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  5. Arch Linux vs Gentoo Linux

Arch Linux vs Gentoo Linux

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

Arch Linux
Arch Linux
Stacks562
Followers555
Votes108
Gentoo Linux
Gentoo Linux
Stacks64
Followers78
Votes41

Arch Linux vs Gentoo Linux: What are the differences?

<Write Introduction here>

  1. Installation Process: Arch Linux provides a simpler and more streamlined installation process compared to Gentoo Linux. Arch Linux offers a guided installation via its Arch Linux Installer, making it more accessible for beginners. On the other hand, Gentoo Linux requires users to compile everything from source, making the installation process more time-consuming and complex.

  2. Package Management: Arch Linux utilizes the Pacman package manager, known for its simplicity and speed in managing software packages. In contrast, Gentoo Linux uses Portage as its package manager, which focuses on source-based package management and allows for extensive customization of software packages.

  3. Release Model: Arch Linux follows a rolling-release model, providing continuous updates and ensuring that users always have access to the latest software versions. On the contrary, Gentoo Linux follows a more conservative approach with releases, allowing users to have more control over when and how they update their software packages.

  4. Community Support: Both Arch Linux and Gentoo Linux have active and supportive communities, but Arch Linux tends to have more widespread recognition and a larger user base. This results in more readily available resources, forums, and guides for Arch Linux users, compared to Gentoo Linux users.

  5. Resource Usage: Gentoo Linux tends to be more resource-intensive compared to Arch Linux due to its source-based nature and the need to compile packages from scratch. Arch Linux, being more minimalist in its default installation, typically requires fewer system resources and offers a lighter performance footprint.

  6. Philosophy and Approach: Arch Linux prioritizes simplicity, minimalism, and user-centric design, aiming to provide a lightweight and customizable experience. On the other hand, Gentoo Linux emphasizes flexibility, customization, and optimization through source code compilation, catering to users who desire granular control over their system configurations.

In Summary, Arch Linux and Gentoo Linux differ in their installation processes, package management, release models, community support, resource usage, and underlying philosophies and approaches.

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Advice on Arch Linux, Gentoo Linux

Simon
Simon

Developer Advocate at k6 / Load Impact

Mar 7, 2020

Decided

At the moment of the decision, my desktop was the primary place I did work. Due to this, I can't have it blow up on me while I work. While Arch is interesting and powerful, Ubuntu offers (at least for me) a lot more stability and lets me focus on other things than maintaining my own OS installation.

299k views299k
Comments

Detailed Comparison

Arch Linux
Arch Linux
Gentoo Linux
Gentoo Linux

A lightweight and flexible Linux distribution that tries to Keep It Simple.

It is a free operating system based on either Linux or FreeBSD that can be automatically optimized and customized for just about any application or need.

-
Development made easy;Cross-compilation made easy;High performance;Great support of hardware;High availability of modern packages;System consistency;Modular init system
Statistics
Stacks
562
Stacks
64
Followers
555
Followers
78
Votes
108
Votes
41
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 17
    Large Community
  • 15
    Package Manager
  • 13
    Customizable
  • 12
    Rolling Release
  • 11
    Arch User Repository
Cons
  • 4
    Systemd only
  • 3
    Only X86_64 architecture is offically supported
  • 1
    Comparatively fewer offically supported packages
  • 1
    Unstable
  • 1
    System maintenance
Pros
  • 3
    Control
  • 3
    Portage package manager
  • 3
    OpenRC or systemd init
  • 2
    X86_64 architecture supported
  • 2
    Flexibility
Cons
  • 2
    No guided installation
  • 2
    Circular dependancy conflicts
  • 2
    Dated documentation
  • 1
    Compilation time
  • 1
    Complexity
Integrations
No integrations available
Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure
Jenkins
Jenkins
Hyper
Hyper

What are some alternatives to Arch Linux, Gentoo Linux?

Ubuntu

Ubuntu

Ubuntu is an ancient African word meaning ‘humanity to others’. It also means ‘I am what I am because of who we all are’. The Ubuntu operating system brings the spirit of Ubuntu to the world of computers.

Debian

Debian

Debian systems currently use the Linux kernel or the FreeBSD kernel. Linux is a piece of software started by Linus Torvalds and supported by thousands of programmers worldwide. FreeBSD is an operating system including a kernel and other software.

Fedora

Fedora

Fedora is a Linux-based operating system that provides users with access to the latest free and open source software, in a stable, secure and easy to manage form. Fedora is the largest of many free software creations of the Fedora Project. Because of its predominance, the word "Fedora" is often used interchangeably to mean both the Fedora Project and the Fedora operating system.

Linux Mint

Linux Mint

The purpose of Linux Mint is to produce a modern, elegant and comfortable operating system which is both powerful and easy to use.

CentOS

CentOS

The CentOS Project is a community-driven free software effort focused on delivering a robust open source ecosystem. For users, we offer a consistent manageable platform that suits a wide variety of deployments. For open source communities, we offer a solid, predictable base to build upon, along with extensive resources to build, test, release, and maintain their code.

Linux

Linux

A clone of the operating system Unix, written from scratch by Linus Torvalds with assistance from a loosely-knit team of hackers across the Net. It aims towards POSIX and Single UNIX Specification compliance.

CoreOS

CoreOS

It is designed for security, consistency, and reliability. Instead of installing packages via yum or apt, it uses Linux containers to manage your services at a higher level of abstraction. A single service's code and all dependencies are packaged within a container that can be run on one or many machines.

Alpine Linux

Alpine Linux

Alpine Linux is a security-oriented, lightweight Linux distribution based on musl libc and busybox.

Manjaro

Manjaro

It is an accessible, friendly, open-source Linux distribution and community. Based on Arch Linux, it provides all the benefits of cutting-edge software combined with a focus on getting started quickly, automated tools to require less manual intervention, and help readily available when needed.

FreeBSD

FreeBSD

An operating system for a variety of platforms which focuses on features, speed, and stability. It is derived from BSD, the version of UNIX® developed at the University of California, Berkeley. It is developed and maintained by a large community.

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