Comparison of Linux Distributions for the ASUS Eee PC
- Custom Eee PC Linux Distros
- Other Linux Distros (Not Custom-made For Eee PC)
Inserting information into the table
- How to correctly update the table
- How to start editing this page

Comparison of Linux Distributions for the ASUS Eee PC

There are many Linux distributions (distros) that work on the ASUS Eee PC. Below is a chart of some of their features.

ACPI #1 : Fn-F1 through Fn-F9
ACPI #2 : Suspend and/or Hibernate
ACPI #3 : Overclocking Friendly

Custom Eee PC Linux Distros

Distro Name	Eee PC Model(s)	Release Date (YY-MM-DD)	Version	Ethernet?	Wireless?	Camera?	ACPI 1?	ACPI 2?	ACPI 3?	Install Type	Custom Partition Needed?	Ease of Use	Desktop or Window Type	Supporting Group(s)	Boot Time (in sec.)	Memory Used by Install (in MB)	Hard Drive Used by Install (in MB)	Kernel Version	Resolution Size(s)	Other Comments (including USB and SD cards)
ASUS Xandros Easy Mode (System Default)	700 series	2007-10-13	Support DVD Rev. 1.3	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Suspend	Yes	Pre-Installed SSD	Yes	Very Easy	iceWM	ASUS & EeeUser Community	32 s	305 MB	2,391 MB	2.6.21.4-eeepc	800×480	Most compatible as it is designed specifically for the Eee.
ASUS Xandros Advanced Mode	700 series	2007-10-13	Support DVD Rev. 1.3	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Suspend	Yes	Pre-Installed SSD See Comments For Link	Yes	Easy	KDE	ASUS & EeeUser Community	40 s	492 MB	2,391 MB	2.6.21.4-eeepc	800×480	http://wiki.eeeuser.com/howto:getkde Very compatible, simple KDE desktop interface version of the Easy Mode setup.
Breeezy	700 series	2006-11-11	Puppy 2.13	No	Yes	Yes	Brightness Only	No		SD Card SSD USB USB Live	No	Easy		Online Forums	95 s	90 MB	147 MB	2.6.18.1	800×480 640×480	Based on Puppy Linux, this is a very responsive kernel and very small, but the bootup hangs in the middle and ends up taking a long time to boot. Otherwise this kernel is very nice out of the box.
Cruncheee	700 series 900 series 1000 series	2008-10-16	8.10.02	Yes	Yes		All But Volume Control	Suspend		LiveCD USB SSD	No	Medium	OpenBox	Online Forums	60 s	311 MB	1,424 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc-lean	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Very quick OS. Minimalistic, but very stable.
Easy Peasy	700 series	2008-11-16	1.1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Volume Up/Down (no mute), Screen Brightness, & Print Screen Only	No		SSD SD Card USB Live USB	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	65 s	496 MB	2,819 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Based on Ubuntu Netbook Remix, but much more responsive than Canonical's release.
Easy Peasy	700 series	2008-11-16	1.1 With 9.04 Upgrade	Yes	Yes	Yes	All But Wireless	No		SSD	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	47 s	311 MB	2,848 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Same build as Easy Peasy shown above, but with the 9.04 version upgrade. It made the boot much faster, but as with the Ubuntu Netbook Remix desktop, this one is a little laggy (though not as bad as Canonical's release). Almost identical, but with the differences shown in the table.
EeeOS	700 series	2007-11-12	Beta 2		Yes		No Volume			Live USB	No	Medium	Xfce	Online Forums	60 s	221 MB	462 MB	2.6.22-3-686	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	No “easy install” feature. Response and good boot time. Very basic, however, so you need some Linux experience to use and isntall it. Initial login as “root” user with no password.
EeePCLinuxOS	700 series	2008-04-23	Beta 3	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	LiveCD USB	No	Easy	KDE 3.5	Online Forums	60 s		680 MB	2.6.17.2		Compressed filesystem allows you to put a 2 GB System into a 680 MB Image. Changes, installed applications etc. are stored separately. Easy to use utility which can enable an Easy Mode overclocking or auto-login and also shows you to see remaining space on drive. As of 26 APR 2009, video drivers are incompatible with 701.
eeebuntu Base	700 series	2008-11-16	2.0 Base	Yes	Yes		No Wireless On/Off	Suspend		USB Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	70 s	392 MB	1,558 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Small & quick, but the defaults set for Firefox fonts are insanely small. I think they're 5-pt. All other system fonts are also quite small.
