[SOLVED] Which Linux for very old PC (dual-core CPU with 1GB ram)

[Mint Leaf]

Where can I download older versions of Linux Mint? (Specifically I was looking for the old 18 versions)

I have an older machine I want to install it on that can't handle 19-20.

The official download page only goes back as far as version 19:
https://linuxmint.com/download_all.php

Is there an official archive for the previous releases?

[xenopeek]

You can find most obsoleted ISOs still on the download mirrors: https://linuxmint.com/mirrors.php. Click a mirror close to you and browse to the stable directory. That said, you really shouldn't be wanting to use obsoleted Linux Mint releases to connect to the internet.

Obsoleted releases don't get security updates which also means you'll be using an old web browser version with KNOWN security vulnerabilities in it (websites may also warn you about the old web browser versions). And if you do online banking, don't. If something happens to your account likely your bank's fine-print will wave responsibility and accountability because you're using a system with no security updates. Hopefully that stays in the theoretical but if your computer is so very underpowered it can't run say Linux Mint 20.x Xfce I would suggest instead to look for a Linux distro specifically built for very old computers. Like antiX.

Or you know, share your system specs (run inxi -Fxxz and share output in a topic here) and get recommendations as to which Linux Mint edition will work best or what upgrade to apply to your system so it will run Linux Mint.

[Mint Leaf]

Thank you for the warning.

Don't worry the old machine I'm looking to install it on doesn't use the internet.

It just seems a shame to let it gather dust when it is still perfectly functional.


I have another question, where can I find the sha256sum.txt and sha256sum.txt.gpg for the older versions of Linux Mint?

The official verification page unfortunately doesn't appear contain them anymore.

https://linuxmint.com/verify.php

[Moonstone Man]

It just seems a shame to let it gather dust when it is still perfectly functional.

That depends on your definition of 'perfectly functional'. While the hardware might run ok, even if you did connect that machine to the net, you would not be able to install any additional software because the repositories have all been taken down.

[Mint Leaf]

you would not be able to install any additional software because the repositories have all been taken down.

So I couldn't get the video and media drivers needed to run the programs if I was using Linux Mint 18? That puts a damper on that plan. :(

I'd still like to know if the sha256sum.txt and sha256sum.txt.gpg files for older versions are retained somewhere on the offical site for future reference.

[mikaelrask]

Hey Mint Leaf if your machine is struggling run linux mint 19-20, you could try lubuntu.

[t42]

I'd still like to know if the sha256sum.txt and sha256sum.txt.gpg files for older versions are retained somewhere on the offical site for future reference.

Just follow xenopeek's advice - md5 plus sha256 hash files are inside each distribution directory.
Starting from LM 17 these files are signed, there is a gpg file as well.

[Termy]

I suggest you look into Linux Lite, Peppermint OS, Puppy Linux, and Linux Mint with XFCE. There are a lot of distributions aimed at older machines.

[Mint Leaf]

Just follow xenopeek's advice - md5 plus sha256 hash files are inside each distribution directory.
Starting from LM 17 these files are signed, there is a gpg file as well.

Where is the distribution directory, do you mean on the mirror sites?

If the identification files aren't on the official site doesn't that defeat the purpose of using them?

I've only just starting using sha256 & md5 to match file identities, what does it mean if the file is signed?

Or you know, share your system specs (run inxi -Fxxz and share output in a topic here) and get recommendations as to which Linux Mint edition will work best or what upgrade to apply to your system so it will run Linux Mint.

I just checked the system specs on the old machine:
. CPU running at "2.80 GHz x2"
. RAM: 1Gig
. Graphics: "ATI RV370".

Linux Mint 20 MATE runs pretty slow on it and lists "2GB RAM (4GB recommended for a comfortable usage)" as system requirements so that would explain it.

There are a lot of distributions aimed at older machines.

Links gathered for convenience:
Lubuntu
Peppermint OS
Puppy Linux
Linux Lite
Sparky Linux Xfce
Linux Mint with XFCE (Needs at least 2G ram, but MATE 'almost' runs so I'll give it a try.)

[xenopeek]

As this has moved away from being a support request for Linux Mint, I've moved it here and updated the topic subject.

[Mint Leaf]

As this has moved away from being a support request for Linux Mint, I've moved it here and updated the topic subject.

I agree, the topic has split. Thank you for moving it to the appropriate section.

There is still a piece of information I was hoping to learn about Linux Mint involving the identification md5 & sha256 files.

Just follow xenopeek's advice - md5 plus sha256 hash files are inside each distribution directory.
Starting from LM 17 these files are signed, there is a gpg file as well.

Where is the distribution directory, do you mean on the mirror sites?

If the identification files aren't on the official site doesn't that defeat the purpose of using them?

I've only just starting using sha256 & md5 to match file identities, what does it mean if the file is signed?

[t42]

I've only just starting using sha256 & md5 to match file identities, what does it mean if the file is signed?

It is the authenticity check as described How to verify ISO images

[t42]

Where is the distribution directory, do you mean on the mirror sites?

Yes, I mean on the mirror sites

[Termy]

...

