Linux distributions without systemd
From Without Systemd
This article lists Linux distributions which :
- have a default init system other than systemd
- are open source (accessible source code available for the content of the distributed IMG or ISO)
- are actively maintained and provide contact information of the developers
- have a website and/or provide end user support via a well-established and maintained forum/mailinglist
A separate page Linux distributions without systemd/unlisted covers additional distributions which do not adequately meet these criteria.
Contents |
General purpose
Independent
| Name | Init | Package managers | amd64 | Supported Desktop Environments/Window Managers | Details / Notes | Other ports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4MLinuxDW | BusyBox | ? | no | JWM | i686 | |
| Adélie Linux | SysV + OpenRC | apk | yes | various, multiple | uses musl libc
|
arm, arm64, x86, ppc, ppc64 (See about) |
| Alpine LinuxDW | BusyBox + OpenRC | apk | yes | various, multiple | uses BusyBox + musl libc + OpenRC | i386, armhf |
| ALT LinuxDW | SysV or systemd | APT+RPM | yes | various, multiple | repo has both sysvinit and systemd, official distros use the latter while many official starterkits use the proper one | i586, x86_64, aarch64 (primary); armhf, mipsel, e2k (beta); riscv64, ppc64 (alpha) |
| Ataraxia Linux | sinit | kagami | yes | various, multiple | Fast and compact Linux distribution which uses musl libc and busybox userland tools | i586, aarch64, armv7l, armv6l, armv5tel, ppc, ppc64, ppc64le, mips, mipsel, mips64, mips64el, riscv32 and riscv64 |
| Batocera LinuxDW | SysV | ? | yes | ? | minimal distribution dedicated to running retrogaming software | i686, armhf |
| Bedrock Linux | BusyBox / any |
any | ? | ? | Bedrock Linux can utilize any of a large number of init systems as provided by other distributions | ? |
| CRUXDW | SysV + /etc/rc.* |
tar.xz based | yes | OpenBox | arm | |
| Cucumber LinuxDW | SysV | from #Slackware |
yes | Xfce | Kernel version 4.9 LTS, GNU Userspace utilities | i686 |
| Dragora GNU/Linux LibreDW | SysV + perp |
tar.xz based | yes | Xfce, IceWM, spectrwm |
Linux Libre distro | i586, amd64, arm(64), microblaze, mips, powerpc(64), s390x |
| Fatdog64 LinuxDW | dumb-init | gslapt, SFS Loader | yes | (3) | FatDogArm for Raspberry Pi2 and Odroid-XU3/XU4 | |
| GentooDW | SysV + OpenRC[1] | Portage | yes | AfterStep, Awesome, Blackbox, Enlightenment, Fluxbox, GNOME, IceWM, KDE Plasma, LXDE, MATE, Openbox, WMaker, Xfce | If Portage is pulling in systemd, please read this. Further suggested reading. | i486, i586, i686, alpha, arm, hppa, ia64, mips, powerpc, ppc64, sparc64 |
| GoboLinuxDW | SysV + BootScripts |
file system | yes | awesome | a source-based distribution which employs a unique file structure (not FHS) | no |
| GuixSDDW | Shepherd (pure Guile) |
GNU Guix | yes | Xfce and GNOME | provides advanced package mgmt features such as transactional upgrades and roll-backs; FSF-approved | i686 |
| KaNaPi | bash script | file system | yes | XFCE and Sugar | educational + game apps | armhf and i686 |
| LinuxConsoleDW | ? | ? | yes | MATE and LXDE | tailored to gaming / educational use | i686 |
| Milis Linux | SysV | MPS | yes | various, multiple | Uses own customised ports system that called "talimatname" and also can use binary package system. It is inspired by LFS. | |
| MisiProject | SysV + OpenRC | PISI | yes | MATE | armv7h | |
| NuTyXDW | SysV | cards | yes | various, multiple | On 2019/02/11 the new Nutyx-based YaoLinux (2) distro using systemd has been announced while Nutyx proper will continue to use SysV init. Inspired by LFS & BLFS; its "cards" pkg mgr can install individual or grouped binary packages, and can compile source pkgs from "ports" | i686 |
| OviOS LinuxDW | SysV | pacman | yes | No desktops (servers only distro) | (2) previously used systemd; was rebuilt around sysV init because systemd proved unsuitable for a stable storage system | no |
| PCLinuxOSDW | SysV | apt-rpm | yes | Plasma 5 Unofficial: LXQt, Trinity, MATE, Xfce |
no | |
| Plop LinuxDW | SysV | yes | ? | (PXE/liveboot) designed to rescue data from a damaged system, or to backup and repair operating systems | armv6l and i486 | |
| Puppy LinuxDW | SysV | Puppy Package Manager |
yes | LXDE | Puppy Linux's position on systemd | i386 |
| SlackwareDW | SysV + /etc/rc.d/rc.* | installpkg, pkgtool, slackpkg |
yes | KDE and Xfce, various | i586, s390, arm | |
| Source Mage GNU/LinuxDW | simpleinit-msb | Sorcery | yes | ? | source based | i386, i486, i586, i686 |
| Tiny Core Linux DW |
BusyBox | tce-load | yes | FLTK/FLWM, JWM, fluxbox, icewm, openbox, hackedbox | Also: "CorePlus", "piCore" (Raspberry Pi), and "dCore" (can use Debian or Ubuntu packages converted into SCE files) releases. | i486, x86_64, armv6, armv7hf |
| Venom LinuxSFDW | SysV + /etc/rc.* (looks between PCLinuxOS and CRUX) |
scratchpkg | yes | MATE, Xfce, LXDE | Sources-only distro just like Gentoo’s ideals, but instead follows KISS principle | no |
| Void LinuxDW | runit | xbps | yes | AfterStep, Awesome, Blackbox, Enlightenment, Fluxbox, GNOME, IceWM, KDE Plasma, LXDE, MATE, Openbox, WMaker, Xfce | supported libcs: glibc, musl | armv6, armv7, i686 |
Derivatives
Arch Linux based
Arch Linux's package manager is Pacman.