eeebuntu Base	700 series	2008-11-16	2.0 Base with 9.04 upgrade	Yes	Yes		No Wireless On/Off	Suspend		USB Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	50 s	341 MB	2,042 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Same as above entry, but with the 9.04 version upgrade. See chart for details. Small & quick, but the defaults set for Firefox fonts are insanely small. I think they're 5-pt. All other system fonts are also quite small.
eeebuntu Netbook Remix	700 series	2008-11-16	2.0 Netbook Remix	Yes	Yes		No Wireless	Suspend		Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	70 s	411 MB	2,415 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Responsive, fast, good font size, everything works out of the box.
eeebuntu Netbook Remix	700 series	2008-11-16	2.0 Netbook Remix with 9.04 upgrade	Yes	Yes		No Wireless	Suspend		Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	65 s	361 MB	3,108 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	This is the same as the above entry, but with the 9.04 version upgrade. See chart for details. Netbook Remix desktop page is slow and laggy. Unless you have a serious reason to upgrade, the performance hit isn't worth it.
eeebuntu Standard	700 series	2008-11-16	2.0 Standard	Yes	Yes		No Wireless	Suspend		Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Gnome	Online Forums	80 s	410 MB	2,439 MB	2.6.27-8-eeepc	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Normal Ubuntu-style desktop with an additional mac-style application dock at the bottom of the screen. Quick and responsive, with more software than the Netbook Remix.
eeeXubuntu	700 series	2007-10-14	7.10.3 Desktop	Yes	Yes	No	All But Volume	Suspend		LiveCD USB Live USB SSD SD Card	No	Easy	Xfce	Ubuntu Forums	50 s	286 MB	1,357 MB	2.6.22-14-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Responsive and has the advantages of Ubuntu software, but in a small package.
FREEEEE	700 series 900 series 1000 series	2008-10-06	20081006	Yes	701 & 900 Only	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	SD Card USB Drive	No	Easy	Openbox & Compiz	Yes	30 s	400 MB	2,400 MB	2.6.26.5-43.libre1.rt9		Unique distro. Realtime kernel with jack, so audio performance is excellent. Only distro supporting wifi with free software ath5k driver for 701/900. No wifi in 901/1000. Many packages not available in other distros. Made by BLAG and dynebolic developers. Dead links as of 2009-04-23
FluxFlux-Eee	700 series 900/A 901 1000H	2008-11	de-2008-11	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	USB Drive SD Card SSD Live USB	Yes	Medium	Openbox	http://forum.eeeuser.com http://pclinuxos.com	70 s	559 MB	2,000 MB	2.6.22.15.tex3	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	With a mac-style app bar, this desktop is a lot different than other Linux mixes. BUT, the default install is in German, so that proved an issue since I had to navigate by icon. See next entry for English version.
FluxFlux-Eee	700 series	2008-9	en-2008-9	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes, with additional shortcuts	Yes	Yes	USB Drive SD Card SSD Live USB	Yes	Medium	Openbox	http://forum.eeeuser.com http://pclinuxos.com	65 s	211 MB	1,500 MB	2.6.22.15.tex3	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	With a mac-style app bar, this desktop is a lot different than other Linux mixes, but very responsive and fully functional out of the box.
Puppy	700 series	2008-08-10	4.2	Yes	No	No	Wireless, Brightness, Suspend Only	Suspend		SSD USB Drive Live USB	No	Easy			70 s	493 MB	1,810 MB	2.6.25.16	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Booted quicker from USB than from SSD. Very responsive, but needs a little hardware tweaking to work completely.
xxxDistroxNamexxx	xxxEeePCxxx Model(s)	xReleasexDatex	xxVersionxx	Ethernet?	Wireless?	Camera?	ACPIxx1?	ACPIxx2?	ACPIxx3?	InstallxType	Custom Partition Needed?	xEasexofxUsex	xxDesktopxorxx Window Type	xSupportingxGroup(s)x	xBootxTimex	Memory Usedxby Install	xHardxDrivex Used by Install	xKernelxVersionx	Resolution Size(s)	xxOtherxCommentsx(includingxUSBxandxSDxcards)xx