I used to build and share Debian packages over at GitHub. I would constantly update an 'md5sums' file, in which a list of file sums could be stored for later file verification. Eventually, I decided to stop doing that, because ultimately, if someone did somehow gain unauthorized access to the Debian packages, they too could tamper with the 'md5sums' file. This, presumably, is why we sign files, making use of something like GPG. I vaguely remember reading or hearing about how the Linux Mint devs came to the same conclusion, regarding their ISOs.

You might find this helpful:

A digital signature certifies and timestamps a document. If the document is subsequently modified in any way, a verification of the signature will fail. A digital signature can serve the same purpose as a hand-written signature with the additional benefit of being tamper-resistant. The GnuPG source distribution, for example, is signed so that users can verify that the source code has not been modified since it was packaged.

Creating and verifying signatures uses the public/private keypair in an operation different from encryption and decryption. A signature is created using the private key of the signer. The signature is verified using the corresponding public key. For example, Alice would use her own private key to digitally sign her latest submission to the Journal of Inorganic Chemistry. The associate editor handling her submission would use Alice's public key to check the signature to verify that the submission indeed came from Alice and that it had not been modified since Alice sent it. A consequence of using digital signatures is that it is difficult to deny that you made a digital signature since that would imply your private key had been compromised.

[MAlfare]

I have an older machine I want to install it on that can't handle 19-20.

I have such a machine here, running LM 19.3 MATE 64 bit.
As the old Nvidia graphics card is only supported by a driver, that is not compatible with newer kernels, I have to set NOMODESET as kernel option in /etc/default/grub.

Code: Select all

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="nomodeset"

Or start in recovery mode.

Code: Select all

alf@Heinrich:~$ inxi -Fz
System:    Host: Heinrich Kernel: 5.4.0-77-generic x86_64 bits: 64 Desktop: MATE 1.22.2 
           Distro: Linux Mint 19.3 Tricia 
Machine:   Type: Desktop Mobo: MICRO-STAR model: MS-7258 v: 2.00 serial: <filter> BIOS: Phoenix v: 6.00 PG 
           date: 08/18/2006 
CPU:       Topology: Dual Core model: Intel Core2 6400 bits: 64 type: MCP L2 cache: 2048 KiB 
           Speed: 1615 MHz min/max: N/A Core speeds (MHz): 1: 1615 2: 1596 
Graphics:  Device-1: NVIDIA G73 [GeForce 7600 GS] driver: N/A 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.8 driver: vesa resolution: 1280x1024~N/A 
           OpenGL: renderer: llvmpipe (LLVM 10.0.0 128 bits) v: 3.3 Mesa 20.0.8 
Audio:     Device-1: VIA VT8233/A/8235/8237 AC97 Audio driver: snd_via82xx 
           Sound Server: ALSA v: k5.4.0-77-generic 
Network:   Device-1: Realtek RTL-8110SC/8169SC Gigabit Ethernet driver: r8169 
           IF: enp0s11 state: up speed: 100 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter> 
Drives:    Local Storage: total: 346.51 GiB used: 57.24 GiB (16.5%) 
           ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Western Digital model: WD2500JS-00NCB1 size: 232.89 GiB 
           ID-2: /dev/sdb vendor: Western Digital model: WD1200BB-00DAA1 size: 111.76 GiB 
           ID-3: /dev/sdg type: USB model: General USB Flash Disk size: 1.87 GiB 
Partition: ID-1: / size: 148.63 GiB used: 57.21 GiB (38.5%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda4 
           ID-2: swap-1 size: 6.04 GiB used: 268 KiB (0.0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda2 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 57.0 C mobo: N/A 
           Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A 
Info:      Processes: 164 Uptime: 5m Memory: 979.6 MiB used: 521.1 MiB (53.2%) Shell: bash inxi: 3.0.32 

What does

can't handle 19-20.

mean in detail?

[Tolayon]

1 GB of Ram is really low these days; at least you should try to uprade it to 2 GB if that's possible.

But if that's not an option, I would just add another candidate for a usecase like yours (since honestly, any version of Mint, even older and with Xfce only, will struggle on such an old machine).
It may not be as beginner-friendly as mint, but still a solid OS for very low-spec PCs:

Raspberry Pi Desktop, formerly known as Raspbian X86:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/software/ra ... i-desktop/

[MartyMint]

Relegate some old piece of junk to install Windows on and run Mint on your best machine.
Soar with the eagles.

[151tom]

Most lightweight distros will run OK on it however the browser is what's going to make it painful with only 1.0 GB of memory.

[ivar]

^ My findings exactly,

found an old HP netbook at work, with 1GB + Atom processor. So small and almost cute that I'd like to find a use for it
Seems to run raspberry pi OS just fine but grinds to a halt as soon as I open a webpage in chromium.

It is supposed to support 2 GB of ram, but no luck yet getting it to. With 2 GB and the rotating disk swapped for a 120 SSD, things should be more usable

[BeyondLies_MintForum]

My experience is as follows. Even with a SSD and >=3GB of RAM, some (bloated) websites, and some videos, run irritatingly poorly on machines with CPUs and/or graphics chips that are underpowered by today's standards. The processors I have in mind are dual-core (or single core) running at lower that 2.5GHz (or, for processors made in the last decade, lower than about 2.0GHz).