Mandriva Linux is a fusion of Brazilian distribution Conectiva Linux and French distribution Mandrake Linux. It is developed by Mandriva S.A.; however, the company has not released any new version since 2011.

Although the distro has not been updated for a long time and considering the features it offered, it’s a little difficult to undermine its existence. Mandriva might not exist any longer, but its memories are still functional in the form of different Linux distros, discussed below.

1. Mageia

Mageia_7_KDE_Plasma interface
Image Credit: Mageia Developers/Wikipedia

Mageia is a great alternative to Mandriva, considering its French lineage. Over the years, it has released eight updates to its existing distro set. The distro is rightly called the modern version of Mandriva, especially on account of its features. Considered as Mandriva’s branched distro, Mageia has grown leaps and bounds over the years.

Mageia is available in 32-bit and 64-bit versions; unfortunately, it does not support ARM32 and ARM64 computing architectures. It is available in ISO image and Netboot formats to those who want to install the OS.

Since Mandriva introduced the splash screen and pretty bootloader, it would be hard to say that Mageia isn’t taking the legacy forward. For the login process, you are required to use Simple Desktop Display Manager (SDDM) derived from the KDE Plasma desktop environment.

Mageia 8 is the latest version of the distro and you can install it in several ways. Out of all the ways, booting the ISO using a USB drive is the most popular installation method.

Download: Mageia

2. PCLinuxOS

PCLinuxOS was the first forked version from Mandrake Linux 9.2 in 2003. It diverged from Mandriva then but finally became a fork of Mandriva in 2007. A single person originally developed it first, but now a large community supports this Linux distro.

PCLinuxOS delivers stability and gives you excellent performance for working, gaming, entertainment, and other day-to-day work. The distro is mainly focused on US-based users, whereas Mageia has a more international outreach.

Users can choose between KDE Plasma, XFCE, and MATE as the default user interface. The distro is free to use and focuses on giving easy usability than other alternate distros of Mandriva. It has a similar look and feel as the original Mandriva; nevertheless, it has changed significantly in some other aspects.

Download: PCLinux OS

3. OpenMandriva

OpenMandriva interface
Image Credit: OpenMandriva Developers/Wikipedia

OpenMandriva supports ARM for both 32-bit and 64-bit architecture. It is available for distribution only through ISO, thereby leaving a limited way for users to install it. Compared to Mandriva’s DrakX, OpenMandriva uses Calamares software on the screen, which is well-known amongst Manjaro users.

OpenMandriva gives a polished look to its desktop environment. The login process is similar to Mageia; however, the point of similarity is that Mageia and OpenMandriva both use Simple Desktop Display Manager (SDDM).

Daily users get to see a big difference in network managers between OpenMandriva and the original Mandriva. OpenMandriva follows other KDE distros for more accessibility and better access to the network.

OpenMandriva is an open-source Linux-based operating system that you can install on a desktop and on a server. You can download OpenMandriva's latest ISO file from the original website and make a bootable media to install it on your computer.

Download: OpenMandriva

Related: The Best Linux Operating Distros

Which Distro Is Your Favorite?

Mandriva was incorporated way back in 1998; it was one of the preferred choices before these alternate distros with user-friendly Linux distributions made it onward.

In common opinion, all these distros are good enough to give great value to the users. Mageia stresses more on cutting-edge expediencies, whereas PCLinuxOS is more about stability and usability.

OpenMandriva is also an excellent distro, but it does not promise to deliver something drastically different from Mageia.