| Name | Init | Details / Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Artix LinuxDW | OpenRC/runit | eudev, replaces Arch-OpenRC and Manjaro-OpenRC |
| Hyperbola GNU/Linux-libreDW | OpenRC | (2) pacman pkg manager; "LTS Arch snapshot versions"; amd64, i686 FSF-approved |
| ObarunDW | s6(-rc) + 66 | x86_64 |
| Parabola nosystemd editionDW | OpenRC/Shepherd | [2],[3]; A part of the GNU project and FSF-approved; x86_64, armv7h, i686 |
Debian based
Debian's package manager is dpkg and APT. See DebianReleases.
| Name | Debian version | Init | Details / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| antiX LinuxDW | 9 Stretch | SysV | flexible remastering and persistence tools. WMs: JWM+iceWM+fluxbox; amd64, i486 |
| DevuanDW | 8 Jessie and 9 Stretch | SysV / OpenRC | XFCE desktop, et al; architectures: amd64, i686, arm (see: files and /embedded) |
| GNUstep Live CDDW | 9 Stretch | SysV | GNUstep using WindowMaker; amd64, i686 |
| KNOPPIXDW | merge of stable, testing and unstable | SysV | (video: "Defying systemd") employs systemd-shim |
| MX LinuxDW | 9.3 Stretch | SysV | (Mepis+antiX) XFCE desktop; supported architectures: amd64, i386 |
| TrisquelDW | 9 Stretch > Ubuntu 16.04 | upstart | LXDE and MATE desktops; amd64 and i386 |
| WindowMaker Live(2)DW | 8 Jessie | SysV | both WindowMaker + XFCE are preinstalled; amd64, i386 |
Devuan based
| Name | Init | Details / Notes |
|---|---|---|
| EterTICs GNU/Linux | SysV | XFCE4 Desktop; amd64, i386; 100% Free Software, Kernel-free and processing FSF recognition. |
| Exe GNU/LinuxDW | SysV | features Trinity Desktop Environment; amd64, i686 |
| RefractaDW | SysV + OpenRC | (2) (3) amd64, i386; also: (Refracta Devuan 2) Openbox, eudev |
Gentoo based
- Calculate Linux DW SysV + OpenRC; Cinnamon, KDE Plasma, LXQt, MATE, Xfce
- Chromium OS (2) upstart init (boot-design doc)
- Funtoo Linux DW FAQ (source-based; uses git-housed, distributed Portage tree and Funtoo overlay) OpenRC init; amd64, i486, i686, sparc64
- Redcore Linux DW SysV + OpenRC; serves pre-built binary packages from repository; KDE Plasma, LXQt, OpenBox
NOTE: Additional Gentoo/*BSD subprojects exist, providing ports to various BSD-derived operating systems. See: Gentoo/Alt
based on Other
- CruxEX (based on #CRUX) (2)(3) x86_64 (using linux kernel 4.18); available only as a zip file, no iso; LXDE desktop
- Uplos32 (2) (3) (based on #PCLinuxOS) targets i386 machines; uses APT+RPM package mgmt
Puppy Linux based
- Legacy OSDWSF (previous name: TEENpup) focused on supporting Pentium 3 and 4 (Sept2017 release ships Linux kernel v2.6.18)
Other pages listing more Puppy Linux derivatives: [4][5][6]
Slackware based
- Absolute Linux DW (based on Slackware64-current) IceWM+ROX; supported architectures: i686, amd64
- Salix OSDW i486, i686, amd64
- ConnochaetOS DW (based on Slackware+Salix) removes upstream proprietary software and binary blobs, ships free (libre) software only. IceWM; supported architectures: i486, i686
- SlackelDW (based on Slackware+salix) amd64, i486, i686
- Slint (2) (3) (based on Slackware + Salix) accessible to visually impaired users (speech and braille device)
- SARPi (2) Slackware ARM on Raspberry Pi
- SlaXBMC (2)
- Superb Mini Server (2) fluxbox WM; i486, amd64
- Vector Linux DW i486, amd64
- ZenwalkDW suported architectures: amd64, i486, i686
Available without standard GNU tools
- #Alpine Linux ___ (xref: listed in "Independent" table, above)
- EasyOS (2)(3)(4) aufs layered filesystem, containers; ROX desktop
- #Ataraxia Linux ___ (xref: listed in "Independent" table, above)
- NanoLinuxDW BusyBox init; (derived from Tiny Core Linux : microcore) SLWM window manager. Requires only 14 MB disk space
- Sabotage Linux (musl libc + BusyBox init) i386, x86_64, MIPS, PowerPC32, ARM(v4t+)
- #Void Linux ___ (xref: listed in "Independent" table, above)
- XBian (based on Debian) media center distribution for the Raspberry Pi, CuBox-i, and other arm devices (init: Upstart)
Linux From Scratch (LFS)
Linux from Scratch DW is not a distribution, it is a book instructing how to build your own Linux system from source.
