a word of warning: this page, and the pages for older machines in general, will make assumptions that you are a slightly more technical person than the windows 10 to linux guide. most of these recommendations are slightly more niche, "old hardware oriented" linux distributions with less ease of use features and a smaller community. you don't need to be a leet haxor, but you do need some basic troubleshooting knowledge. an enthusiast or moderately technical beginner shouldn't have any trouble with this.
also, this page assumes your computer is 64-bit. if your computer isn't VERY cheap or originally designed for a much older windows version like 7 or vista, that's probably a safe bet. if you aren't sure, you should go check that. if your computer is actually 32-bit, you should go back to the main guide and hit "32-bit computers, pentium 4 or newer" or click this link to my 32-bit systems guide.
table of contents
what computers are supported / am i on the right page?
this page is written for computers with an older, slower, x86_64 CPU and from 8 GB down to 512 MB of RAM. examples include windows 8 era netbooks with AMD vision or (most) intel atom CPUs, as well as older high-end / desktop CPUs like core 2 duo/quad, early intel core i3/i5 CPUs, later gen pentium 4 CPUs, AMD opteron, athlon 64, turion 64, etc. if your computer runs a 64-bit version of windows 8, 7, vista, or XP, you are likely in the right place.
if you have a core i7/i9 or a ryzen CPU (even an old one!) and/or 16 GB or more of RAM, e.g. you have a high-end windows 7 gaming computer or workstation, you can probably run any normal, mainstream linux distro with ease, like my recommendation for windows 10 users.
if you have a 32-bit CPU, like a first gen intel core duo/solo (i think these were only shipped in laptops around 2005-2006), a centrino duo, an AMD athlon/turion without "64" in its name, an early pentium 4, or some early intel atom and celeron processors, you should go back to the main guide and hit "32-bit computers, pentium 4 or newer". if your CPU doesn't support SSE2 (it's from before 2002 and isn't a pentium 4), you should go back to the main guide and hit "pentium III class". if you are one of the very rare people who might have a 64-bit CPU and less than 512 megabytes / 0.5 gigabytes of RAM, you should also check "pentium III class" - those recommendations will also support a 64-bit CPU.
which distro should i use?
again, that depends on how fast your computer is. here are several options! i'll give a short description of each of them, my personal minimum/recommended hardware requirements for each of them based on my own trial and error, and then link you to the section below where you can try to install them.
linux mint: this is my recommendation for windows 10 refugees, and while the flagship linux mint cinnamon desktop is a bit slow on less than 8 gigs of RAM or a slower CPU, mint has performance-friendly versions as well! these are a bit clunkier than the default version, but are still fairly user-friendly and nice for new linux users.
the options for older computers are called linux mint XFCE and linux mint MATE. they're about equal in performance, but XFCE is slightly more customizable and MATE is slightly easier to use by default (at least in my opinion). MATE is very slightly faster, but the difference is so small that you probably won't notice, and their recommended hardware specs are the same. i personally prefer MATE and find XFCE clunky and unintuitive, but most linux users prefer XFCE.
here are the recommended hardware specifications for mint XFCE / mint MATE:
- most 64-bit windows 7 or 8 CPUs - will likely be very slow to unusable on a cheap netbook, like an intel atom or a low-end AMD vision (vision premium, vision ultimate, and vision black are fine).
- 4 gigabytes (GB) of RAM - may run on 2 GB or less, but multitasking will be difficult and very slow.
- 32 gigabytes (GB) or more of disk space.
if this sounds like your computer, you can get linux mint XFCE/MATE download instructions here.
Q4OS: this is a niche option compared to linux mint, but still quite user-friendly. it is specifically designed for older and slower computers. it has two versions: a flagship "Plasma" version, and an extra performance-friendly "Trinity" version. it has a version that supports 32-bit CPUs, but this is likely to be discontinued soon, and so i don't recommend switching to use it now. it can be configured to look like older versions of windows, and the trinity version looks a lot like windows XP by default. i was shocked by how similar it felt to an old windows version, like windows 7 or XP. if you love those versions of windows, you will probably like Q4OS.
the trinity version is much faster than the plasma version, but it's also a bit clunkier to use, and doesn't work well with 2 or more screens plugged in. i like it a bit better than linux mint's XFCE or MATE, but if you run a multi-monitor setup, it's probably not for you. the plasma version would probably feel fantastic on a mid to high-end windows 7 or 8 computer, and is very feature rich and user friendly.
here are the recommended hardware specifications for Q4OS Plasma:
- a decent windows 7 or 8 CPU - ideally an intel i3 or better, or an AMD athlon II / phenom II or better. may be a bit slow on the low end of this range.
- the website says 2 GB of RAM, but i am very skeptical. i would say 4 GB bare minimum, 8 GB recommended.
- 64 GB of disk space or more.
if this sounds like your computer, you can get Q4OS Plasma download instructions here.
here are the recommended hardware specifications for Q4OS Trinity:
- any 64-bit CPU - seriously. trinity is not much more CPU demanding than windows XP. it'd fly on a pentium 4 or a basic AMD vision / intel atom, even if you turn all the performance settings to max. honestly, it'd probably be usable on some late '90s CPUs like a pentium III katmai/coppermine, but Q4OS is discontinuing 32-bit support.
- the website says it'll run on 512 megabytes (0.5 gigabytes) of RAM, but i'd personally recommend at least 1 gigabyte to run modern apps. (again, yes, seriously. i run trinity on a system with 3 GB, and it feels like more RAM than i'll ever need.) if you want to run trinity on a 512 meg system, maybe consult the software megathread for useful programs that'll actually run on such a low amount of RAM.
