What is a free, small Unix/Linux OS?

Question

I have a spare machine with an 80GB HDD and 512 MB RAM. I want to try a Linux distro that's very small (and free too). What should I try?

related: http://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/2692/what-is-the-smallest-possible-linux-implementation — Tobias Kienzler, Apr 11 '11 at 10:02
Exactly the same you are running on your main machine, just tweaked for size/lighter load (e.g, XFCE and not Gnome/KDE). — vonbrand, Jan 18 '13 at 02:45

score 15 · Answer 1 · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:22

15

For a computer with those specs you really don't need to worry about size. You can run Linux on far smaller machines just fine.

A simple option would be Ubuntu - it does most things right out of the box, so while not quite as lean as some other Linuxes, it is an easy one to try out if you have never used one before. If you want, you can even run it off a CD to try before you install.

There is even an Ubuntu Stackexchange so you can get assistance easily if required.

edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:22

Community

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answered Apr 11 '11 at 07:13

Rory Alsop

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Do you know any Linux system that won't happily run on that, or were you playing safe (i.e. there could be, but you don't know)? – tshepang Apr 11 '11 at 08:20
@Tshepang - I have certainly had Debian, Red Hat, Fedora, Ubuntu, Suse and Slack on much lower specced machines. I was just playing safe (as you never know :-) – Rory Alsop Apr 11 '11 at 08:51
But you are aware that the statement can be misleading right, as in you might know of one that won't happily run on that. So rather change the statement to something like I don't think there's any distro that won't happily run on that (I stand to be corrected). – tshepang Apr 11 '11 at 09:11
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I'm developing software for Unity on a 4 gigabyte USB disk, it runs Ubuntu 11.04 perfectly well, and even after a few weeks of upgrades, I have about 1.5gb of free space. :-) – Stefano Palazzo Apr 11 '11 at 10:30
@Tshepang - done :-) – Rory Alsop Apr 11 '11 at 10:38
Really guys? What machines did you use? I was trying to get an old laptop running with Debian Squeeze and it complained at the beginning about only 32M of RAM and indeed failed later to get it into a bootable state. It may be helpful to give such actual numbers when telling about how small you can go ... – 0xC0000022L Apr 11 '11 at 11:27
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32MB RAM is 8 times less than the specs being discussed here. Ubuntu's official line is 256MB IIRC for a standard install. – tobyodavies Apr 11 '11 at 11:33
@STATUS_ACCESS_DENIED: I set up some Ubuntu flavors in the last few years. If you like to run Firefox + Thunderbird + OpenOffice simultaneously, you should plan in the direction of 512 MB. Less than 256 MB will not be a fine experience. Then you can go with Opera and Abiword, but a lot of people need a heavyweight office suite. – user unknown Apr 11 '11 at 16:53
@tobyodavies: fair point. Rory's comment, however, sounded like "much lower specced" than discussed here. And I was trying to get the point across, that much lower than that won't even fly with some of the distros that are considered rather lean (like Debian). – 0xC0000022L Apr 11 '11 at 19:57
@STATUS - yep, fair point.I have had Suse and Red Hat run just about fine on less that 256MB, and I have Debian running on a 16MM machine in my car (but although you can play pac man on it, a word processor would be right out of the question) – Rory Alsop Apr 12 '11 at 07:33

pconcepcion · Answer 2 · 2013-11-28T15:37:36.617

There are several small distributions of linux, like Damn Small Linux or Puppy Linux.

But with those machine specs, you don't need such a light-weight distribution. You can install any, like Debian or Ubuntu... you can check many of them to see which one fits better in the idea you have for that machine at Distrowatch.

Update: Just discovered Tiny Core Linux, and seems also a very interesting option for a very small Server/Desktop.

Update 2, 2013 Review:

Another 2 options I've found looking for old computers on Distrowach:

AntiX: Based on Debian Testing. On their FAQ they say it fits on 0.7GB if you use just the core or 2.8GB the full install
CrunchBag: Debian based, CrunchBag primary aim is to produce a stable distribution offering the best possible out-of-the-box Openbox experience.

Love Puppy, it's where my Linux experience started. Thanks Barry for making it possible! — neurino, Nov 07 '12 at 22:32

score 7 · Answer 3 · answered Apr 11 '11 at 11:35

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Distributions described as lightweight

[BasicLinux]- A very lightweight distribution capable of running on an Intel 386 and 3 MB of RAM.

[Absolute Linux]

[Damn Small Linux] - "light enough to power a 486DX with 16MB of Ram"

[Lubuntu]- light weight in comparison to Ubuntu.

[Puppy Linux] - light weight relative to most other Linux distributions.

[SliTaz] - 25 megabyte distribution

[Tiny Core Linux] - 10 megabyte distribution

[Wolvix]

[Xubuntu] - light weight in comparison to Ubuntu and Kubuntu.