LFS can be used with SysV. i386, x86_64; (also CLFS, aka Cross LFS supports additional architectures: mips, powerpc, ppc64, alpha, sparc, hppa, arm)
Beyond Linux From Scratch (BLFS) is a project that continues where the LFS book finishes.
It assists users in developing their systems according to their needs by providing a broad range of instructions for installing and configuring various packages on top of a base LFS system.
special-purpose distributions
- IPFire (2)(3) (forked from IPCop, based on LFS) firewall distribution for x86 and ARM-based systems; armv5tel, i586, x86_64
- Maemo Leste (based on Devuan Ascii) for Nokia N900/N950/N9 and Motorola Droid 4 mobile phones, Allwinner tablets, and Raspberry Pi 2, 3
and Olimex Lime 2 SBCs[7] mainline Linux; OpenRC init; Hildon desktop; architectures: armel, armhf and amd64
- PicarOS (2) "suitable for kids from 3 to 12 and teachers" ?; XFWM + LXDE desktop; i486, i686
- Porteus Kiosk DW BusyBox init; lightweight kiosk
- RancherOSDW a minimalist Linux distribution designed to host Docker containers. Supported architecture: amd64
- Smoothwall Express Community Edition firewall O/S, provides a web interface
- TinyPaw-Linux (based on CorePlus) a self-described "passive & aggressive WiFi attack distro"
- TLD Linux for server environments (no desktop support except for running VNC/RDP sessions for virtual machine management GUI) ; amd64 and i686
liveboot-only distributions
- AUSTRUMIDW bootable live CD, to be run from RAM (iso images via ftp)
- heads (based on Devuan) The Heads incognito live OS, intended as a systemd-free alternative to Tails, the Amnesia incognito live OS
- Liveslak Liveslak is the project which generates the ISO images for many variants of the Slackware Live Edition. Supported architectures: i486, i586, amd64.
- Minimal Linux Live (2)(3) Linux kernel, GNU C library, and BusyBox init; i386, x86_64
- PentooDW Gentoo-based security-focused live CD; i686, x86_64
- PorteusDW (based on Slackware 14.2) lightweight modular live CD/USB; i486, amd64
- SliTaz GNU/LinuxDW BusyBox init, uses tazpkg, lightweight live CD/USB, supported architectures: armel, i386, x86_64
- TAZ (2)(3) (SliTaz fork) (also: a gentoo-based version ) runs entirely from RAM; openbox desktop
- ToOpPy Linux (2) (based on PuppyLinux) liveboot, operates completely in RAM; JWM desktop
distributions tailored for Embedded devices
- ChibiOS/RTSF ARM7, Cortex-M0, Cortex-M3, Cortex-M4, PowerPC e200z, STM8, AVR, MSP430, ColdFire, H8S, x86
- DD-WRT W a Linux based alternative OpenSource firmware suitable for a variety of WLAN routers and embedded systems
- DevuanEmbedded (xref: Devuan GNU+Linux)
- Gargoyle work is underway to port Gargoyle to the latest version of LEDE
- LEAF (Linux Embedded Appliance Framework) xref: Bering-uClibc
- libreCMC (LibreWRT successor) supports a wide range of routers, plus some small single board computers. FSF-approved
- Moebius Linux ?what init system?, armhf changelog minimal (no X) distro currently focused on RaspberryPi v3
- OpenWrt (LEDE merged into OpenWrt) provides a fully writable filesystem, and package management
- PiBox (BusyBox init) an embedded distribution for the Raspbery Pi
- postmarketOS (2)(3) a touch-optimized, pre-configured Alpine Linux tailored for smartphones and other mobile devices
- ProteanOS (2) (BusyBox init) an FSF-approved Linux-libre distribution for embedded systems
non-English distributions
- aldOS Spanish distro, uses upstart, eudev, ConsoleKit2[8]; MATE desktop
- mdrights live Chinese Liveslak-based distro, mdrights is a Chinese social rights movement; amd64
- Pisi Linux DW Turkish distro (sysvinit + python init scripts) amd64
- Plamo Linux DW Japanese Slackware-based distro; i486, amd64
- Vine Linux DW Japanese PCLinuxOSbased distro, Kanji support across most applications; Japanese input support via FreeWnn or Canna input server; amd64, i686, powerpc
- Wifislax DW(3) Spanish Slackware-based distro; i486
