A light-weight Linux distribution is one that uses lower memory and/or has less processor-speed requirements than a more "feature-rich"

Linux distribution A Linux distribution (often abbreviated as distro) is an operating system made from a software collection that includes the Linux kernel and, often, a package management system. Linux users usually obtain their operating system by downloading on ...

. The lower demands on hardware ideally result in a more responsive machine, and/or allow devices with fewer system resources (e.g. older or

embedded hardware An embedded system is a computer system—a combination of a computer processor, computer memory, and input/output peripheral devices—that has a dedicated function within a larger mechanical or electronic system. It is ''embedded ...

) to be used productively. The lower memory and/or processor-speed requirements are achieved by avoiding

software bloat Software bloat is a process whereby successive versions of a computer program become perceptibly slower, use more memory, disk space or processing power, or have higher hardware requirements than the previous version, while making only dubious us ...

, i.e. by leaving out features that are perceived to have little or no practical use or advantage, or for which there is no or low demand. The perceived weight of a Linux distribution is strongly influenced by the

desktop environment In computing, a desktop environment (DE) is an implementation of the desktop metaphor made of a bundle of programs running on top of a computer operating system that share a common graphical user interface (GUI), sometimes described as a graphi ...

included with that distribution. Accordingly, many Linux distributions offer a choice of editions. For example,

Canonical The adjective canonical is applied in many contexts to mean "according to the canon" the standard, rule or primary source that is accepted as authoritative for the body of knowledge or literature in that context. In mathematics, "canonical examp ...

hosts several variants ("flavors") of the

Ubuntu distribution Ubuntu ( ) is a Linux distribution based on Debian and composed mostly of free and open-source software. Ubuntu is officially released in three editions: '' Desktop'', ''Server'', and ''Core'' for Internet of things devices and robots. All th ...

that include desktop environments other than the default GNOME or the deprecated Unity. These variants include the Xubuntu and Lubuntu distributions for the comparatively light-weight Xfce and

LXDE LXDE (abbreviation for Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) is a free desktop environment with comparatively low resource requirements. This makes it especially suitable for use on older or resource-constrained personal computers such as netbo ...

LXQt LXQt is a free and open source lightweight desktop environment. It was formed from the merger of the LXDE and Razor-qt projects. Like its GTK predecessor LXDE, LXQt does not ship or develop its own window manager, instead LXQt lets the use ...

desktop environments. The demands that a desktop environment places on a system may be seen in a comparison of the minimum system requirements of Ubuntu 10.10 and Lubuntu 10.10 desktop editions, where the only significant difference between the two was their desktop environment. Ubuntu 10.10 included the Unity desktop, which had minimum system requirements of a 2 GHz processor with 2 GB of RAM, while Lubuntu 10.10 included LXDE, which required at least a Pentium II with 128 MB of RAM.

Overview of some distributions

* ArchBang – inspired by CrunchBang Linux but based on the

Arch Linux Arch Linux () is an independently developed, x86-64 general-purpose Linux distribution that strives to provide the latest stable versions of most software by following a rolling-release model. The default installation is a minimal base system, ...

distribution instead of

Debian Debian (), also known as Debian GNU/Linux, is a Linux distribution composed of free and open-source software, developed by the community-supported Debian Project, which was established by Ian Murdock on August 16, 1993. The first version of De ...

. * DebianDog -

Live CD shaped after Puppy Linux. It is packaged with JWM and IceWM, or Openbox and Xfce.

structure and behaviour are untouched. * LinuxConsole - a lightweight system for old computers made to be easy for youth and casual users. * Parabola GNU/Linux-libre - an Arch-based lightweight system endorsed by the

Free Software Foundation The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Richard Stallman on October 4, 1985, to support the free software movement, with the organization's preference for software being distributed under copyleft ("s ...

. * postmarketOS – a derivative of Alpine Linux designed primarily for smartphones * SparkyLinux - a lightweight system based on Debian. * Zorin OS – also has "Zorin OS Lite" and "Zorin OS Education Lite" editions.

Comparison

References

{{Embedded systems Lightweight Unix-like systems Light-weight Linux distributions

Overview of some distributions

Comparison

See also

References