Source of above

Have fun!

answered Apr 11 '11 at 11:35

l0Ft

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I wouldn't recommend Lubuntu. For the amount of space that you're going to save, you might as well just use Ubuntu - everything actually works out of the box. – eckza Apr 11 '11 at 15:46
I can recommend xUbuntu, but won't think other decisions bad. 512 MB is much and could be enough, even for (K)Ubuntu, but it might get slowly, from update to update, a little weak. – user unknown Apr 11 '11 at 16:48
Xubuntu is really the only one of these that makes sense. The others are more "Running it off a floppy" small. – Brendan Long Apr 11 '11 at 18:45
Another one: http://wiki.alpinelinux.org/. Also: https://www.archlinux.org/ comes bare-bones by default. Alpine is substantially smaller and lighter-weight but Arch has a much larger community. – dubiousjim Nov 07 '12 at 21:23

score 4 · Answer 4 · answered Apr 11 '11 at 09:31

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You should try the "tinyCore". This one is so small that you can run it on an Flash with just 128 MB RAM.

answered Apr 11 '11 at 09:31

SHW

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score 2 · Answer 5 · answered Apr 11 '11 at 14:49

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I'm currently running Debian 6 with the Xfce desktop on just such a machine right now. It works very nicely.

answered Apr 11 '11 at 14:49

Wolf

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score 1 · Answer 6 · edited Feb 02 '12 at 04:48

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Use XUbuntu.

It's powerful and yet light.

Use this download link.

edited Feb 02 '12 at 04:48

Kevin

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answered Apr 11 '11 at 12:44

Anshulpapa

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score 1 · Answer 7 · answered Nov 14 '12 at 17:49

I realize this is an old question, but I just had to add my 2 cents worth:

1) I would highly recommend Bodhi Linux. It has a fantastic user interface (nice eye candy) yet requires only these minimum hardware specs: 300+MHz CPU, 128MB RAM, and 2.5GB hard drive space (see their about page)

2) As for a free distribution, you don't have far to look, they are just about all free ;-)

Also, Bodhi is an Ubuntu derivative, meaning it is not only easy to install, but you can benefit from all the packages in the Ubuntu repository.

score 0 · Answer 8 · answered Nov 28 '13 at 15:49

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Lubuntu 12.04 works for me, but others have problems installing.

answered Nov 28 '13 at 15:49

Julien

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score 0 · Answer 9 · edited Jan 14 '13 at 06:15

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I have a Ubuntu virtual machine on a 4GB USB memory stick with enough space for a copy of VMware player, so I can have a full Linux/X/Eclipse development machine any time I need one.

To create it, I just downloaded a standard Ubuntu VM 'appliance' with most of the right components pre-installed, added a few tweaks, and off I went.

edited Jan 14 '13 at 06:15

tshepang

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answered Apr 11 '11 at 12:31

Mark Booth

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score 0 · Answer 10 · answered Apr 12 '11 at 02:34

What I recommend you, is Debian. It's stable and runs well on most architechture.

I have myself Debian on my iBook G4 (30Gb HDD, 256 MB RAM), what could use most of your memory, is the desktop manager. If you only browse on the internet, check emails, chat with some friends, you could install GNOME. If you need more memory, I recommend you Fluxbox, it's a lightweight desktop manager, but it's not easy to use (not always user-friendly).

I've tried Ubuntu, but it's not as lightweight and stable as Debian...But it's more beautiful :)

It's your personal choice, it depends on what you need.

score -1 · Answer 11 · answered Apr 11 '11 at 07:29

-1

Build your own distro http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/lfs/

answered Apr 11 '11 at 07:29

matcheek

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-1 LFS is not easy, and it's bound to confuse anyone who has no experience in using GNU/Linux. – André Paramés Apr 11 '11 at 11:19
@André Paramés: it's still a proper point matcheek makes. +1 – 0xC0000022L Apr 11 '11 at 11:25
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@STATUS_ACCESS_DENIED: I don't agree, LFS is not an OS, it's a guide to build them. It doesn't answer the actual question and it will probably confuse OP. – André Paramés Apr 11 '11 at 11:53
@André Paramés: well, the question wasn't for a ready-to-use distro. So we keep disagreeing :o) – 0xC0000022L Apr 11 '11 at 11:55
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@STATUS_ACCESS_DENIED Yes, but the question was about "trying" UNIX/Linux. Talk about heads first! – Jacob Hume Apr 11 '11 at 12:19
@Jacob: the educational value would be tremendous. I understand your point, though :) – 0xC0000022L Apr 11 '11 at 12:24
You can do this, it's interesting, but not necessary here, so doesn't fit to the question. – user unknown Apr 11 '11 at 16:45
Great idea. Build the whole shebang from scratch on it, and three years later, when you are finally done, the machine dies on you. – vonbrand Jan 18 '13 at 02:47

What is a free, small Unix/Linux OS?

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