Best distribution for low-end systems

bd88

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What are some of the best Linux distributions for lower-end systems?
I am currently deciding between:
BionicPup32/64 - Puppy Linux
Peppermint OS
Zorin OS Lite
 
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CPU: 1.83GHz Intel Celeron N2940 processor (quad-core, 2MB cache, up to 2.25GHz)
Storage: 16GB
Ram: 4GB
I am looking for something I can boot from a USB.
 
Other than your storage space, you're really not all that limited. 4 GB is low, but I think every distro out there has a lower minimum requirement.

Do you intend to boot it from the USB over and over again, or just boot to USB once and install the distro?

(I may not be immediately available to answer, so hopefully someone else will pick it up from here. Perhaps with more questions. Be sure to see the links Condo posted.)
 
A bit more detail please......when you say you are looking for something you can boot from a usb....does that mean you do not wish to store any apps/data/pics/music on the 16gb hdd ?.....and then in turn does that mean you wish to store apps/data etc on the usb stick?...via persistence?

Or, if you simply want the chosen OS to boot from a usb stick, then all those you have shown will/have to boot from a usb

Do you perhaps intend to use this for secure banking access ?

What's the plan ?
 
Have used both Zorin and Puppy and I reckon you should try Zorin Lite very good and should run from USB.
 
OK I have an acer netbook [spec a bit lower than yours] it has a 16gb Zif drive and only 1,5 ram, up to recently it was running Peppermint, now it runs MX-linux,[ both medium weight distros] I store anything I wish to keep on an additional sd card [8gb]
BUt as always I sugest you download a few different ones and run them live , this will enable you to see which runs best on your kit [some will run better than others] and which you like the feel of best.
Bwiz
 
G'day @bd88 and welcome to linux.org :)

What's the plan ?

I likely have a number of ideas to suggest, but I would prefer to see the OP's response to Brian's question, so as to steer him in an optimal direction.

Is the 16 GB storage a reference to a USB stick?

Cheers

Chris Turner
wizardfromoz
 
Have a basic HP laptop that was a desktop, has an Intel pentium gold 2 core, kind of like Celeron, 4Gb ram, runs MX Linux very well.
 
I am looking for something I can boot from a USB.
There was a similar topic on this forum before. Read this link:
 
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You have received some good advise but have not seen anyone mention AntiX which is a good lightweight OS and is ready made for running from pen drives. Worth checking out.
AntiX
 
G'day @bd88 and welcome to linux.org :)



I likely have a number of ideas to suggest, but I would prefer to see the OP's response to Brian's question, so as to steer him in an optimal direction.

Is the 16 GB storage a reference to a USB stick?

Cheers

Chris Turner
wizardfromoz
The laptop has 16GB of storage, the USB stick has 4GB. Sorry for the confusion.
 
Other than your storage space, you're really not all that limited. 4 GB is low, but I think every distro out there has a lower minimum requirement.

Do you intend to boot it from the USB over and over again, or just boot to USB once and install the distro?

(I may not be immediately available to answer, so hopefully someone else will pick it up from here. Perhaps with more questions. Be sure to see the links Condo posted.)
I intend to boot from the USB over and over again.
 
A bit more detail please......when you say you are looking for something you can boot from a usb....does that mean you do not wish to store any apps/data/pics/music on the 16gb hdd ?.....and then in turn does that mean you wish to store apps/data etc on the usb stick?...via persistence?

Or, if you simply want the chosen OS to boot from a usb stick, then all those you have shown will/have to boot from a usb

Do you perhaps intend to use this for secure banking access ?

What's the plan ?
[/QUOTE/]
I think it would be a good idea to learn how to use Linux commands, etc. So all I really need is a desktop environment.
 
OK I have an acer netbook [spec a bit lower than yours] it has a 16gb Zif drive and only 1,5 ram, up to recently it was running Peppermint, now it runs MX-linux,[ both medium weight distros] I store anything I wish to keep on an additional sd card [8gb]
BUt as always I sugest you download a few different ones and run them live , this will enable you to see which runs best on your kit [some will run better than others] and which you like the feel of best.
Bwiz
I tried running Peppermint OS on my other laptop to test it and my keyboard and touchpad were not recognized by Peppermint. I also tried FossaPup and BionicPup but my keyboard and touchpad were still not being registered. That drove me away from using those distros.
 
Many of the live USB for Distros do not come with persistence enabled. That means you will loose all your saved work and system settings every time you reboot. So you need to find a distro that will allow persistence. AntiX does it, Puppy does. You can make other distros do that but it takes some work.
Good luck on your search.
This page may be of help Persistence
One other question is this a chromebook?
 
Chrome books may take some special care to get them to work with Linux. This page may be of help there. Linux on Chromebook
 
Yes, it is a Chromebook.
Pity you didn't say in the first place...

have a read on this...


Bwiz
 

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