General Points

In the Linux world, most distributions have dropped 32-bit support. If your old computer is not 64-bit, I recommend installing Windows 7 and following my Windows guide here.

So your old computer is 64-bit? Here are some things to keep in mind before diving in.

You may find that some drivers on Linux are not as good as the ones on Windows. For example, if your onboard GPU is ATI, Linux drivers may not work as well as the old Catalyst driver on Windows. In a nutshell, some GPU features might be missing.

Distros I recommend for your old computer

  • Devuan Linux: Devuan Linux is one of my favorite distributions, and I’m currently using it. Devuan GNU/Linux is a fork of Debian without systemd. It allows users to reclaim control over their system by avoiding unnecessary entanglements and ensuring init freedom.
    This is great for old hardware fewer background services mean less CPU stress and lower RAM usage. If you are new to Linux, I recommend using XFCE. It’s a midweight desktop environment that doesn’t use many resources. In my testing, it uses around 600–700MB of RAM.
    If you are more experienced with Linux, I recommend using Openbox with Compton as a compositor. This setup can use between 400MB and 500MB of RAM after full configuration.
    Keep in mind: the more services you start at boot, the more RAM will be used.

  • GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4200 (Integrated Graphics)
  • Status: Fully functional and useful in 2026!

I decided to build this guide to show you how to get older hardware working again. Let's prove that "old" doesn't mean "obsolete."