AOSP>Android-x86

Default Desktop Environment:Android

Init-System:Android-init

Lean, fast and surprisingly stable. See More

61 16

score 130 · Answer 18

Endeavour OS

Top Pro

Good overall system quality and performance

Top Con

Same Cons that apply for Arch Linux

Since it is based on Arch, it is harder to install and can easily break. See More

Top Pro

Great hardware support

Top Con

Kalu needs a little refinement

I applaud the developers to carry on the legacy of Antergos, the only niggling thing that I would appreciate is, while it's nice to see news about updates; my opinion is that once you dismiss the notifications they STAY dismissed. And just clicking on the icon brings kalu brings it to the foreground. Or have the functionality of turning off the news altogether would be well received. Good distro. See More

Top Pro

Cutting edge rolling release

Exactly as Arch - allows users to stay on the most up-to-date versions of the software they are using. See More

Top Con

Not for everyone

Top Pro

AUR support

One of the best reasons to use an Arch based distro. You can find almost every package there is in the Linux world! See More

Top Con

NET installer on the way

Top Pro

Great XFCE implementation

Their use of themes and configuration look great! See More

Top Pro

Support for a large variety of new hardware

Rolling release means newer, up to date, mesa and kernel versions able to handle newer hardware with better performance! See More

Top Pro

Not based on Ubuntu

Top Pro

No restrictive handholding, pure control over everything

The user can do whatever he wishes because the distro IS Arch - with and easy installer and great themes. See More

Top Pro

As slim as you want it

Based on Arch, Endevour OS keeps its core repositories slim and free of unnecessary dependencies. The distro comes with no bloatware, only the necessary packages. The repositories are nearly as full as those of Ubuntu, while they are often more up to date. See More

Top Pro

Arch Linux Wiki

Being an "easy to install version of Arch" means it is exactly easy to use the famous Arch Wiki! See More

Top Pro

Helpful community

Great team of developers and excellent forum support on their official website. See More

Top Pro

Stripped down to the bone

Since its stripped down, it is fast and you don't have to deal with bloatware. See More

Top Pro

Fast and simple package management

There can only be one Package Manager (pacman) ;) See More

Top Pro

Great for low performance hardware

Easy on the specs and still blazingly fast. See More

Top Pro

Lightweight

Top Pro

Great community

Top Pro

Easy installer

The XFCE Whisker menus and dark theme are well designed. Easy to move the panel to the top and add plank on the bottom. See More

130 30

score 105 · Answer 19

Peppermint Linux OS

Top Pro

Looks great

Top Con

Since it is based on Lubuntu, the double click speed needs to be slowed down

It's false that Peppermint 7 is tout court based on Lubuntu. Take a look at this: "Peppermint Seven makes use of the Xfwm4 window manager and Xfce bottom panel in the LXDE desktop environment. This is unlike other Linux distributions that use LXDE as the default desktop environment where it is common to use the Openbox window manager and lxpanel." And more: "Peppermint Seven is built on the Ubuntu 16.04 LTS code base and makes use of its package repositories." Contrarily to other Linux distributions, Peppermint creators never said Peppermint 7 is based on Lubuntu, like LXLE. Using LXDE and being based on Ubuntu is very different from being simply based on Lubuntu. In fact, Lubuntu is not faster than Peppermint and has loads of lacks for a nowadays OS experience. See More

Top Pro

Friendly and helpful forum

Top Pro

Fast and light on resources

RAM consumption is the same as LxLE, but more efficient and because of Whisker Menu and other tweaks that let us feel more like we have a XFCE desktop environment, as keyboard shortcuts, for instance, it looks like we got here the fastest and lightest, globally speaking. Very good on performance. Download Respin 7 (March 2017), install Libreoffice and then compare, for example, opening Libreoffice Writer inside Peppermint 7, Extix 17.04, Lubuntu 16.10, Xubuntu 16.04, Backbox 4.7, Linux Mint 18.1 Xfce an Mate or Linux Lite 3.4 (and others). Finally, you'll find out that after opening a few apps in Peppermint it remains smooth and light. Nemo file explorer on Peppermint is incredibly faster than on Mint Cinnamon; lx terminal is very fast when opening; updating is fast. And after all this, distro keeps working and working very solidly and consistently along the time. And yet the look and feel of the environment is pleasant. See More

Top Pro

Comes with a variety of helpful tools

Works great with Teamviewer, Synaptic, XNview, KODI, and Pdf-Xchange editor (via playonlinux). Netflix works awesome with Chrome browser. The ICE SSB tool is great for creating web apps that run as if you installed them locally. The Software Boutique (packaged with The MATE Welcome software Center) recognizes all software and installs it with one click. See More

Top Pro

Peppermint 7 is stable

Peppermint 7OS (32 and 64 bit) has been updated to the Respin PPA . Kernel updated to 4.9.24 on 23-April -2017 with no issues and all software still runs great. See More

Top Pro

Peppermint9 is stable

Peppermint 9OS (32 and 64 bit) has been updated to the Respin PPA. See More

Specs

Based On:Debian>Ubuntu

Default Desktop Environment:LXDE, Xfce

Init-System:Systemd

Package Manager:Debian Package Manager

Puppy Linux requires 128MB of RAM and 333Mhz of CPU, although 256MB of RAM is recommended. See More

105 30

score 239 · Answer 20

Puppy Linux

Top Pro

Extremely low minimum system requirements

Top Con

A bit ugly

Using puppy makes you feel like you just jumped 20 years into the past. Being that the purpose of Puppy Linux is to run or really low resource machines the software used is often on the older side, which is precisely why it has a 20 year old look. See More

Top Pro

The whole OS runs off of RAM

Since Puppy Linux is completely loaded and run off of RAM instead of HDD, it's read/write speed is not a factor. See More

Top Con

Smallest software library ever

You can barely find any precompiled packages for Puppy. See More

Top Pro

Different distro based versions available

Puppy Linux offers a few different releases. The first is an Ubuntu based release called Tahrpup, by using this version the user is able to take advantage of all software and support from Ubuntu. The second version is called Slacko, which is built upon the Slackware binaries. The third is called Wary and it is built to support older hardware than the rest. And the fourth is called Quirky, which is used as a base to explore new ideas. See More

Top Con

No built in compositing

Being a low resource distro there is zero built in compositing for the JWM window manager. Though one can be added through a bit of work. See More

Top Pro

Designed to run as a live USB/CD

A portable version, that can be carried on a thumb drive without requiring installation, weighs less than 100MB; a Live CD - less than 150MB. You can even save your settings and files for Puppy on the external device/media. Running off a live CD also has security benefits, as your system will reset to the known config after each boot. See More

Top Con

Not as light as it used to be

It's light, but not as light as it was 1-2 years ago. See More

Top Pro

Linux distro designed for this exact purpose

Top Pro

Offers a long term support release

Puppy Linux offers an LTS release called Precise. See More

Top Pro

It can be the only distro that works

Sometimes, Puppy Linux is the only distro that works on an old machine: all other distros are more demanding. See More

Top Pro

JWM used as window manager

JWM is a low resource window manager that is used in most Puppy Linux installs. See More

Specs

Based On:N/A (however binaries are usually taken from Debian/Ubuntu or Slackware)

Default Desktop Environment:Usually JWM

Init-System:SysV