Other Linux Distros (Not Custom-made For Eee PC)

Distro Name	Eee PC Model(s)	Release Date (YY-MM-DD)	Version	Ethernet?	Wireless?	Camera?	ACPI 1?	ACPI 2?	ACPI 3?	Install Type	Custom Partition Needed?	Ease of Use	Desktop or Window Type	Supporting Group(s)	Boot Time (in sec.)	Memory Used by Install (in MB)	Hard Drive Used by Install (in MB)	Kernel Version	Resolution Size(s)	Other Comments (including USB and SD cards)
Arch Linux	700 series	2008-04-02		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	SSD SD Card	No	Medium	All		15 s	90 s	2-3 GB	2.6.25	Yes	Custom kernel compilation needed.
GeexBox	700 series	2008-07-15	1.1		No	No	No	No	No	Live CD SD Card SSD	Yes	Very Easy (Keyboard Only)		GeexBox.org		64 MB	8 MB	2.6.21.3		The GeexBox is a tiny OS that turns the Eee into a media center. It works with a menu-like DVD player. Time to boot is really short, on a SD-Card, and time to shutdown is a few seconds. Shut down does not work, however.
Gentoo	700 series	2008-09-21	2008.0	Yes*	Yes*	Yes*	Yes*	Yes*	Yes*	SSD SD Card USB Drive	No	Advanced	Any	Online Wiki, Forum, & Irc				2.6.25	Yes*	All hardware works, and system operates faster then the original distribution. This Distro is for advanced users, and users who are looking to expand their knowledge of Linux. *Requires user to tweak kernel
lubuntu	700 series	2010-05-02	10.04	Yes	Yes	Yes	All But Volume	Yes	Yes	SSD SD Card USB Drive	No	Easy	LXDE	See lubuntu Wiki Pages	25 s	169 MB	1.3 GB	2.6.32-21-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Things that might be annoying: cannot set additional keyboard shortcuts, print screen button doesn't work, always warns the battery is “old and bad.” However, it is VERY quick and responsive and has a small footprint.
Mandriva	700 series	2008-04-09	2008.1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes		SSD SD Card USB Drive	No	Medium	KDE 3.5.9, Gnome 2.22, Xfce 4, IceWM, Fluxbox, etc.		75 s	300 MB	1.2 - 3.5 GB	Laptop-optimized 2.6.24.4		See Mandriva 2008.1 Wiki Pages
MiniMe	700 series	2008-03-23	2008	No	No	No	No		No	SSD	No	Advanced	KDE	No	60 s		800 MB	2.6.22.15.tex2	Yes	Current version needs advanced configuration for hardware operation
Pupeee	700 series	2008-08-10	4.2	Yes	No	No	Wireless, Brightness, Suspend Only	Suspend		SSD USB Drive Live USB	No	Easy			70 s	493 MB	1,810 MB	2.6.25.16	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Booted quicker from USB than from SSD. Very responsive, but needs a little hardware tweaking to work completely.
Ubuntu	700 series	2008-04-16	7.10 Desktop (Gutsy Gibbon)	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	SSD SD Card USB Drive Live USB	No	Medium	Gnome Compiz Fusion KDE XFCE Flux IceWM etc.	Ubuntu Forums	90 s	300 MB	2-2.5 GB	2.6.22-14 generic		*Scriptpack necessary
Ubuntu	700 series	2008-11-27	8.04 Desktop (Hardy Heron)	No	No	No	All But Volume	Suspend		SSD USB Live USB SD Card SSD	No	Medium (Compatability Issues)	Gnome	Ubuntu Forums	90 s	434 MB	2,058 MB	2.6.24-23-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Good distro. Easy to install and run, but has some hardware problems you have to work out first. Shutdown doesn't work. 9.04 Netbook Remix is better, in my opinion.
Ubuntu	700 series	2009-04-17	9.04 Netbook Remix (Jaunty)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Suspend		SSD USB Drive Live USB	No	Easy	Gnome	Ubuntu Forums	50 s	287 MB	2,040 MB	2.6.28-11-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Netbook Remix desktop runs slow on the 701 - even overclocked w/2GB RAM, but applications (like Firefox) are fast. Normal desktop is fast, however.
Xubuntu	700 Series	2009-04-17	9.04 Desktop	Yes	Yes	No	Suspend, Brightness Only	Suspend		SD Card USB SSD Live USB	No	Easy	Xfce 4	Ubuntu Forums	80 s	303 MB	1,689 MB	2.6.28-11-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Smaller installation, but doesn't work better than the 9.04 Netbook Remix
Xubuntu	700 Series	2010-04-29	10.04 Desktop		Yes		Yes	Yes	Yes	SSD USB Drive Live USB	No	Easy	Xfce 4	Xubuntu/Ubuntu Forums	40 s	330 MB	1.7 GB	2.6.32-21-generic	800×480 640×480 720×400 640×400 640×350	Faster than previous versions and everything works. Lightweight and responsive.
xxxDistroxNamexxx	xxxEeePCxxx Model(s)	xReleasexDatex	xxVersionxx	Ethernet?	Wireless?	Camera?	ACPIxx1?	ACPIxx2?	ACPIxx3?	InstallxType	Custom Partition Needed?	xEasexofxUsex	xxDesktopxorxx Window Type	xSupportingxGroup(s)x	xBootxTimex	Memory Usedxby Install	xHardxDrivex Used by Install	xKernelxVersionx	Resolution Size(s)	xxOtherxCommentsx(includingxUSBxandxSDxcards)xx