- 16 GB of disk space or more. (you might be able to get away with less? unlikely that a machine with the other specs will have less than this anyway.)
- one monitor - reminder, trinity doesn't work well on multi-screen setups. you can try it, but you'll probably have issues. consider anything else if you plan to use 2 or more screens at the same time.
if this sounds like your computer, you can get Q4OS Trinity download instructions here.
MX linux: the linux hacker's lightweight distribution. its hardware requirements are somewhere between linux mint XFCE/MATE and Q4OS Trinity. it is very different to windows, appeals mostly to linux power users and technical people, and you will probably be opening the terminal a lot, but it ships a pretty complete set of applications by default, all of which are designed to work fairly well on older computers. i actually discovered several cool applications when i tried MX that have since made it onto most or all of my computers, and onto the software megathread. it isn't hard to use, exactly, just very different from windows.
MX has three versions: an XFCE version, a Plasma version, and an Openbox version. the XFCE version is the most popular and the best supported. the Plasma version is much heavier, but more like Windows and easier to use. the Openbox version is lighter than the XFCE version, but its learning curve is even steeper, and if you aren't already a linux person, you probably won't like it.
here are the recommended hardware requirements for MX Linux XFCE:
- most 64-bit CPUs. it'll probably be roughly as fast as windows 7 with aero effects turned off, if that means anything to you.
- 2 GB of RAM. it might be usable on 1 GB, but no promises.
- 16 GB of disk space.
the Plasma version needs more resources, about the same as Q4OS Plasma. the Openbox version needs less, probably about the same as Q4OS Trinity (except for the multi-monitor part - MX Openbox runs fine on multi-monitor setups).
if this sounds like your computer, you can download the MX linux installers here. burn the .iso file for the edition of your choice to a USB stick using rufus or your tool of choice, and boot from it to install. i would usually write a more detailed, step-by-step guide with links to additional resources here, but if you need a more detailed guide than that, you probably won't like MX linux anyway - it's meant for fairly experienced or technical users who can figure things out on their own after all. if you plan to use it, think of this like a skill check to see if you're ready :)
installing linux mint
- go get a USB storage device, ideally a thumbdrive at least 8GB in size. you can also burn the linux mint installer to a DVD and then use that (yes, i've tried.) just be advised that if you do that, i'm going to assume you already know how to burn a DVD or can figure that out on your own. rufus won't be able to burn to a DVD (at least as far as i know), so ignore the parts that mention it.
- be advised that in this process, all files on the USB storage device will be deleted and lost, so you should either copy them off first or use an empty drive. you should also back up any files you want to keep on your C: drive, either to your D: drive if you have one, or externally somehow. that means this will be a lot easier if you have one small flash drive for the installer, and one big external hard drive for your personal files.
- go download rufus from https://rufus.ie/en/. at time of writing, the latest version (and the one that will work for most people) is
rufus-4.15.exe. you most likely DO NOT want the portable version i.e.rufus-4.15p.exe, the 32-bit version i.e.rufus-4.15_x86.exe, or the ARM version i.e.rufus-4.15_arm64.exe. - go to https://www.linuxmint.com/download.php, find "Xfce edition" or "MATE edition", and hit Download. scroll down to "Download mirrors", and pick a link in or near your country. if there isn't any near you, the first link "Cicku" is generally a safe bet. you can also hit "Torrent download: 64-bit" at the top, if you know what a torrent is and how to download one.
- you should now be downloading a file called
linuxmint-[some numbers]-[your edition name]-64bit.iso. wait for that to complete, and open rufus. - in "Device", select the small USB stick you're using for the installer. if you are using an external hard disk or SSD for this part, [not recommended], the program will send you a warning. reminder that when the installer is written to the drive, everything else on the drive will be erased!
- in "Boot selection", select the Linux Mint .iso file that you just downloaded. leave all other options on default.
- press "Start" at the bottom.
- wait for it to complete - this may take several minutes.
- when the write completes, make sure you eject the drive safely through file explorer - don't just unplug it! doing so can corrupt the installer and make it unbootable, and if this happens, you'll have to start over with writing the image.
- to install linux from the install media you've created, you will need to enter the boot menu on your computer, or enter "Advanced startup" if such an option exists on your version of windows. how you do this depends on your computer and OS - usually, you will need to press some function key like F5 or F9 while the computer is booting.
- when you enter the boot/startup menu, look for an option to select a boot device, and select the USB drive you created. you will then boot from the USB drive.
- from there, you will be loaded into the linux mint installer (assuming it was written properly to the USB drive, and you selected the correct USB drive at the boot menu). the installation from here is explained by the linux mint team at https://linuxmint-installation-guide.readthedocs.io/en/latest/install.html. this guide is for cinnamon edition, but it should be almost exactly the same process on your edition, besides some slight cosmetic differences.
installing Q4OS
you can download Q4OS from here. there are three options: Plasma live, Trinity live, and Trinity install-cd. if you want the Plasma edition, you should pick Plasma live. if you want the Trinity edition, you should probably pick Trinity live. if your computer has a very low amount of RAM (1 gigabyte or less), or can only boot from a CD drive, you should pick Trinity install-cd - just be advised that the installer for it is a lot more basic.
there's also the legacy 32-bit install CD, but as a reminder: this edition is being discontinued, and no new versions will be released. finally, there's the "installer for windows", but for reasons explained in my windows 10 to linux guide, i don't recommend using this method.
once you have the .iso file for the installer of your choice, the process is broadly similar to the one for linux mint (more detailed instructions there) - burn the .iso to a USB thumbdrive using rufus, or to a CD or DVD. then, boot from this USB drive, and follow the install process in the linux environment. there are official step-by-step instructions on the Q4OS website, but be advised that these seem to be out of date.