There has so many super small Linux operating system that can give a new life to your old computer with 5 years old specification. Linux has many different kinds of “distribution” or “distro”. You can use anyone with the latest hardware. But not all are good for old PC.
Generally, you need a lightweight distro in any of these three cases such as -
- You have really old hardware and you want to get some use out of it.
- You have really underpowered hardware like Raspberry Pi or Pine 64.
- You have powerful hardware, but you want to keep system resources for your applications and not for the OS; use cases can be multimedia production systems or media center PCs.
You can install a lightweight Linux distro and start enjoying once again your computer which was unused for a long time. The super small Linux distros can be successfully bootable onto a 4GB USB flash drive. This can also be burned onto a CD and boot from that. If you want to put one of the Linux distros on a USB flash drive you’ll need a Rufus free tool that makes it easy to do that Windows. A bootable USB is the best way to install an operating system besides the ISO and a CD.
Here, we are going to list the best 5 lightweight Linux distros for old computers/laptops. So let’s start-
ArchBang
ArchBang is based on Arch Linux and inspired by CrunchBang, which was another lightweight Linux distro. It includes the power and flexibility of Arch Linux without the complex setup and installation. ArchBang works on i686 or x86_64 compatible machines, with 700MB of disk space, and requires 256MB of memory. It uses the Openbox window manager. It’s fast, stable, and always up to date.
Lubuntu
Lubuntu is based on Ubuntu core and LXDE. Lubuntu is a perfect solution for your old PC with low hardware specifications. It comes loaded with all the important software that you need such as - Mozilla Firefox web browser, PDF reader, CD burner, email client, MP3 player, Word processor, MTPaint, and more. It can run on Pentium 4, Pentium M, AMD K8 or newer CPU. At least 266 MHz, 512 MB RAM, 3 GB storage space. Easily installable via a USB flash drive.
Puppy Linux
One such Linux distro with a cute name and special purpose is Puppy Linux. Puppy Linux isn’t based on some other distro. It can be built from packages of other distros like Ubuntu and Slackware. The size of Puppy Linux is very less, somewhere around 200MB. It’s one of the smallest Linux distros on this list for 2018. You can also go for the live booting option using CD/DVD or USB like other Linux distros.
Debian
Debian uses Gnome as the default desktop environment, which can be resource hungry on some machines but it brings the best of both worlds: lightweight, without compromising on quality and stability. This is the mother of many popular distributions is by default a lightweight distro, as it’s system requirements are relatively low and you still get the most stable distribution on the planet. if you are willing to spend some time in making things like WiFi work, Debian is a great distribution. Revive your old PC with this modern distro. It runs on 1GHz CPU, 256MB RAM, but needs 10GB Disk Space.
Manjaro Linux Xfce Edition
There are many other fast and light Linux distros, but I’ve decided that Manjaro Linux Xfce Edition is the best operating system among all. Because it’s one of the fastest growing Linux distros. Currently, it stands at top 5 of Distrowatch ranking. It also has the support of a large user community. Minimum 1GB RAM and 1GHz CPU hardware requirements for Manjaro Xfce. It can be rolling through releases. This OS is based on Arch Linux. It can Easily installable via a USB flash drive.
In the Linux world, there are dozens of lightweight distros which you can find on DistroWatch. Let's utilize your old computers and share if you find anything interesting. Thank you!
