Required ram for linux

[computerages]

hi, i was just curious what is the minimum amount of ram a computer should have to run Linux efficiently with all the industry-standard softwares it comes with....(gimp, openoffice, etc.)

[John A]

It depends a lot on which distro you're running, and how many services you plan to run. In general, no less than 128 mb should be used on modern Linux distributions. However, Slackware can get away with a lot less, something like <48 MB. This is not ideal, though.

Ideally, a distribution should have at least 256 MB to run comfortably.

[TheNNS]

It depends a lot on which distro you're running, and how many services you plan to run.

Yes, it all depends on what distro you're using. Xubuntu runs well on old pc's, and yellow dog also runs well on old macs.

[jbennet]

To use OOO and gimp under something like KDE:

128mb will run debian sarge slackware etc........
256 will run ubuntu
512 will run xandros, linspire etc

[linux]

what about for fedora core 1?

[TheNNS]

256mb should do it. but again the more you have, the better it'll run.

[John A]

what about for fedora core 1?

You shouldn't be running FC 1; it's old and outdated, FC 5 is the latest and is more current.

http://fedora.redhat.com/

[TheNNS]

if he wants to run fedora 1, that's his choice. What if the comp he has will only run fedora 1?

[John A]

if he wants to run fedora 1, that's his choice. What if the comp he has will only run fedora 1?

Yes, but Fedora Core 5 offers many more security updates and other "goodies", and if his computer can run it, there's no earthly reason why to stick with FC1.

computerrages, why don't you post your technical specifications of the computer?

[linux]

well, i'm the one who's installing fedora core 1. i have downloaded the images for fedora core 5, but two of them are too large for cd... (i have posted a thread for this). i have 2 4gb hard drives and 256mb ram. i have no idea of my other specs, i'll get back to you when i find them (this is a realllly old machine that my dad gave to me when i was 7, i'm 13 now).

[John A]

well, i'm the one who's installing fedora core 1. i have downloaded the images for fedora core 5, but two of them are too large for cd... (i have posted a thread for this). i have 2 4gb hard drives and 256mb ram. i have no idea of my other specs, i'll get back to you when i find them (this is a realllly old machine that my dad gave to me when i was 7, i'm 13 now).

That should be alright to run Linux decently.... have fun :D

[dgbraun]

I have an old PC w/256K RAM, runs at 633 MHz: I put Fedora 8 on it. It runs fine, just a little slow for my taste, but faster than Win2K

[linux]

256K RAM? You mean 256MB RAM?

[dgbraun]

OOOPS! Yes I mean 256mb RAM. I also dual boot it w/DOS/Win3.1 for some old games

[jbennet]

my dos machine has 256kb ram , i think

[linux]

But 256K RAM to run FC8!?

[jbennet]

no way

fc8 runs slow on 256 even

[linux]

Ubuntu even runs slow on 256/333MHz

[jbennet]

ubuntu is slow though

debian (stable) runs well on machines with 256 or 128mb ram, and 533-1ghz cpus

[dgbraun]

A little off topic, but which other distros would you suggest might work best on a 633MHz Celeron (not sure which specifically, but circa 2001) w/256 MB RAM, & a DVD reader? I'm not quite ready to install from scratch, but I'm pretty good at getting most distros on my box (the ones that work, anyway.) I've not had much luck figuring out how to install Debian Etch.
Thanks for any suggestions!

[John A]

A little off topic, but which other distros would you suggest might work best on a 633MHz Celeron (not sure which specifically, but circa 2001) w/256 MB RAM, & a DVD reader? I'm not quite ready to install from scratch, but I'm pretty good at getting most distros on my box (the ones that work, anyway.) I've not had much luck figuring out how to install Debian Etch.
Thanks for any suggestions!

The problem with Linux distros is that the more optimized systems resulting from an install tend to be the more difficult ones to install. Debian has found a pretty good "happy medium" with its system, meaning that it isn't bogged down with bloatware while still remaining relatively simple to install. In short, I'd recommend using this distro if you want good performance on your machine.

