Preston Clark asks:
Can you put a version of Linux on a barebone older laptop? Will it work or what would I have to do to make it work?
Browser: Explorer 10
System: Windows
Tagged: compatibility, install operating system, install tips, laptop, linux
System: Windows
Tagged: compatibility, install operating system, install tips, laptop, linux
15 Answers - Write an Answer
Réy Aétar
February 10, 2013try out lubuntu or xubuntu
ha14
February 10, 2013try Damn Small Linux
http://damnsmalllinux.org/download.html
Minimum Hardware Requirements
http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/wiki/minimum_hardware_requirements.html
486dx or 100% compatible processor
16mb ram (24mb recommended)
dual-speed CDROM (quad-speed or better recommended)
1.44mb floppy drive (for boot floppy, if needed)
VGA monitor and video card
a mouse (serial, ps/2, usb)
and a higher level of computer processor
Rajaa Chowdhury
February 10, 2013Would highly recommend you to install Bodhi Linux. Very light and very fast on older hardware. Download the ISO file and do a ISO burn on a CD and boot and install it. Very simple and very refined. http://www.bodhilinux.com/
Oron Joffe
February 10, 2013Generally speaking, you should be able to, no problem. That said, there’s always the question of specs, hardware compatibility (not all versions of Linux support all hardware) and so on. Given that it’s a barebones system – give it a try! The obvious versions to try are Ubuntu (or the lightweight variants mentioned by Réy), Bodhi and Mint. All have very straightforward installers, so download the ISO image, burn it onto CD/DVD with a suitable tool (or you can go via the USB-drive root, but the process is more complex) and try!
Lisa Santika Onggrid
February 11, 2013Try lightweight distros like Damn Small, Puppy, or Lubuntu.
Of course, you have to check whether that laptop have CD/DVD drive or not, or capable of USB booting to decide which installation method will work best.
Junil Maharjan
February 11, 2013there are lots of linux distro that works with older pc. there are distros for slow hardwares and for pcs with less hard drive. just check the one you would like for older hardwares.
Scott Reyes
February 11, 2013It depends on what type of hardware is compatible with the software you are running. you may not be able to run certain newer pieces of software depending on what computer you have, but i find it easiest to go ahead and install it if you have already backes
Gaurav Joshi
February 12, 2013tryout lubuntu xubuntu or linux mint xfce edition install using usb with unetbootin if u don’t have cd/dvd drive
Lubuntu, xubuntu or especially Mint may not be suitable for older PCs. While they may have a lightweight desktop, they still retain the Ubuntu core which is no lightweight. Puppy, Dan Small, antiX or even Bodhi are a better choice.
February 14, 2013The developers of Xubuntu have recently announced that their next ISO release will be close to 1GB in size. Several packages, such as GIMP, which were previously excluded, will be included in the default install of Xubuntu. Definitely NOT a distro I would recommend for older computers.
February 18, 2013Switchblade Rebirth
February 12, 2013Lubuntu, Xubuntu, Puppy Linux, or any other Linux distro that uses Super Low resources will do
Javaid Hussan
February 12, 2013just tell me the configuration of system, and i may suggest you the right linux distros to choose from.
As a general guide Bodhi linux http://www.bodhilinux.com/, Ubuntu / Xbuntu is also a good choice can found it on http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/alternative-downloads
Good luck with your search.
dragonmouth
February 13, 2013Need more info. “Bare bone older laptop” is a very vague description. Please provide more detailed specs. Depending on those specs, your choices may be from barely being able to run a minimal distro Puppy or Damn Small Linux to being able to run a full version of Debian, Fedora or Mageia.
I have an Dell Inspiron 7500 and a ThinkPad T21. Both are P3E based laptops. I run full blown Linux distros on both – Simply MEPIS on one and PCLinuxOS on the other. Neither one is blazing fast but neither are they slow as molasses. They work well.
David Ramirez
February 13, 2013I am quite happy running AntiX (http://antix.mepis.org) on my older desktop – which was a snail under WinXP – it recognized everything there (audio, video, added wireless card) and performs quite well.
Good on you!
I started out with antiX Core and added only the apps I need. Now I have a system that runs fast on an older PC. antiX could revive many old PCs destined for the scrap heap.
February 14, 2013Jim Waldo
February 24, 2013I have a 12 year old Toshiba laptop that our teenager gave up on because it was too slow. It still has the Designed for Windows XPsticker on it. I used the MOU guide about giving an old PC new life with Ubuntu – it was easy and the laptop works just fine – not a speed demon – but MUCH faster than WIN XP. If you are concerned check out the many distros that you can run as a LIVE CD. Good Luck.
Jandré Roux
March 15, 2013HI!
Yes you can install Linux on an older laptop or pc You will find that Linux is less resource hungry and gets “more” out of the pc. That is it feel faster.
Ubuntu/Kubuntu or any other derivative would be good to use.
Download the live cd’s and give it a go.
You will find that there are active forums for Ubuntu and Kubuntu with lots of helpful people, just waiting to answer your questions
And then later on give OpenSuse a go. It is a more comprehensive linux variant
J
Steve Koria Sr.
April 15, 2013antiX-13-beta2 will run most computers from very old hardware from P2 with only 64mb of ram to the most powerful up to date computers.
If you have an old computer this distribution of Linux is for you.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/antix-linux/files/Testing/