Please note that there is a table of boot times for different distros and models at:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pTAhbuCz8YBRHsoS7P4S6Ow&hl=en_GB
For additions/ comments visit: http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?pid=456733#p456733

Inserting information into the table

How to correctly update the table

If you are already using another distribution, please help keep the above charts current.

Please update the release date if you modify kernel information (Follow the standard format specified in the table, e.g. 2008-03-25 rather than your local format.)
Leave the field blank if you don't have quantified data.
Include information about the support of the distribution, with links to the Internet.
ACPI = Advanced Configuration and Power Interface.
1. Test Fn-F1 through Fn-F9.
2. Test if sleep (suspend to ram) and hibernate (suspend-to-disk) work.
3. Can you use the overclocking utilities from EeeUser.com?
Bootup Time = time starts when you press the power button to turn it on, and when the SSD stops after auto-login.
To find out memory usage, type “free” (immediately after installation) in the terminal. Then note the amount of memory in the “used” column.
To find the disk usage, type “df” (immediately after installation) in terminal. Then note the amount of disk in the “used” column.
To find the kernel version, type “uname -a” This will tell you the release date and kernel version.
To find what window resolutions are available, type “xrandr” in terminal. Note the different resolution sizes.
Above all, be brief.

How to start editing this page

It is easy to enter the informations into the wiki. You do NOT need to understand DokuWiki, just leave the chart pattern alone and add a few words next to the distribution you are using.

Register and then Login.
On this page, click “Edit This Page” in the upper-left hand corner, or click the “Edit” button on the right-hand side of a section heading.
Find the name of your distribution. You'll see “| distro_name |” which is the 1st column.
Edit the information you have to update in its specific column.
Type what you have changed on the page in the “Edit summary” box at the bottom of the editing window, justifying your changes.
Click the “Preview” button at the bottom of the editing window to see the results of your editing. Once you are sure it is correct, click the “Save” button, also at the bottom of the editing window, to save the page.
Your edits should now be visible if you refresh the page.

If you want to understand the table syntax for DokuWiki, see the Tables Section of Formatting Syntax.

FIXME If you are an expert on Dokuwiki, please modify the tables (take out the last lines and define the table width), and remove this line.