Vector Linux for Low-End Hardware

[This article was contributed by Ladislav Bodnar]

Vector Linux is a distribution with a difference - its main goal is to be suitable for deployment on old hardware. This can be useful for low-budget institutions, such as schools, or organizations where IT spending has been given low priority. It is also perfect for those Linux developers who create for love, rather than money.

How light-weight is Vector Linux? Its features page claims that the distribution will run fine on systems with 16 MB of RAM, while the full installation only requires 435 MB of hard disk space. And yes, this refers to an installation with a full graphical desktop! If this doesn't sound like quite an achievement, then remember that the most recent versions of Red Hat Linux will refuse to install on systems with less than 64 MB or RAM in text mode and less than 128 MB of RAM in graphical mode.

While running a Linux distribution on older hardware might not always be the most satisfying experience, Vector developers have managed to ease the pain by carefully selecting the lightest applications possible. Thus, Opera is the only available web browser, Sylpheed the sole mail client and AbiWord is the lone office application. The only choice available to user is the presence of two window managers - IceWM and XFce. As a result, the size of the entire ISO image is kept down to 225 MB, download of which could even be considered by patient dial-up users.

What is the philosophy behind Vector Linux? Robert S. Lange, Vector's Chief Architect outlines some ideas in this interview with Tinyminds.org: "Vector's popularity stems from the large base of old hardware users. All of the major distros have pretty much abandoned the old hardware users so I think I have a real responsibility to keep the Vector option open to those people." He continues: "I really see Vector as a midstream distro, somewhere in between the total geek Gentoo and the total newbie distros like Mandrake, Lycoris or (heaven forbid) Lindows. The beautiful thing is, just as in bottled water, there is room for all of us, because as individuals, we all have a choice."

Vector Linux is based on the good old Slackware distribution, while maintaining full compatibility with its more famous cousin. This has an advantage that Slackware packages, both official and community contributed (e.g. by LinuxPackages.net), can be installed on Vector to expand its functionality. Vector Linux also provides a text-mode configuration tool called "vasm" for basic post-install hardware configuration.

Besides the Standard Edition, Vector Linux also offers two other editions of the product. Vector's SOHO Edition is a complete distribution inclusive of KDE, OpenOffice and other tools for small businesses. Vector Live CD Edition is a distribution running directly from CD, provided for evaluation purposes or for use as a rescue disk. The latest versions of Vector's SOHO and Live CD offer hardware auto-detection and configuration. While all these products are available as free downloads, Vector's developers rely on sales of the packaged Deluxe Edition for income and continued development of the product. The newly introduced Club Vec is another way to contribute to the project.

Vector's increasing popularity is reflected in positive reviews in the Linux media. A recently published and very thorough comparison review of several distributions by OSNews concludes that "Vector is an amazing distribution. It integrates some of the best software available into its base install, and it runs flawlessly." Another positive Vector 3.2 Deluxe review has been published by MadPenguin.org.

If you need an OS for that old notebook lying idly under the table, then give Vector Linux a try. And if you happen to enjoy its speed and functionality, Vector's SOHO edition might just be that perfect OS even for your more powerful workstation.