Since you're having issues with installation, and in the spirit of self-promotion, I link you to an article I wrote some time ago:
http://www.tuxation.com/installing-debian-etch.html

If you have any particular issues with the installation of Debian, please create a new thread.

[jbennet]

debian install walkthorugh

1)

Do not try downloading all 20+ debian cds. You will die.
Instead download the netinstall .iso image for debian stable(you want the i386 version)
Netinstall is about ~180mb and will download only as much as you need from the net during the install

2)
burn the .iso image file in a special way (dont do it like a notmal file!, use the burn ISO/Burn image function in your burning studio or alternatively download the free version of some easy to use software callled DeepBurner)

3)
set your bios to boot from the cd

4)
if you want a graphical installer type "installgui" at the prompt

5) install. Debian cannot shrink a windows NT partition

[dgbraun]

Thank you both, John A and jbennet: your responses have given my the knowledge to try Debian and install only what I need! Thanks again, and if I need further help, or have other questions, I will open a new thread.
dg

[linux11]

I am new to Linux, up to now i am using windows.
My system conf. is 256MB ram/1.5 GHz/80 GB.
I want to learn linux, pls guide me which linux i install.

[jbennet]

you could install debian, centos or ubuntu, but ubuntu would run much better if you put in an extra 256mb of ram

[Fest3er]

This is a somewhat more generic answer to the original question.

Linux can run in as little as 4MB of RAM; one example of this is the DD-WRT firmware running on certain Linksys routers (among others). Other uses of Linux can require 64GB RAM and 8-way Opteron system.

One *can* run a modern Linux (Debian Etch) with an X windows session on a PIII-450 with 128MB RAM, but it will be slow. With 192MB RAM, it can easily run one GUI program at a time (Firefox, Konqueror, OpenOffice for example), but expect it to slow down if you try to do too much with any of these programs, and don't expect it to be real snappy. As a point of reference, I had to create a 14,000x14,000 pixel RGB image to use up 2GB RAM with GIMP (and telling GIMP to use up to 2GB RAM); that is rather more image than a beginner is likely to edit.

I ran the previous version of Debian for years on a PIII-866 with 512MB RAM. I used Konqueror, GIMP, OpenOffice and a number of other program simultaneously. I editted high-res pics for a 72 page pamphlet written using OO. I bought a new computer (quad Opteron with 2GB RAM) because I expected to be editting large videos (10GB-20GB HD). The speed of my old system, from a user's viewpoint, was OK. For a developer, it would have been maddeningly slow; compiling a kernel shouldn't take more than 15 minutes, IMHO.

I recently installed Debian Etch on a PIII-450 256MB RAM Dell laptop. It ain't the quickest squirrel in the tree, but it is OK for initially learning Linux and for web browsing, email and basic OpenOffice.

I taught myself Unix and C on an AT&T UNIX PC (10MHz 68010, 1MB RAM, 10MB MFM drive, primitive GUI). You don't necessarily need a lot of computer to learn unix/Linux, but do be prepared for the day when the computer is just plain too slow for you. This'll mean you've learned how to use the tool (computer) to your best advantage; a newer/faster/better computer will allow you to learn even more even faster.

In sum, you can easily run most Linux distributions with the X11 GUI, on a computer like:
400MHz CPU
512MB RAM
a semi-decent AGP video card (or built-in video)
10GB 7200 RPM IDE hard drive (20GB if you want to dual-boot XP)
With a system like this, you can perform most modern typical/basic computer functions: email, web browsing, image editting, web site maintenance, document creation/editting, spreadsheet work, DVD viewing, printing and CD/DVD burning. Don't expect too much; if you're serious about learning to use Linux effectively and efficiently, you'll soon need a much more capable computer.

Keep your expectations in check for the first few months while you learn the basics. Be prepared to install Linux several times before you get it right. If you have a fast-enough internet connection (6Mb/768Kb or faster), download the Debian netinst ISO image and install the packages you need from the network. If you have enough hard drive, use 45% for the Linux system and use the other half to hold a dd(1) image of the first 50% of the disk's block. When you screw up your Linux install (and you will), you can then dd() the original installation back into operation without having to go through the tedious installation process.