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Immutable distro on a PC. Thoughts and experience? (lemmy.ca)

submitted 3 months ago by cyborganism@lemmy.ca to c/linux@programming.dev

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I'm about to go ahead and go 100% Linux on my PC and completely get rid of Windows. The latest advancements in Windows application compatibility for Linux has taken strides and it's now easier than ever to run Windows apps thanks to Wine and Bottles and Steam's Proton. There's literally nothing I can't do in Linux that I could do in Windows.

The distro of choice I will probably go for is going to be Kubuntu. But I've been looking at immutable distros as a more stable alternative. But, it sounds to me like it's more adapted for smaller devices and IoT, like the Steam Deck or similar handheld devices.

Have you installed an immutable distro on your PC? What distro did you use? What was your experience like? What were the pros and cons according to you?

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[–] russjr08@bitforged.space 4 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I really like the concept of immutable/atomic distros, but right now its just not a super viable option for me. Every time I've tried one, there's always been something that I felt like I either couldn't install, or ran into a lot of resistance installing. Something super basic for example is OpenRazer in order to control the settings of my mouse and keyboard - the backend of OpenRazer exists as a DKMS module, and kernel modules seem to be a bit more difficult to install on an atomic distro than a "mutable" distro.

Most atomic distros have some sort of escape hatch/"break glass in case of emergency" way of installing packages directly (such as layering with OSTree distros), but those tend to have their cons and also feels like its going against the whole point if I end up having to use it a bunch.

NixOS was interesting, but I just don't have the time to learn Nix, I've tried on multiple occasions and get mostly there with configuring my system how I want... and then there's something that just doesn't work and ends up being a deal-breaker for me.

I think the endgame solution for me would be to look into something like blue-builds so that I can "craft" my own image, but again, time is the limiting issue for me.

That all being said, just because it doesn't work for me personally, that doesn't mean it won't work out for you - I'd advise anyone to give it a try if their interested.

[–] cyborganism@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 months ago

Speaking of crafting your own image, has anyone tried Ubuntu core?

[–] bsergay@discuss.online 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Something super basic for example is OpenRazer in order to control the settings of my mouse and keyboard - the backend of OpenRazer exists as a DKMS module, and kernel modules seem to be a bit more difficult to install on an atomic distro than a “mutable” distro.

IIRC, the DKMS modules are included in uBlue images. Have you tried any of their images?

[–] russjr08@bitforged.space 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I have, yeah - I've tried Bazzite (the Bazzite Portal does have an OpenRazer entry in it, but didn't seem to quite work for me at the time), Bluefin/Bluefin-Dx, and Aurora. However perhaps they didn't have it in at the time I tried the images out.

[–] bsergay@discuss.online 2 points 3 months ago

Thanks for the reply and thanks for sharing your experiences!