what is recommended to replace win10

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tweake

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#323415 30-Nov-2025 17:46

just ordered the upgrade for my rather embarrassingly old pc (i seam to have lost my geek card). so i will have a perfectly good pc to run linux on. question is whats the best on older hardware and is more windows like (cause i'm old).

also what works well on really old pc. i have a pc at work that runs win10 rather slowly (old i5 with sata hd) that i use now and then. i would love something i don't have to update every time i turn it on.

i have run pclinuxz and zorin before. one of them had a very low spec distro that ran on an intel p3 (?).

whats the current flavor these days ?

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#3438778 30-Nov-2025 17:59

I use Mint whenever I need Linux. It's been good for me on a variety of old and new hardware.

It feels light and responsive compared to Ubuntu. That said, it's been a long time since I used Ubuntu.

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#3438782 30-Nov-2025 18:22

+1 for Linux Mint.

Runs on anything. To make it even better, ensure you have minimum 8GB RAM, and an SSD.

XPD / Gavin

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kiruti

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#3438787 30-Nov-2025 18:49

Zorin OS looks pretty similar to Windows if that's what you're after

alisam

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#3438791 30-Nov-2025 19:19

kiruti:

Zorin OS looks pretty similar to Windows if that's what you're after

I agree.

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nzkc

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#3438862 30-Nov-2025 22:25

kiruti:

Zorin OS looks pretty similar to Windows if that's what you're after

If you want a distro thats very Windows inspired I'd look at AnduinOS. Also Ubuntu based but without snaps.

cddt

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#3438868 1-Dec-2025 06:45

Anything with Cinnamon DE will look enough like Windows.

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#3438870 1-Dec-2025 07:38

Even Kali has a neat covert Windows theme :D

https://www.kali.org/docs/introduction/kali-undercover/

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SpartanVXL

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#3438891 1-Dec-2025 09:38

Anything with KDE is pretty straightforward Kubuntu is probably the most available.

darylblake

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#3438937 1-Dec-2025 12:07

I would consider Omarchy2

Archlinux, or Ubuntu/Kubuntu dependant on if you want Gnome or KDE.

Mint is another good option.

d3Xt3r

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#3439942 3-Dec-2025 19:01

also what works well on really old pc. i have a pc at work that runs win10 rather slowly (old i5 with sata hd) that i use now and then. i would love something i don't have to update every time i turn it on.

For really old PCs, Q4OS and Puppy Linux work very well.

Q4OS with Trinity DE consumes lesser resources than all the popular DEs (including XFCE, which is known to be very lightweight). Trinity also comes with some really cool built-in themes that makes it look like Windows 9x or XP, if you like classic looks.

Puppy Linux also is also optimised for older PCs, but more interestingly, it's designed to run entirely from your RAM, which makes it lightning fast even if you're using an old SATA drive. It's also optimised to run directly from flash drives, so maybe give Puppy a try first.

tweake

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#3439960 3-Dec-2025 21:11

thx for that.

that trinty sounds really interesting, win9x theme for the retro vibes. just started assembling the new pc, waiting on a few more parts to arrive. hopefully will have a busy xmas break trying out a few new distros.

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#3439961 3-Dec-2025 21:33

Pop OS is also a good option

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

tweake

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#3447511 27-Dec-2025 11:24

quick update.

win11 pc all built and installed.

the old pc i installed mint cinnamon. the recommend etcher for making bootable usb would not work. resorted to rufus which i managed to blunder through successfully, so mints up and running. unfortunately my fav browser opera won't play video's (tho could be a problem with ads, even tho ad blocking is off). but firefox worked fine.

still tempted to try zorin, dual boot?

the other thing is something i have never done before, kvm switches so i can switch between the pc's. any recommended brands/models?

johno1234

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#3447529 27-Dec-2025 17:17

Instead of a kvm switch you could just remote desktop from one to the other.

fe31nz

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#3447550 28-Dec-2025 00:54

tweake:

the other thing is something i have never done before, kvm switches so i can switch between the pc's. any recommended brands/models?

You need to get a good KVM switch - the cheap ones do not preserve the EDID data for the monitor and get problems where it will not switch cleanly between PCs. It is not worth getting a $40 one from Aliexpress, it will only make you annoyed with the problems lack of EDID support causes. Do a search on the web page you are buying from and make sure "EDID" is there, otherwise it will not be supported.

I am using a TESmart HDK402-M24 with my Samsung 4K 43" monitor:

https://www.tesmart.com/products/hdk402-m24

Definitely not cheap, but I got it on a special deal much cheaper than that on the first day they released it. But if you do not need high end video like that, 4 PC support and dual monitor support, there are much cheaper models and the TESmart ones are all good. And much cheaper than the older brands like Rextron that are sold in NZ. TESmart do do sales like Black Friday if you want to wait. And if you find one you like, try going through the "Buy" pages and just stop before you actually buy it. You may then get an email offering a bit better deal.

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